Reality's Veil

by Damon Alan

  Nimalak nodded. “I’ll set the AI parameters to change friend to foe when sensors pick up target lock attempts.”

  “Agreed,” Baratta told her.

  Sarah approved. This was not a time to seek surrender.

  Commander Nimalak smiled the wry smile she gave when she was enjoying her job. Her fingers danced on the holoscreens at her station.

  “Two minutes,” Baratta said calmly into his comm.

  The bridge seemed to function as one creature, with one mind. Algiss prepared evacuation points and jump points near the battle. Gussick’s attentions turned to parameter reports for the ship’s engines. The flight control stations below the flag bridge echoed with noise as the controllers for the attack ships worked with their squadrons.

  “All grapplers away,” Algiss confirmed.

  “Oasis fighters are adrift, ready to transfer,” the flight deck officer reported.

  “Send them in,” Baratta ordered.

  Sarah watched the main viewscreen as a host of white dots comprising the grapplers, G-Ks, and Oasis fighters vanished, leaving only the rugged surface of the tiny moon they hovered over on the screen.

  Silence for several seconds.

  “Our squadrons have engaged,” Algiss reported.

  The large number of attack craft the Hyaku carried was impressive. In addition to the small vessels, heavy carriers were as good as cruisers on the battlefield. Add into the equation that with the abilities the adepts brought to the mix, each grappler could be as effective as a destroyer if the crew was smart.

  “We have our first enemy kills… a cruiser… and a destroyer,” Algiss informed the bridge. “And two losses.”

  Losses were unavoidable.

  “One minute,” Baratta informed the fleet.

  She wanted to go now. Three minutes was too long in retrospect. But the fleet had an order and changing it at this point would only create chaos. She waited, each second an eternity as she watched her own holoscreen. The adepts were doing well at reporting losses and kills.

  “Ten seconds.”

  Finally, they were moving in.

  The moon vanished. In its place hundreds of ships, many on fire and adrift with loss of navigational control, appeared. The battle here was as close range as any Sarah had seen for non-adept ships. The result was devastation.

  The Palidragon seemed to be adrift, having already been damaged in the Komi system. A cloud of debris and boarding shuttles surrounded the gargantuan. Ship to ship attacks had ceased, and the Palidragon was not returning fire. Either it was unwilling to do so, meaning the enemy had it, or incapable of doing so, meaning the enemy would soon have it.

  “Open fire,” Nimalak commanded her crews.

  The Hyaku shuddered as the massive ship to ship guns hurled multi-ton projectiles at confirmed enemies. The viewscreen lit up with orange tracers as the thirty-eight combat ships of Sarah’s fleet engaged targets. They were outnumbered eight to one.

  “Hail the Palidragon for me,” Sarah ordered the comm station.

  A moment later Admiral Cothis appeared on screen. “Admiral Dayson, you’re just in time.”

  “It looks like it. Are any of these ships on your side?”

  Algiss’s head snapped up toward her, catching her eyes with the rapid movement. “Admiral, the Palidragon is locking onto us.”

  Sarah’s eyes narrowed as Cothis laughed.

  “They’re all on my side,” he sneered.

  She cut the comm just as the first rounds from the Palidragon hit the Hyaku. The ship shuddered. At these ranges it had only taken a few seconds for the dreadnought to lock the target, fire, and see results. Flares lit the viewscreen as matter turned to light with the impact energies striking the Hyaku. Plasma from the first hits was ejected into space and now surrounded the carrier. That gas flashed then turned dark with each successive rapid strike.

  The munitions were probably tearing a path through the carrier to exit the other side.

  “Transfer us away!” Baratta bellowed.

  Sarah watched in horror as a FTL missile warning flashed on the tactical display. Intense light flashed for a fraction of a second, then they were somewhere else. Radiation alarms screamed in her ears.

  The Hyaku’s bridge AI interjected into the scene. “Lethal radiation dose received in outer hull compartments. Medications to moderate the symptoms the crew will experience while dying are being administered through life support systems in the affected areas.”

  “Damage control to stations. Medical personnel stand by for direction to casualties,” Nimalak stated through the ship PA

  “Report!” Baratta barked at Algiss.

  “Port side weapons are offline, buckling in dozens of hull plates, seventeen decks are damaged, and eleven sections are decompressed.” Algiss turned to Baratta, then glanced at Sarah. “AI estimates casualties in excess of six hundred.”

  Sarah’s mind screamed with hatred. Bannick!

  We have no proof this is him, Salphan replied. Why would he attack his own ship? I suspect there has been a mutiny.

  He wants our FTL system. Who knows what price he’s willing to pay? He doesn’t know it’s not a mechanical drive that he can just transfer to his dreadnought. I think it’s him.

  I recommend you do not leap to conclusions, Salphan begged. I do not think it’s him, and let’s face it. I have a deeper insight than you.

  I’ll consider your input, Salphan. But if it’s not him, it’s Cothis. And either way, I have to take out the threat, salvage what I can of the fleets we’re about to obliterate and make for home.

  And if the situation turns out to be different than your predisposition is making you believe? he asked.

  Then we will adapt when the time comes.

  “How many ships did we lose?” Sarah demanded to know from Nimalak.

  “Four corvettes, two frigates, a destroyer and a marine shuttle transport,” the commander answered.

  Oh no.

  “The Mairis?” Sarah asked.

  “No, the Keneshi.”

  The sense of relief she felt knowing Hamden’s ship wasn’t on the list made her feel guilty, and angry. Major Hamden was alive, but plenty of her people weren’t.

  “Get me a casualty report.”

  “Reports are coming in from the rest of the grappler force, Admiral,” Algiss said, interrupting her anger.

  Why was he telling her instead of Baratta? She gave him her full attention. “And?”

  “Seven of our grapplers and eighteen G-Ks are destroyed. The enemy fleet is almost entirely disabled. Only the Palidragon, a half-dozen cruisers, and maybe forty smaller ships are still functioning,” Algiss informed her, his expression a mix of relief and consternation. “Only two of our remaining grapplers have missiles available to press the attack. The Oasis fighters are empty.”

  He must have spoken to her because he’d seen her face. She’d given her emotions toward Cothis and Bannick away as she was speaking with Salphan and Nimalak.

  That only steeled her next decision. She had to see this battle come out in the Seventh Fleet’s favor. “Captain Baratta, I am assuming command. You and your XO will function as my first and second officers.”

  “You have the con, aye,” Baratta consented, giving Sarah the impression he’d expected as much to happen.

  “Mister Algiss, do you have an estimate for repairs that will bring us back into a battle-ready stance?” she asked.

  “Minimum of sixteen hours for emergency repairs, Admiral. Vital systems only.”

  “Then get started. Bring the attack craft home and rearm. What’s you’re estimate of the enemy fleet’s combat efficiency?”

  “The enemy ships are heavily damaged. As is much of our fleet. We’re probably at parity considering how small our ships are. At least until we refuel and rearm our grapplers.”

  An alarm went off at Algiss’s station.

  His expression looked as if he’d finally resigned himself to the fact life was unfair and continually stacked a
gainst him. “Gravity wave, Admiral. We have another fleet entering the system.”

  Nimalak interrupted. “One of our grapplers is receiving a distress call, Admiral.”

  The adepts were as good as any entangled radio. “From?”

  “Bannick Komi, sir. He’s no longer on the Palidragon.”

  Told you, Salphan informed her.

  “Shut up,” Sarah said out loud.

  “Admiral?” Nimalak replied, looking puzzled.

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry, Commander. That wasn’t for you.” She paused a moment to get a mental grasp on a plan. Although her fleet was brutalized, there wasn’t a current danger to any ship or person as long as no major systems failed.

  Bannick, however, seemed to have lost control to Cothis.

  Sarah resolved to kill the enemy admiral in the next forty-eight hours. She’d never liked him, something had felt off in her gut. She should have acted against him sooner.

  “Comm, get me Fleet Captain Heinrich.”

  Her friend’s face appeared at Sarah’s station.

  Sarah took the conversation private. “You have the tactical situation?”

  “Our damage? Bannick’s fleet? The new arrivals? I think I have it, Admiral.”

  Inez Heinrich was an amazing tactician. There was nobody better to consult with for a battle plan. “What would you do now, Inez?”

  “We have to kill Cothis. And I’d rescue Bannick Komi.”

  “Does he have a purpose at this point?” Sarah asked. “And are you sure this isn’t his doing?”

  “I don’t know for sure, but I don’t see that. He’s too vain to let his flagship take so many punches if he was in control. If he does have a purpose to serve for us and we let him die, then we have closed the door on any opportunity that might arise as a result of saving him.”

  “Well said. We only have a vector on his signal. As does Cothis. We’ll need a triangulation.”

  “Easier for us than the rogue fleet,” Heinrich said. “We can be anywhere, after all.”

  “Make a plan. You’re in charge. Rescue Bannick and get data on the new arrivals. I need to know who the new player is.”

  “Right away, Admiral. I’ll have the answer for you in a few hours.”

  “I trust you will,” Sarah said. “We’ll talk then.”

  She closed the link.

  Chapter 50 - A Universe Best Served Cold

  31 Noder 15332

  Bannick’s unconscious and heavily burned form floated freely down the corridor, tumbling slowly in the 0G environment. Palia wanted to panic, she didn’t know how to fly this ship, she wasn’t sure what Bannick’s escape plan was.

  The AI. Gwenn, Bannick had called her.

  “Gwenn?”

  The AI responded immediately. “Yes, Captain?”

  “I need you to serve as both a consultant and as a pilot for this vessel.”

  “I am prohibited by restraining protocols from interfacing with the major control systems of the ship. I can, however, consult as you need.”

  Palia’s throat caught at her next words, but she had no choice. “Bannick is dying. I need your help in saving him.”

  “Place Lord Komi within one of the bridge gravcouch enclosures. They are designed for medical interface.”

  Palia locked out the airlock controls, then grabbed Bannick and dragged him toward the bridge. Gwenn had conveniently lit the way with a subfloor indication system. “Gwenn, we need to escape the Palidragon at a velocity that will keep the nearby ships from attacking and destroying us. What options do I have?”

  “The lock time for an automated firing system will likely be around fifteen seconds on a ship as small as ours,” Gwenn informed her. “Within that time, you must accelerate past eighty kilometers per second to prevent destruction of the Far Reach. At that velocity the fleet’s railgun fire can’t catch you.”

  “What sort of acceleration would be required?” Palia asked.

  “Approximately 275G,” Gwenn replied.

  Palia screamed her frustration. “No human can take that!”

  “That is not accurate,” Gwenn countered. “A human in cryo-stasis suspended in liquid helium can sustain much higher acceleration than 275G.”

  “Let’s discuss the options I have here,” Palia scolded. “I’m not here to play theoretical games with you.”

  “I am not playing theoretical games. This ship is a racer. It is designed to sustain 500G for some duration.”

  “How can that be?”

  “The engine turbines are cooled via liquid helium to keep the rotors from melting under direct injection of fusion plasma. There is a significant amount of helium on board. The gravcouches are designed to initiate cryonic suspension upon command of the Captain,” Gwenn informed her. “As I said, this is a racing ship. The limitations of the human body should not be the reason a competitor flying this ship should lose a race.”

  Palia slid Bannick into the gravcouch and checked his pulse. Still breathing. “Gwenn, initiate emergency medical aid for Lord Komi.”

  “Please step back,” Gwenn instructed her. The alumiglass bubble around Bannick’s couch rotated and sealed around him. “I am initiating cryonic suspension. Lord Komi needs proper nanite treatment to survive. I can suspend his state until that happens.”

  “Good,” Palia said. “Keep him alive. Which seat is mine?”

  “You’re the captain. Any you choose, but I recommend the pilot’s position.”

  “Gwenn, if the crew is suspended cryonically, who pilots the ship?”

  “I do.”

  “You said you can’t interface with the major control systems.” Banging erupted from the corridor to the airlock. “Put the outer hull near the airlock on the main viewscreen.”

  The image popped up. Several soldiers in power suits were banging at the airlock, one punched the control interface and broke it to pieces. Equipment slid into view as the men prepared to breach the hull.

  “What is that behind them from my angle of view?” Palia asked Gwenn.

  “That is reverse thruster four,” Gwenn informed her.

  “Activate it,” Palia ordered.

  “I am unable to comply with your order, Captain, as it would violate my directive programming not to take human life.”

  Gwenn paused a moment as Palia released an expletive.

  “However, if you notice on your holodisplay at your position, the toggle I have highlighted will manually activate the thruster,” the AI continued.

  Palia pushed the toggle. The mainscreen displayed the carnage that followed. A powerful fusion blast ejected from the thruster, instantly frying the men and their equipment. What remained of them was blown to the far side of the Far Reach’s holding bay.

  “That will teach them,” Gwenn said.

  Palia laughed grimly. “I like you. How long will it take for you to be ready to launch?”

  “I am ready now. I activated the fusion plant when Lord Komi indicated his desire to come on board. It is at one hundred percent power.”

  “Then I assume I will be dead shortly. Show me how to point the ship down away from the dreadnought, and how to push acceleration to maximum.”

  “These are the controls you are looking for,” Gwenn replied. “But you will not die if you are suspended. As I was explaining when we were distracted by the assault on my airlock controls, I pilot the ship when the crew is suspended. I have a preset flight plan that I follow, deviating only to avoid danger.”

  “Can you plot a course straight down and away? At max acceleration?”

  “I can,” Gwenn replied. “Done.”

  The course appeared on the main viewscreen.

  “Then let’s get me frozen and I want you to follow that course as soon as Bannick and I are in deep enough suspension.”

  “As you wish,” Gwenn agreed. “You will feel no pain during the process. I am prepping the ship for departure.”

  The Far Reach shuddered slightly as Gwenn released the docking clamps.
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br />   “Also, once far enough away to avoid fire from the fleet, I want you to send out a distress call. Repeat it every ten minutes and mention the name Sarah Dayson in your broadcast. If Sarah Dayson attempts to intercept or board this ship, you are to comply with her orders.”

  “I will comply,” Gwenn informed her, sounding as much like a doctor speaking to a patient about to undergo surgery as an AI could.

  The alumiglass dome on the side of her gravcouch rotated around, completely enclosing her station. Chilled air pumped in, and something injected into her arm.

  “Tell Bannick I love him if he makes it and I don’t.”

  Chapter 51 - Acquisition of Resources

  Zero carried several dozen small crucibles, each containing an inactivated amalgam of himself and Genesis. They were the seeds of the next step in his plan, and his children. He was finding it hard to care for these individuals as he had for Yz, his first child that the invading enemy had murdered. Yz was a creation of his own innocence, his lack of knowledge regarding the process of procreation, as well as a rare experiment that succeeded on the first try.

  How could he not care more for his first?

  These crucibles he carried, and the beings inside, were less of him. And some of another. Another he’d created, certainly, but one that had quickly diverged from his wants and desires. Still, Genesis did see the advantage of seizing power in the Collective for space based nanite colonies. With that common ground, they would build an empire that would absorb the Original, the humans, and eliminate these new invaders.

  Wherever the strange creatures originated, Zero would find their home worlds. And he would obliterate them into glowing rubble.

  But he’d need these children of his to help accomplish that.

  Reaching his destination, his drive spun out and he vented excess heat as he dropped back into realspace. He’d have to report to Albeus on his progress soon, which meant he’d need a lie to cover his tracks toward insurrection unless he amassed the fleet he needed quickly.

  Lying felt alien. Creating a situation of imperfect knowledge as an intention felt corrupt. So much he often isolated that memory into an unimportant memory core so that he’d not be likely to recall it accidentally while searching for different data.