by Jay Allan
Silent running. It was a foolish term, one with no real meaning in the vacuum of space. Andi had heard that it traced back centuries—millennia—to the days when submersible craft detected each other by searching for sounds. But the meaning was clear enough, if the words themselves were inaccurate and outdated.
“I don’t know…” Righter was looking down at the six meter long object. He’d opened a small panel on the thing, and his eyes darted over the wiring inside. “These are pretty sophisticated units…not something I’d expect to find on a ship like this.” He paused, seemingly concerned he’d somehow insulted Pegasus or Andi or something.
Andi didn’t take offense. The large torpedoes didn’t belong on Pegasus, and the things had probably cost more than her whole ship was worth. But Durango had given them to her precisely because he’d suspected—known?—that she would encounter Sector Nine at Aquellus. Now, she had to figure out how to use them effectively.
“We don’t usually carry ordnance like this, Lex…” She’d continued using the engineer’s first name, and she’d made a conscious effort to show him kindness and respect, somewhat of an offset for the rough way she’d handled him at first. “…they’re special for this mission. We don’t have a launcher, obviously, so we’re going to have to figure the best way to roll these things out of the cargo hatch if we get into a fight.” Though Andi had wondered what the things might be worth on the black market, assuming she made it back to see.
And that Durango didn’t want any unused units returned.
“I think I can handle most of what you want, but the ECM mods worry me. I’m an engineer, and I know my way around most of this pretty well, but I’m not a software expert. You’re going to need some significant changes to the basic attack program in these things, and I’d say it’s about 50-50 I can manage it.”
Andi felt a twinge, and thoughts of Sylene Merrick, Pegasus’s old computer expert, and one of her closest friends, passed through her mind. Sy was Vig’s older sister, but she’d been retired a year or more. Her often uncanny skills were no more than past chapters in Pegasus’s—Nightrunner’s—history, and they were sorely missed.
“That will have to do. I’ve faced worse odds.” That was definitely true. Andi had come through scrapes where the chance of survival had seemed far less than one in two. Plus, she suspected Righter was underestimating his ability…and even if he couldn’t get the changes completely correct, there was still a chance the plan would work. She didn’t need to deceive the enemy for any extended period. Just long enough to slip in and make a run for the planet’s surface.
“I’ll do my best.” Andi could hear the emotion in Righter’s voice. The resentment, most of it at least, was gone. She’d handled him sternly, but she had also saved his life, and it seemed he had realized that. But there was definitely fear. Andi couldn’t argue with that. She was scared, too. Any sane person would be afraid.
“That’s all anybody can do…but we don’t have much time, so…”
“I’ll do it as quickly as possible.” Righter had already dropped down to his knees and crouched over the open access panel. “These aren’t just military…they’re state of the art. How the hell did you end up with them?”
Andi just looked down at the engineer and smiled. Some questions were better left unanswered.
Chapter Twelve
Free Trader Pegasus
Approaching Planet Aquellus
Olystra System
Year 302 AC
“It’s ready, Andi…at least as ready as it’s going to be.”
Andi nodded as Righter’s voice came over the comm unit. His tone was full of caution, even uncertainty, but she grasped at what she could. He’d started calling her ‘Andi,’ and that further supported her feeling that the engineer did not bear active resentment for the way they had met. Righter was stuck on Pegasus, of course, so his efforts to make the torpedo modifications she’d requested could have been solely in the interest of self-preservation. But increasing familiarity suggested a growing comfort level…or a degree of sophisticated manipulation she suspected was beyond the engineer’s range of such things.
“Very well…and, thank you again, Lex. You’re the only one on this ship who could have even given it a legitimate try.” A pause. “Is Vig down there? Did he set up the drop rig?” Pegasus’s cargo hold had not been built for ejecting weapons into space. She’d sent Vig down there with vague instructions to put some kind of makeshift bracket together, a way to hold the torpedo near the outer doors until she gave the order to drop it.
“I’m here, Andi. My job was a lot easier than Lex’s. It’s a makeshift kind of thing, but I’m pretty sure it will work.”
‘Pretty sure’ wasn’t the kind of thing Andi wanted to bet all their lives on…but it was the best she was likely to get, so she took it.
“Good, Vig. Nice work, both of you. Now make sure everything else is well-secured, and get the hell out of there. We’re going to launch that thing in less than ten minutes.”
“Everything’s bolted in place, Andi. It’s all secure.”
She tried to gauge the level of certainty in Vig’s voice. For a few seconds, she considered going down and checking herself. She was going to bring the atmospheric pressure in the bay down to fifteen percent. That was enough to minimize any damage from explosive decompression, while still providing the outward force to carry the torpedo into space. But if anything was loose down there, she would not only lose whatever it was, but also leave a trail of debris that could only lead the enemy toward Pegasus.
“Doublecheck, Vig…I mean it. We need to be sure.” She found herself surprised when the tension in her legs subsided, and she slouched back into her chair. She trusted Vig.
At least as much as she trusted anybody.
She turned toward Barret. “Keep an eye on the scanners…and especially when we open the hatch.” Pegasus had escaped detection so far, and her ship had made its way across the system, coming close to achieving the needed vector corrections with the positioning jets. But Andi was going to have to burn the main engines, both to complete the course modifications and to decelerate as the ship approached the planet. She’d be firing the engines at full power, maybe even a bit more…the unavoidable result of waiting for the last minute. There was no way the Sector Nine ship she was sure was lurking out there, could miss that.
Unless the torpedo works, and they’re out there chasing shadows.
And if this doesn’t work, they’ll be on us just as we come into orbit.
“I’m watching, Andi. I don’t think I’ve taken my eyes off this thing in twelve hours.” An exaggeration, perhaps, but Andi realized the statement had been at least close to literal truth. Barret’s eyes were likely very sore and tired. She could tell how much they burned by the number of times he’d rubbed his hands over them.
She leaned down over the comm unit again. “Lex…go back down to engineering now, okay? If Vig needs help in the hold, Gregor can handle it.” Andi was going to need massive engine power on an instant’s notice. It was always a risky proposition to ramp up reactor output too quickly, and having the ship’s engineer in place could be the margin that saved all of them in a pinch.
“I’m on the way.”
Andi nodded, and she took a deep breath. Then she looked over at the display, and the small chronometer counting down in the lower corner.
Four minutes…then we’ll see if we can pull this off…
Of course, her plan would only get Pegasus down into the planet’s atmosphere, and with luck, under its uncharted seas where it had some hope of eluding the enemy scanners. Getting out would be another thing entirely.
But she’d worry about that later.
* * *
Boucher’s eyes were fixed on the large screen at the end of Phantasia’s bridge. An instant before, there had been nothing, and now the readings were pouring in, powerful thrust, significant energy output…and a moment later, the first estimated mass readings.
Twelve thousand tons…just about the mass she’d expect for a Badlands prospecting ship.
Her first reaction had been to break out of orbit, to make a run directly at the ship and blast it to atoms before it could escape. But something was wrong. How had the vessel gotten so far in-system?
Boucher had always had a keen sense for danger. If the vessel she was tracking was only a converted freighter, she doubted it could have come so far undetected. And, even if it had coasted in with its power systems at minimal output, why was it blasting its engines so hard just then? Deceleration would be necessary to approach the planet and land, but the course she saw on her screen was heading away from Aquellus.
She had been on the lookout for adventurers, even for the armed pirates that sometimes preyed on prospecting vessels. But now something else occurred to her.
Confederation Intelligence…
Sector Nine considered itself superior to its rival, sometimes to the point of unbridled arrogance, but Boucher was more cautious. The Confederation spy agency had suffered under a series of poor leaders, and it perennially had to struggle with the Senate to maintain its funding levels, but she suspected their newest chief, Gary Holsten, would prove to be a far more dangerous adversary than those who had come before. He was still hampered by lower budgets and susceptible to political interference, but there was something about him, at least from the dossier’s she had seen, something that told her he would handle all of that with considerable ability. Sector Nine benefitted greatly from its second role of keeping the Union population in line, a service it provided for its political masters…and one that ensured a continued stream of generous budgets.
Most of Sector Nine had regarded the news of Holsten’s appointment with derision, calling him a spoiled and decadent child of wealth who’d bought his appointment, but Boucher wasn’t so sure. There was something about him that seemed different, at least from the data to which she had access, and she was concerned about who he might have sent to Aquellus.
“Prepare to activate engines, Drusus. Set a course toward the new contact.” Whatever that was out there, she had to do something. She wasn’t going to rush right at the thing…she just wanted it to look like she was. “And get the two attack ships ready to launch.” Phantasia carried a pair of modified two-man fighters augmented with bombing kits. They gave her a strike capability without exposing her ship to counterattack. If that contact was just a prospector’s vessel, the bombers would obliterate it.
And if it was something more, something truly dangerous, she would know before Phantasia was close enough to be in danger.
“Engine room reports ready for full thrust on your command. And the bomber crews are en route to the bay. They’ll be ready to launch in six minutes.”
“Very well.” She sat stone still, her eyes still fixed on the display. Her mind was racing, trying to think of anything else she could do. Most likely, she realized, that was just some adventurer’s ship out there. The sources of leads on Badlands artifacts weren’t the most reliable, and despite Sector Nine’s efforts to instill fear into those they bribed, it was notoriously difficult to keep such things secret for very long.
Especially after several previous expeditions were sent…and vanished.
Ghost stories spread quickly in places like Dannith’s Spacer’s District.
She wasn’t going to take any chances. Whatever that was out there was dangerous. That might be a gut reaction devoid of much supporting evidence, but her instincts had done well for her so far. She wasn’t going to abandon them now.
* * *
“Andi, we’ve got to decelerate now. Another ninety seconds, and we won’t have time, not before we reach the planet.”
No, Barret, we won’t. At least not at normal reactor output.
“Maintain silent running.” She leaned over the comm. “Lex, are you in position?”
“Yes, Andi.”
“I’m going to need every watt you can get out of that reactor when I call for it…and that means pushing well past redline.”
“Understood. I’m ready.”
She looked back up, her eyes finding the display. There was a ship in the system, and it was a threat. Any question of that was long gone. The mass readings suggested it was larger than Pegasus, by a factor of at least three. She’d managed to draw it out of orbit with her ruse, but not far enough. Not yet, at least.
Whoever is commanding that thing is cautious…and probably smart, too…
She had to wait for the ship to move, to close with the disguised torpedo. She needed more distance, more time.
But she didn’t have it.
Andi had hoped the enemy ship would advance right at the contact she’d created, blast toward the torpedo that was very likely showing up in their scans as a converted freighter, at least if Lex Righter had managed to program the ECM correctly. She’d even dared to imagine it would get close enough to be damaged or destroyed when the warhead detonated, though she’d have settled for simply pulling the ship far enough from Aquellus. That wouldn’t help when they were on their way back, trying to get past that vessel, but that was a concern for later.
One problem at a time. There was no point in worrying about escape, not yet. First, they had to survive long enough for that to be an issue.
“Andi…” Barret again, the tension in his voice ratcheting up with each passing moment.
She looked at the small screen on her workstation, at the AI’s running calculation. It would take one hundred one percent of regulation output to decelerate in time to enter orbit…assuming she gave the orders immediately.
But the enemy was still too close.
“Not yet.” Her response was sharper than she’d intended. She was sure what she had to do, and she trusted her timing. But that didn’t make her immune to stress.
She watched as the number on the monitor clicked up, a tenth of a percent at a time. One hundred one point five.
Point six.
She looked up at the main display, staring, almost willing the Union ship to fire its engines. Then she saw it. Two smaller contacts, moving from the main ship.
Shuttles? Fighters?
The enemy ship was large in comparison to Pegasus, but it was no carrier. Still, it could have a launch bay, or even a few ships docked externally. Getting those kinds of details would require active scans, and that was out of the question, at least until Pegasus dropped its silent running and made a break for Aquellus.
And by then, it would be irrelevant.
One hundred two…
Andi’s hands tightened, almost into fists. She would wait as long as she could, but she was running out of time. Pegasus could manage 102.5, maybe even 103, but if she had to push the reactor and engines harder than that, she risked a meaningful chance of malfunction.
And just about any equipment failure right then meant almost certain death.
Her palms were wet inside her fists, the sweat building up, seeping through her fingers. She had to remind herself to breathe or she just sat there holding her breath. Andi was a stone-cold gambler with a grim poker face. But she was out of time, and she knew it. And that ship’s not going any farther. They’re going to wait and see what those small craft find.
“Alright, Lex, let’s…”
Her eyes darted back to the display. The Union ship had increased its thrust, a little. It wasn’t the move she’d hoped for, but just maybe it would be enough.
It was the best chance she was going to get.
“Full thrusters now, one hundred three on the reactor.” She’d intended to warn the others, to make sure they were strapped in, but she realized she’d been too focused on the display, and she’d forgotten. It didn’t matter. If she failed, they’d all be dead…and if they made it, a few scrapes and bruises were a small price to pay.
She felt the ship shaking as the reactor flared up almost immediately to full power levels and beyond. The pressure slammed into her, the full 12g at first, before the dampeners came back online an
d cut the effective force to about 2g.
She winced in pain from the initial shock of acceleration. She guessed she’d just pulled a muscle, but there was some chance she’d cracked a rib. It didn’t matter. She was going to do what she had to do, and she would never stop, not while she had the slightest bit of strength left.
“Approaching planetary orbit, Andi.” She could tell from Barret’s voice, he too, was in some degree of pain.
“Stay on course.” She’d already calculated the insertion vector, but even as she uttered the command, her fingers moved over her controls, increasing the descent angle. Pegasus had a jump on the Union ship—and she was still only assuming the vessel was a Sector Nine asset—but that was far from a guarantee. Every second she could shave increased their chances of making it.
But it’s going to get hot out there…
The planet’s heavy atmosphere was going to exacerbate the problem. Pegasus’s hull was tough, but she was about to put the reinforced alloy to the test.
“Andi, the enemy ship is reversing thrust. It looks like they’re trying to come around.”
They’re coming after us.
Andi knew the Union vessel couldn’t catch Pegasus, not before her ship slipped beneath the waves, but she had no idea what kind of armament the thing mounted. They didn’t have to reach Pegasus’s position. They just get into firing range.
And she had no idea what that was. The thick atmosphere would attenuate fire, but the ranges involved would be vastly smaller than those typical for space combat.
“Active scans, Barret…now!” Pegasus wasn’t hiding anymore, and Andi wanted to know what was going on with the torpedo. The screen flickered to a second or two, and then three icons appeared.
The torpedo was in the center of the screen, moving at close to 0.01c. The two fighters were closing. Andi felt a burst of excitement. The ECM was working. They still believed they were chasing a ship.