Omega

by Jan Domagala

  “Do you think that Col Sec will believe us and send someone to help?” she asked a little nervously. This was an awful lot to take in. She’d lived what she had always considered was a normal life; normal if your father was the right hand man to a multi billionaire, possibly one of the ten wealthiest men in the galaxy. In her few moments of normality she realised that she had lived a rather sheltered life compared to others, but she also realised that what she had got herself and Taylor into was not normal either and that others of her generation would probably handle this no better.

  “Let’s see shall we,” he said, accessing a sub space com. channel via his NI and contacted the person he knew in Col Sec. He just hoped he was in HQ on Earth. “Matt, I don’t have a lot of time but I need your help,” he said.

  Matt Hawk was in Sinclair’s office when the call came through deep in his debrief. “Gavin? I’ve not heard from you in ages man, but look I’m in the middle of something here I’m going to have to call you back,” he replied and was about to close the call when Taylor said, “Listen Matt, it’s about the deaths of some marines recently in a chamber somewhere.”

  That immediately got Hawk’s attention. Linking the call with Sinclair he said, “Tell me.” Taylor told him everything he knew including all the files that were passed over to him by Tanya to corroborate what he was saying. When he’d finished he said, “So Matt, what do you think, are we screwed?”

  “Oh boy are you ever, but don’t you worry, I’m gonna do everything in my power to help you. I want you to get yourself immersed in the most populated area you can find, they’re less likely to try and get to you if there are people around you. I’ve logged your signal into my NI so I’ll be able to track you and find you wherever you go, okay. Don’t worry I’ll get to you and get you to safety; in fact I’m leaving now. I’ll contact you when I reach Cordoba,” Hawk ended the call and looked at General Sinclair.

  “Sir, this is the break we were hoping for. I’ve got to get to them before Jonas Wilde sends someone to shut them up,” he said getting to his feet.

  “Jonas Wilde, I can’t believe this. He works for Maxwell Eisenhower, why would someone so powerful want to get involved with a criminal cartel? Why would he need to, it just doesn’t make sense?” said the General bewildered by this new and disturbing development.

  “It does make some sort of sense in the way that our attackers had better weapons than ours. They had technology that was just a step ahead of what we have and who supplies most of our tec. and weaponry, sir, the Eisenhower Mega Corp,” Hawk replied.

  “This has just got a whole lot worse than we ever dreamed possible, Matt. If they can supply troops with weaponry more advanced than ours how are we supposed to defeat them? You have to get to those two; we need that proof so that we can deal with Wilde if he is, as they propose, behind all of this. Take Colonel De Boer and as many men as you think you need and bring them back safely.”

  “I will, sir. I’ll take point and inform the Colonel to follow on my six. I need to leave now. Tell De Boer I’ll contact him when I find Gavin and Wilde’s daughter and he can coordinate our extraction,” Hawk said as he walked towards the door.

  “You got it Matt and good luck,” Sinclair said as Hawk left the office.

  It seemed that they had been given an opportunity to combat this new threat but he wasn’t sure if things had just got better or worse. Only time, as they say, will tell.

  “WE NEED TO FIND SOMEWHERE like Matt said, with a lot of people,” Taylor said, after his call with Hawk had ended.

  “I know somewhere, the mall; it’s in the centre of the city. There’s everything there and at this time of day it’ll be jammed with shoppers. Once the shops close there’s plenty of other things such as cinemas, restaurants and gaming halls which will have enough people for us to get lost in,” Tanya said.

  Taylor looked at her, smiled and said, “Good girl, we’ll get through this okay.” Operating the com. panel in the screen he said, “Take us to the mall please.”

  11

  Hawk made his way to the spaceport as quickly as he could. The shuttle that had brought him to Earth not so long ago was still where he had left it, so he simply boarded it once more and prepared for take off. General Sinclair had already logged his flight plan to Research Station One with flight control so all that was required was for him to start the engines and take off which he did with alacrity.

  He was soon at the station and heading for the Valkyrie. As he boarded he went to the bridge where Captain Jefferson was waiting for him.

  “Welcome aboard Matt, your flight plan has already been logged by General Sinclair. Where to this time, sir?” Jefferson asked as he rotated in the command chair to greet Hawk as he entered.

  “Thank you Cap, we’re going to Cordoba,” said Hawk as he came to stand by Jefferson.

  “I’m not going to ask what this is about. No doubt it’s another black op or you wouldn’t be here, just do me the courtesy of informing me if we’re heading into harm’s way please so that I can take the necessary precautions.”

  “No guarantees Cap, sorry, you know as well as I do how these things go but I’ll do what I can, will that do?”

  “I suppose it’ll have to,” Jefferson said, turning to his helmsman, “Let’s get this show on the road. Inform the dock commander we’ll be leaving immediately, I assume there’s some haste to your mission,” this last was directed at Hawk who nodded his agreement.

  Leaning in close to the Captain Hawk said, “Do I detect some reticence in you Cap, about this mission?”

  “I was hoping for some down time before we went off on another mission. My crew have not had any shore leave for months, except for a few days after the Stryder mission. We’ve been hard at it getting the Valkyrie ready for her new duties.”

  “I know what you mean, it’s been the same for me too but this is important and when we get back I’ll do what I can to get you some R&R, is that acceptable?”

  Jefferson smiled as he sat back in the chair. “There’s no need Matt, I knew what I was agreeing to when I signed on, we’re just tired that’s all. We’ll do what is required of us, you don’t have to worry.”

  “Oh, I’m not worried, but I need you at your optimum and for that you all need to be well rested, but for now we’ll just have to suck it up and get the job done. I know you won’t let me down on that score,” Hawk replied.

  “You’re not taking any back up this time?” asked Jefferson. “Colonel De Boer is to follow me and wait for instruction to coordinate our extraction from the planet,” explained Hawk.

  “Extraction, so this is a rescue op then? How many are you going to pick up?”

  “Two people, they carry proof that is vital to our fight against a group of terrorists who could do untold harm to the Confederation. My job is to go to Cordoba, rendezvous with them and bring them back safely so that we can assess the aforementioned proof and take the necessary steps to bring the terrorists to justice. There you see, I could tell you after all.”

  “Are you expecting any opposition?”

  “Of course, the bad guys aren’t gonna want us to get our hands on this proof so they’ll send someone to stop me, who or how many is an unknown factor but I’m sure they’ll present themselves when the time is right.”

  “Back into the fire then I see.”

  “I’m afraid so, yes. It comes with the job.”

  “Okay, then you’d better hang on, we’re about to make the jump,” Jefferson said and the pilot, who had already taken the Valkyrie away from the station, entered the coordinates into the nav-comp then took the craft into hyperspace.

  It was just a short jump and the Valkyrie was soon in the Praxima system. They re-entered normal space close to Cordoba so that they could go into orbit as soon as possible.

  “Here we are Matt, go do your stuff, I’ll have you tracked from your NI. As soon as the Colonel arrives I’ll keep him informed of your status so that you can coordinate your efforts,” Jefferson sai
d.

  Hawk said, “Wish me luck,” and left the bridge heading for the docking bay where he’d left the shuttle. As he took the shuttle out of the docking bay towards the planet Cordoba he accessed a battle com. channel to call Taylor. “Gavin, are you and Miss Wilde still together and safe?” he asked.

  “Matt, glad to hear your voice again, Cap. We are together and at the mall just strolling around the shopping area. It’s getting near closing time for most of them so we were going to head into one of the gaming halls,” replied Taylor with a trace of relief in his voice.

  “I’m en route to your location, I’ll be there as soon as I can, just hang tight okay?”

  “Will do Cap, how many guys you got with you?”

  “Just me, but don’t worry I’ll get you out no problem,” Hawk said with conviction.

  “Just you, sir, oh that’s just great,” Taylor said.

  “Have faith,” Hawk said then broke the call off to concentrate on piloting the shuttle.

  Taylor turned to Tanya and said, “You know when he said earlier that we were screwed, well, he wasn’t kidding.”

  THE ROVER 5 WAS WALKING through the mall looking for Tanya Wilde and the security guard Gavin Taylor. He was tall, at least six feet six tall, with a muscular physique that was hidden beneath a well-tailored suit. In appearance he was exactly the same as the other Rovers except for a more masculine appearance, if that was possible. He had perfect balance and coordination with increased strength, speed and agility and he followed orders implicitly with no trace of a conscience, the perfect killing machine.

  For this job he had gone alone, for a simple pick up like this he did not require any backup. Wilde was confident that the Rover 5 could handle this job alone. The Rover had been supplied with Tanya Wilde’s tracking code implanted within her NI much like those supplied to Col Sec personnel, so there was no way he could not find his quarry. Jonas Wilde was also confident that the Rover could handle one ex-marine security guard. Wilde fully expected the Rover to reach his quarry long before the authorities could be alerted. Once the security guard had been neutralised there was no doubt in his mind the Rover would secure his daughter and bring her back to him.

  Up ahead he could see his targets; they were slowly strolling through the crowd of shoppers seemingly oblivious to anyone who could be following them. This would be easier than he thought.

  “JUST KEEP WALKING AND don’t look around,” Taylor said sotto voce.

  Tanya was immediately alerted to the fact that something was wrong but she did as she was told and carried on as if nothing had happened.

  “Good girl,” he added as they carried on through the crowds. Accessing the battle com. through his NI, Taylor spoke to Hawk. “I think we’ve picked up a tail, can’t be sure, he’s good, damn good but I don’t want to take the chance. How soon before you get here?”

  Hawk had landed the shuttle and commandeered a sky-cab to the mall. The moment he received the call from Taylor he had just entered the main thoroughfare and was closing in on them.

  “I’ll be with you asap, I’m in the mall not far from your location, just keep an eye out for me and keep close to Miss Wilde and as many people as you can. I’m banking on them not being foolish and trying to capture you in front of so many witnesses, they’ll want to separate you from the crowd first,” Hawk replied.

  “Will do, Cap,” Taylor replied.

  Although Hawk had told him that the danger was minimal it didn’t stop the sudden feeling of dread that almost overwhelmed him, forcing him to increase his pace. He felt underneath his armpit for the Sig P996 he knew was there and felt only slightly reassured.

  THE ROVER CLOSED THE gap between himself and his targets. They were only a few metres away from his grasp but there were still too many bystanders around for his liking. His orders were to terminate the guard and bring back the daughter, but they didn’t say how. He was programmed for independent thought and that included the ability to improvise, but there was the problem of trying not to bring attention to himself or what he was about to do. His life was forfeit but OMEGA had to remain behind the scenes until Wilde was ready to bring them out into the light. He wasn’t privy to when that was to happen but he did know it would be soon and he wasn’t to be the catalyst.

  The walkway they were on was three floors up from the ground and there were still plenty of people around even though some of the shops were beginning to close after a full day of trading. Malls such as this one were still popular even though the population could get anything they needed through the GalaxyNet. These malls gave something that the GalaxyNet couldn’t, which was social interaction on a personal level. People could get out and interact with each other and that was still so important in these days of ever widening expansion of the galaxy. People still needed to have relationships, not just online but in the real world.

  If he could get them close to one of the shops in the process of closing then perhaps he could isolate them inside it, get rid of the guard, then walk out with the daughter.

  To the left of them was a clothes shop that was beginning to close up for the night, switching off the advertising lights that illuminated the exterior of the shop front. Quickening his pace the Rover closed in on his targets, he wanted to reach them just as they got level with the shop he had selected.

  HAWK HAD ZEROED IN on Taylor’s NI tracking signal, Col Sec had reinitialised his original tracker and relayed it to Hawk’s NI. The third floor beckoned as he left the escalator and he looked for the two people who were depending upon him for help. The crowd was beginning to thin as some of the shops began to close but he could not see them at first. What he did see though was a tall man making his way forward, his head quite clear above most of the people on this floor. Not unusual as there were many people who topped six feet six, but this particular man was focused on something ahead of him and had increased his pace almost forcing his way through the people who were just there to enjoy themselves. This worried Hawk and he began to rush forwards.

  “Taylor, I’m on this floor and just behind you, there seems to be someone closing on you so keep moving. I’ll be with you in a few seconds,” Hawk said through the battle com.

  Drawing his Sig, Hawk pulled back on the slide to prime the weapon, holding it down by his leg so that no one would see it and be alerted to the danger and possibly cause panic. He continued towards Taylor and Tanya hoping he would reach them before the large man did.

  Less than a couple of feet to go and the Rover would be within range of his targets. His timing had been impeccable; in a few short steps they would all be where the Rover had planned them to be. Being totally focused on his targets, the Rover was unaware of anything other than them.

  BEHIND HIM, CLOSING the gap to within six feet, Hawk was watching the tall, well-groomed man intently.

  TAYLOR WAS TRYING DESPERATELY not to look behind him, hoping that his one-time friend and captain would not let him down. Tanya on the other hand was getting more and more nervous and as they reached the shop front she turned to glance behind and saw a huge, muscular man right behind them.

  Taylor saw her glance over her shoulder and the colour drain from her face and immediately knew they were in trouble.

  Rover saw the girl turn and look right at him and then the guard. The game had changed, his advantage of surprise negated somewhat, but it was nothing he couldn’t handle. He was confident he could handle anything they threw at him.

  TAYLOR SAW THE HUGE man react when he looked at him and knew he had to act fast if he was going to gain any sort of advantage.

  Reacting as quickly as he could he aimed a punch towards the huge man’s face. Rover saw it coming and caught the fist in his left hand then back-handed Taylor across his face with his right hand contemptuously, sending him staggering back away from the girl who started to scream, a scream that reverberated through the mall as people nearby picked up on what had just happened. They started screamed along with her until total chaos broke out.

&n
bsp; “Oh shit!” Hawk said as he saw what was happening and knew time had run out. He saw Taylor go flying and the huge man turn towards the girl who he knew must be Tanya Wilde. Knowing what was to come he launched himself across the remaining space between them at the huge man.

  Hawk landed on the Rover’s shoulders sending the two of them crashing to the floor. Hawk rolled off the Rover and was first to recover his feet. “Get behind me,” he said to Tanya without taking his eyes from the Rover who looked up at him, smiling so savagely it chilled his blood, then got to his feet.

  “Are you their protector from Col Sec?” the Rover asked, as he looked Hawk in the eyes still smiling with a look that said ‘you fool, don’t you realise what you’ve stumbled into?’

  Taylor got to his feet and shook his head to regain his senses then grabbed Tanya by the hand and pulled her towards him away from the fight.

  “Glad to see you, Cap,” he said.

  Hawk looked the Rover up and down and realised that he wasn’t as big as he’d thought. Hawk stood at six feet six and the man before him was no more than an inch taller and probably no more muscular than him either, so he returned the smile then added a wink.

  “Yep,” he said, “so bring it on.”

  “Oh, you will so wish you hadn’t said that,” the Rover said just before he launched himself at Hawk.

  Hawk sidestepped the onrushing giant and smashed his right fist into the man’s ribs as he went past him. The Rover stopped on an instant, turned and struck Hawk across the face with his right fist.

  Hawk staggered slightly caught unawares at the speed and ferocity of the counter attack and didn’t see the giant move past him to go for Taylor and the girl.

  Taylor stood in front of Tanya hoping to prevent the attacker from reaching her. The Rover struck Taylor a straight right to the face, which snapped his head backwards viciously, causing the ex-marine to stagger to the point of almost losing his balance. The Rover then grabbed the front of Taylor’s shirt and heaved him over the balcony into the abyss to fall towards the floor three stories below.