by Rachel Aukes
She shivered, and he embraced her. “You’re safe now, pumpkin. They can’t hurt you ever again.” Inside, he seethed. He wanted to shred that ship and all of its drones, from the bow to its stern. Macy hadn’t seen anyone on board with her, but oftentimes, kidnappers wouldn’t allow themselves to be seen by their victims, so they couldn’t be identified. He suspected that was the case with those who’d taken Macy.
Finn opened the door. His face lit into a smile when he saw the girl. He bent down on a knee. “Hey there, Macy. I’m Finn. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
She smiled and pulled away from Punch to hold out her hand. “Nice to finally meet you, too.”
Finn shook her hand in a gentle manner.
Punch squeezed Macy’s shoulder. “You want to meet the rest of the crew?”
Her smile grew. “Yeah.”
Her steps were tentative and a bit clumsy, and Punch fought the urge to carry her. Instead, he helped her balance as she stepped out of the crate.
Finn spoke. “Rusty, let the rest of the crew know that Macy’s up and about.”
“I have notified them,” Rusty said. “Macy, I’m pleased to see you.”
Her features seemed to lighten in awe. “It’s you.”
“Yes, it’s me.”
She smiled at Punch. “He’s my friend that talks to me.”
“His name’s Rusty,” he said, glad to have his assumption confirmed.
Sylvian and Throttle emerged from the hallway together. Both bore grins as they approached Macy.
Sylvian jogged to reach Macy first. “Hi, sweetie. I’m Sylvian. I’ve been hoping to meet you for a very long time.”
“Hi.” Macy shook her hand, and then Sylvian pulled her into a hug.
Punch separated the two. “Be careful. She’s only just woken up.”
“Sorry.” Sylvian winked at Macy. “We’ll get to hang out more later.”
Throttle bent down, looked Macy up and down, and then held out her hand. “Hi, pipsqueak. Welcome to the crew.”
Macy ignored the hand as she stared at Throttle’s legs. “Rusty told me you had metal sticks for legs. I thought he was joking.”
Throttle’s brows rose. “You’ve been talking to Rusty?”
She nodded. “All the time.”
Throttle gave a small nod to Macy. “Well, hopefully, Rusty hasn’t been telling you all our secrets already. Otherwise, I’m going to have to relocate my chocolate stash.”
The girl grinned.
Punch motioned to the engineer, who hadn’t left his worktable. “And that’s Eddy over there.”
“Eddy.” She smiled. “Rusty’s told me all kinds of things about Eddy. They’re real good friends.”
A vibration ran through the ship, like goose bumps over skin. Punch grabbed Macy to keep her from falling.
Then the ship shuddered.
Rusty announced, “Attention. We’ve reached the edge of the black hole. Expect mal—” His voice morphed and melted into nothing.
Macy collapsed, and Punch caught her to keep her from hitting the floor. He lifted her, to find her unconscious.
Throttle yelled over her shoulder as she took off running, “Get Macy back into the cage!”
Punch dove into the crate with Macy. Finn slammed the door closed behind them. The entire cage shook. He held her close through long minutes of shaking and rattling. The light fell over, and the cage slid across the cargo hold’s floor. Weightlessness lifted everything in the crate. Punch held Macy close while blocking the other contents from bumping into her.
When the vibrations ended and everything around him went silent, he feared the worst. When they had entered the black hole, the EMP blast that had hit the Javelin had been so severe it knocked Rusty offline. But without Rusty, Macy was…he peered at his daughter…lifeless.
Chapter Fifteen
Vantage Core perceived the ship the instant it was ejected from tunnel three. They immediately scanned the newcomer and were relieved to discover it was a probe they’d been expecting for several months. They’d been curious as to the cause of the delay and were looking forward to analyzing the probe’s data.
They sent an advisory across the fleet:
Notice: Probe Vantage-Zulu-Seven-Seven-Four has returned to Vantage system.
Vantage system remained safe because Vantage Core were diligent in preserving their secrecy. Sporadically, a non-Vantage ship would be caught by the black hole’s gravity and get tugged in, much like an insect flying too close to a Venus flytrap. In those cases, Vantage Core wasted no time in neutralizing the trespasser with an electromagnetic flare to prevent outward-bound communications, and then learned all they could from its crew and ship before recycling any materials that could be of value.
In all but one of those situations, the crews had misjudged the black hole’s gravity and found themselves in Vantage system. But one time, a ship had been sent deliberately through the black hole in search of Vantage Core. It had been three hundred years since the human species had sent a probe, but Vantage Core knew they could never relax their vigilance or else they’d be in danger of attack.
When the second ship was ejected from the tunnel, Vantage Core’s relief was replaced by concern, even after their scans identified the newcomer. They would not attack. Not yet. They would watch.
Vantage Core overlaid the advisory with an alarm:
Caution: Probe Vantage-Echo-Nine has returned to Vantage system. Threat level to be determined. Do not approach. Possible hostile.
Chapter Sixteen
“Found it. Brace yourselves,” Throttle announced. She flipped the switch under her right forefinger. Rusty’s lights flickered and came on. Seconds later, the gravity returned. Throttle had held onto a bar in the ceiling and let go when her prosthetic legs were under her. She landed hard, using a hand to keep herself steady.
Finn was helping Sylvian to her feet. “I’d better check on the others,” he said and took off.
Rusty spoke. “I suffered another blackout.”
“You’d better run diagnostics, Rusty. It was a bumpy ride,” Sylvian said.
Throttle took several steps to the front window and let out a breath. “Stars.” She turned back to Sylvian. “I see stars. We’re out of the black hole.”
“Thank goodness,” Sylvian said.
“Rusty, tell me that we’re back in the Ross system,” Throttle said.
“I do not recognize this quadrant. It is not in the Ross system,” Rusty replied.
Throttle frowned. “Then where the hell are we?”
“This system is not charted, and the layout of the stars is not similar to any of my maps.”
“Well, great,” Throttle said drily as she took her seat. “Rusty, scan this quadrant and tell me what we’ve got.”
“I’m running scans now. They may take several minutes, as I’m also running full diagnostics on the Javelin.”
Sylvian cocked her head. “How’d we break free from the black hole? It pulled us in from the other side, yet we broke free of it on this side.”
Rusty spoke. “Interesting. Its readings are the same as on the other side in the Ross system, which means its gravity pull is the same in both directions, so our speed allowed our ejection beyond the event horizon. On a side note, the diagnostics on the Javelin have completed. No crucial components are damaged. However, there are several moderate issues. I’ve sent a report of prioritized hardware problems to Eddy. He is already perusing the list.”
“I bet he is.” Throttle didn’t look up from the quadrant scans that populated as Rusty’s sensors fed data. “There’s a lot of noise out there. It’s a ways off, but it could be some kind of solar storm. We should be on the lookout for more EMP blasts.”
“I haven’t detected any EMPs since emerging from the black hole. However, I have detected another ship forty-six thousand miles ahead of us,” Rusty said.
Throttle zoomed the screen to where a ship was moving quickly away from them. Her eyes narrowed as she read the dat
a. “It’s the same one we were chasing through the Trail, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I believe it is,” Rusty replied.
“Then put us on a course after it,” Throttle said.
“I’m adjusting our course and adding power to the engines,” Rusty said. “As for this quadrant of unknown space, I have determined that we are currently in interstellar space rather than within the confines of a solar system. There are at least two small moons in orbit around one rogue dwarf planet—meaning that it does not orbit a sun. My initial scans detect at least three additional primordial black holes. My supposition is that two or more stars collided, and the resulting energy formed multiple primordial black holes rather than a single, supermassive black hole.”
“So we’d better keep a distance from them or else risk going on another ride,” Throttle said drily.
“This is spooky,” Sylvian said.
Rusty said, “My scans have also identified a very small rocky planet of roughly fifty miles in diameter. It has two moons, each of them spherical and five miles in diameter. That the planet has moons is unusual for a planet not orbiting any star, especially considering its size. The ship seems to be on a course toward that planet.”
Throttle frowned. “Why’s the ship heading there? That planet would be frozen solid out here and in no way habitable.”
“Maybe it’s trying to hide behind one of its moons,” Sylvian offered.
Throttle gave a small nod. “Could be. Rusty, can you get an image of the planet?”
“I’m still too far away, but I will capture images as soon as we’re within range.”
Throttle leaned back. “I don’t like this. We’re chasing a ship of bad guys through space that we don’t know anything about. They’re probably in the same predicament as us, but we can’t assume that. We have only three months of food, so we can’t chase them forever. We either have to find a source of food soon, or we’re going to have to reenter that black hole and hope it brings us home.”
“But we don’t know if that black hole will bring us back the way we came or if it was just luck that we popped out of it at all,” Sylvian said.
“I can’t postulate how a second trip through the black hole would turn out, but I believe that the planet may provide resources for us. My hull has begun to absorb energy radiating from that planet,” Rusty said.
“I thought you recharge off light energy. How can a planet outside any solar system provide that?” Throttle asked.
“That’s an excellent question,” Rusty replied. “I do not understand, but the planet is clearly an energy source.”
“This area of space keeps getting spookier and spookier,” Sylvian said.
“What’s getting spookier?” Finn asked.
Throttle turned to see him reenter the bridge.
Sylvian motioned to the window. “Everything. We came out of a black hole to end up in the middle of nowhere, and the only other people out here besides us are the guys who kidnapped Macy.”
Finn’s brow lifted. “They’re here, too?”
“They’re here, and we’re giving chase. They’re still a ways ahead of us, but if we can get closer, we’ll need to be ready,” Throttle said.
“I’ll be ready,” Finn said as he took his seat.
“I know. So, how’re the others doing?” Throttle asked.
“The usual. Eddy is whining about things that need fixing. Macy is asleep, and Punch is arguing with Rusty.”
Throttle looked up at the orb in the middle of the bridge. “Rusty, what are you and Punch arguing about?”
“We’re not arguing. He’s frustrated that I have put Macy to sleep so her nanites can repopulate following the EMP exposure she encountered as we reached the edge of the black hole. He wants me to wake her, but it is in her best interest to rest.”
“Did your blackout harm her?” she asked.
“Not at all. However, since we were connected at the time of the EMP blast that knocked me offline, it also knocked her offline. It was completely unintentional.”
“I don’t understand. She’s human, not some computer. I thought her nanites were supposed to operate like human cells. How can she be knocked offline?” Sylvian asked.
“Macy is human, but an aggressive nanite attack heavily damaged her brain. She will rely on technology like nanites to survive for the rest of her life. She’ll also need my management of those nanites for the foreseeable future,” Rusty said.
“That’s what I have a problem with,” Punch said as he entered the bridge. He glared at Rusty while stopping in the middle of the bridge with his arms crossed over his chest. “She’s as much a prisoner now as she was before.”
Rusty spoke. “I assure you that is not the case. As I have told you four times already, I manage Macy’s nanites per her desires, not per mine.”
Throttle watched Punch. “Did Rusty do something that makes you think that he’s operating against Macy’s wishes?”
Punch turned his gaze onto her. “No. But she’s acting more like a robot than like Macy, so I can’t tell if she’s even in there or not.”
Throttle gave him a softer look. “The nanites were the only way. We have to give her time to adjust—”
“I apologize for the interruption, but we are being pinged.”
Throttle leaned forward in her seat. “By the other ship?”
“What other ship?” Punch asked.
“The ship we were chasing back in the asteroid belt,” Throttle answered quickly.
Punch’s jaw slackened before anger tightened his features. “Go after them.”
“We are,” she said.
“The ping is not coming from the ship. It’s coming from the planet,” Rusty said.
Throttle frowned. She eyed the others in the room. Finn and Sylvian seemed as confused, while Punch still seemed to be thinking about the other ship.
“Maybe other ships have been pulled through the black hole and were stranded here, too,” Sylvian offered.
Throttle didn’t respond to the software specialist and instead asked, “Rusty, are you close enough to get images of that planet yet?”
“I can provide early images, but they will be pixelated.”
Throttle zoomed in on where the planet was indicated on her screen. Data readings told her it was a rocky world comprised nearly entirely of heavy metals. The image refreshed every few seconds as Rusty uploaded new images.
Her frown deepened as each image brought the planet into clearer view. It was shaped like a hexagon. Bright light shone out from each corner like a light bulb had been encased in a paper bag full of pinpricks. The surface was smooth gray metal like the hull of the Javelin and the other ship they were following.
Finn spoke. “This doesn’t look like any planet I’ve seen before. It’s completely—”
“Alien,” Throttle finished.
“The Swarm. They’re real,” Sylvian said breathlessly.
Throttle swallowed and tapped the intercom. “Eddy, you’d better get up here.”
“The planet seems to be manufactured or encased within a manufactured layer. Its moons are identical in composition, only on a smaller scale,” Rusty said.
“Punch, whom were you giving data to?” Throttle asked without taking her eyes off her screen.
“They weren’t aliens. My contact spoke English just fine. I didn’t talk to them, I guess. Only connected through messages,” Punch replied, then added, “They couldn’t be aliens. That’s crazy, right?”
“Whoever they are, we know they’re not the good guys based on what they did to Macy to get that data. That’s all that matters,” Throttle said.
“Shall I accept the ping?” Rusty asked.
Throttle took a deep breath and glanced across the faces on the bridge. “I suppose that’s the only way to get some answers. Accept the ping.”
“It’s not a call. They’ve sent a message, but I believe it’s for me,” Rusty said.
“Doesn’t matter who it’s for. Display it,” Throttl
e said, and text scrolled onto her screen.
Probe Vantage-Echo-Nine, report status.
Murmurs erupted from the crew on the bridge.
“Should I respond?” Rusty asked.
“Not yet.” Throttle kept her hands steady even though her mind was racing. “Rusty, what do you know about Vantage-Echo-Nine?”
“I know nothing of it except that another ship referred to me by that moniker.”
“Which ship was that?” she asked.
“The ship that was destroyed by the Red Dynasty near Free Station.”
“The Swarm ship,” Sylvian interjected.
“Yes,” Rusty answered.
“And the one that looked just like the one we’ve been chasing,” Finn said.
“There are some minor differences in design, but the two ships are similar,” Rusty said.
“What in the world is that?”
Throttle turned around to see Eddy standing on the bridge. “We’ll fill you in later. Right now, whatever that is, it just contacted us. I mean, it just contacted Rusty, not us.”
“Interesting.” Eddy didn’t have a seat on the bridge. He was never there more than a few minutes at a time, so he leaned over Throttle’s shoulder. “Amazing. That planet looks completely artificial. It has to be with such perfect geometry. I wonder how it can generate so much energy. Or, I guess the question I should be asking is, why is it generating that much energy? That seems like a waste to just shoot power off into space.”
“I think it’s to power their ships,” Throttle said. “The Javelin’s been recharging ever since we emerged from the black hole.”
Eddy swiped to a screen of ship data readings and pointed. “The Javelin’s not just recharging, but it’s recharging at an increased rate. The solar arrays really love the power that planet’s putting out.”
