Blockade

by Chris Hechtl

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Mack signed the tablet and then indicated with the blade of his hand where to send the parts.

  A cargo shuttle was docked with the ship's starboard docking port. He'd worked with Skye and the Bus's A.I. 6-1-6 to get 10 percent overages on all logistics.

  “I'm not sure where we're going to put it all,” Skye grumbled when she came up behind him.

  “Get clear unless you want to find out,” he said as rollers were flipped in the deck and then the cargo pods began to roll off the shuttle and into the ship.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Admiral Irons stared at the image of the prowler as Yorgi came into the room. “Last minute regrets?” Yorgi said after a brief pause in the doorway.

  Admiral Irons turned to him and then went back to staring at the ship. “Some,” he finally admitted after a moment.

  “I think they can handle it,” Yorgi said as he slowly came over and took his seat. He nodded briefly to Captain Sprite, Commanders Protector, Fletcher, and then to Geni as she made an appearance with the other A.I.

  “You'd better be right. We sent along the best A.I. defenses we've got. And they've got a couple good A.I. with them, but it's still a big concern,” Admiral Irons stated.

  “If you have so many concerns, why pitch the mission at all?” Yorgi asked.

  “Because it has to be done. We need to get that equipment,” Admiral Irons said heavily.

  “Why? We don't need it to take out the Horathians. So, why borrow trouble? It can sit there forever. Or we can make it fresh without borrowing trouble. Let sleeping hostile A.I. sleep.”

  “Or better yet, send it into the magnetar and start over,” Captain Sprite interjected.

  “Point,” Protector added.

  “No. We need the hardware. If we have to write off the electronics fine. But I'm sure there are backups. In fact, I know there are. We did regular backups. I pulled one of them when we left. But it was the latest one that had issues,” he stated. He grimaced as he did.

  “And look where that got us,” Sprite pointed out.

  “I know. But we can look for backups that predate the arrival of the changeling. Once they were created, they were pulled from the net and packed up. So, we find one of those and check it in an isolated system,” Admiral Irons stated.

  “It won't be up-to-date but it will have everything up to the point it was made,” Protector stated.

  “Exactly. We can use it to cross-check what we've got. We can also use the blueprints for the equipment as well plus the operating systems and so on and so forth.”

  “So you think it's worth the risk?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Glad we're in agreement,” Admiral Irons stated with a brief wry twist of his lips. “They'll have to be thoroughly scanned when they return,” he stated. “I know I authorized them to bring back the backup cores only. Hopefully, they stop there.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Sir, I know you have some concerns, especially since three of them had a minor role in the Bek debacle,” Yorgi said, still sensing some resistance.

  Admiral Irons made a brushing motion. “I get that they were following orders. I've also watched their cybernetic install and their ethic checks. They passed. I also checked Horatio's logs. He was pretty complimentary of the trio while they were with him. He did suspect something was up but didn't get confirmation until the trial.”

  Yorgi nodded.

  “And yes, he stated privately that he believed Fitz's slip-up on the stand was deliberate,” Admiral Irons stated. Yorgi blinked and then frowned. “Whatever is between them, they are all professionals. They'll sort it out when they get to Pi.”

  “Yes, sir,” Yorgi stated.

  “So, final mission release?” Captain Sprite asked.

  “The mission is a go,” Admiral Irons said formally.

  “Mission release has been transmitted,” Fletcher stated. Captain Sprite nodded.

  “What about that SEAL team in Pi? Omicron Six Baker? Shouldn't we get them back here?” Fletcher asked.

  “I'd like to get them back here,” Yorgi stated with a nod. “They should be on their way back, but they got backstopped by Captain Sejong.”

  “Which means they are in Port Royal mixing it up there,” Admiral Irons stated. He thought about the situation and then shrugged. “Horatio can use them to take Tortuga and the other bases.” He saw the objection in Yorgi's eyes but just glanced his way in mild challenge. “If we try to get them back, it'll take almost a year to pass the order to them wherever they currently are, then almost two years to get them here.”

  Yorgi nodded reluctantly.

  “They will get here eventually, just not anytime soon. Next problem,” Admiral Irons stated, dismissing the issue.

  “Now, we need to step up the shipping between Protodon, Garth, and the blockade point. And we'll need to move antimatter I realize. I also see we've got a problem covering both possible exit points. We need to scout a way to jump from H001 to Finagle to move cargo and ships faster to close that hole …”

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Captain Callisto stepped off the ship and onto the station. She followed the green line as indicated.

  A line blinked on her HUD. She blinked and then moved to the bulkhead, hugging it for a moment as she fumbled with her virtual mouse before clicking it.

  A window opened to an A.I. “Captain Callisto?”

  “Yes, and you are …?”

  “Sorry, I'm Captain Sprite. Admiral Irons sends his regards.”

  “Oh he does, does he?”

  “Yes. You might be wondering why I'm calling. Well, I'm shortcutting BUPERS. They still don't know what to make of you. Admiral Irons does however.”

  “Oh?”

  “I'm sending you fresh orders now. I'm afraid you are in for a bit more traveling; you are headed to Pi sector. We have several major engineering projects there, and Admiral Logan needs all the help he can get.”

  “Oh,” she replied softly. She saw a Veraxin swivel eyestalks in her direction but turned away. “Can I appeal this?”

  “Not interested in traveling, Captain?”

  “In a word, no. That's a pretty long ways away,” she said, heart sinking.

  “I'm afraid not. Admiral Irons was firm about this. The good news is you were demoted not dismissed from the service. Admiral Zekowitz went to bat for you.”

  “He did?” she asked, feeling her eyes mist slightly. None of her other boyfriends had given her the time of day.

  “Yes. And his recommendation was one of the reasons Admiral Irons thinks you will be perfect for this job, Captain.”

  “Just what is this duty supposed to entail? I didn't know there was a lot in Pi.”

  “Well, we've been taking territory, and we sent a small task force to take and hold the pirate bases in the sector. Each base has an extensive reservation. Some have more than one—dozens of ships, civilian and warships. Plus tons of parts of ships, cargo—everything they've stolen over the centuries in that area.”

  “Ships,” she murmured thoughtfully.

  “Ships and bases. Everything and anything under the sun. All sorts of engineering projects to play with,” Sprite said. “Your job will be to get those ships functional again while building shipyards and whatever is needed in the sector. Are you game?”

  “I think so,” she said with a slow nod. “At any rate I'm going to get plenty of time to get caught up on my reading,” she drawled.

  “I know the feeling. Good luck and safe sailing. Download commencing now.”

  “Thank you,” Jean murmured.

  “You better hustle. The convoy going to Pi moves out in two hours, Captain,” Sprite warned as she cut the signal.

  “Great,” Jean said as she exhaled slowly. “So, now where do I go?” a file blinked on her HUD. She clicked it. A map appeared. “Thanks,” she muttered as she set out for an uncertain future.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Captain Junior Grade Helen So
ng noted a familiar face enter the shuttle near the tail end hatch. The woman moved through the rows of seated people. She shuffled slightly and then raised a hand and pointed down.

  The woman came over, noted the empty seat but not the occupant next to her. She stuffed her duffle in the overhead and then took a seat, sliding her other carry-on under the seat. She fumbled with the buckles. Once she was buckled in, she looked over to her seatmate.

  “Fancy meeting you here,” Helen said with a sardonic grin. “You got the usual speech and banishment too?” she asked.

  Jean's lips curved upward. “Yeah. But at least I'm in good company I guess,” she said roughly. She wiped at her eye.

  “Was that a tear?” Helen demanded.

  “Shut up,” Jean said, slapping at her friend for a moment before sitting back. “Nice to see you,” she murmured as the shuttle began to move. There was just the tiniest spurt of motion, enough to let them know they were getting underway. Her hand fell to the armrests. Her left hand fell on top of Helen's. She looked down at it.

  “Nice to see you too,” Helen replied, catching the hand and giving it a brief squeeze.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  “So, we need to come to some sort of an arrangement,” Skye said, looking at 6-1-6 as well as her own dumb A.I. Shifty. “We three need to get along obviously. We've got a mission.”

  “Understood,” 6-1-6 stated. “As long as we draw clear boundaries, I'm fine,” he stated flatly.

  Skye frowned thoughtfully. She knew that all A.I. were temperamental about their cores. She wanted to look and create back doors, but she'd been warned off. “All right,” she drawled. “Just so long as you don't get too territorial. This is a big ship with a lot of computer support. I made sure of that. There is room for everyone.”

  “Understood. You don't poke into my head, and I won't poke in yours,” 6-1-6 stated.

  “Too late for me. I'm already in her head,” Shifty stated.

  Skye grimaced again. “This is going to be an interesting trip.”

  “Hey, at least you went with me and you turned down that doctor's pitch for … what did he call it? Aida?” Shifty asked.

  “I know,” Skye said with a shake of her head. “I wonder if we should do some practice hacking now to get to know one another or wait?”

  “We can do that … as long as we don't get caught,” 6-1-6 stated cautiously.

  Skye grinned. “Okay then,” she said eagerly.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  “Okay, so, here is the news,” Colton said as he came into the room. It was crowded; the entire crew was on hand. “First, the Lemnos mission is a go.”

  “All right!” Fitz said with a grin.

  “It's code-named Haunted House. We'll be headed out in a day so if you need anything mission specific speak up now,” Colton warned. He surveyed the group and then inhaled and exhaled slowly. “I also received confirmation that Admiral Logan will be our commanding officer in Pi sector when we get there,” he warned.

  The room was silent for a long moment. Gemma shot Fitz a worried look. He reached out and squeezed her hand briefly and then let it go.

  “Let's hope he doesn't hold a grudge,” Mae stated dryly.

  “They were just following orders,” Colton stated, shooting her a look.

  “Yeah, but there are plenty of soldiers and sailors who said that even though they knew what they were doing was wrong,” Skye reminded him. Colton shot her a dirty look. “What? I'm just saying …”

  “Not helping,” he stated flatly. She shrugged it off.

  “Right now that's not our main concern,” Mae stated. “This new mission is,” she stated, looking at Phil.

  Phil grimaced. “I know. I'm not thrilled about it either,” he admitted.

  “Are we really going to Lemnos?” Fitz asked, eyes bright and eager. “Can you imagine the tech we'll be able to see?!? Cutting edge research the Federation was working on at the height of the Xeno war?? What sort of goodies we can play with, maybe add to the bus?” He turned an eager grin on Mack and Gemma. Both looked dubious.

  “Easy does it there Fitz. We still have to make it out alive,” Mack grumbled. Fitz frowned. “You do remember this is the place with the damn Xeno Wraith, right? There is a reason they are calling the mission Haunted House.”

  “Yes, but we cleared out the one on the Sargasso station, remember?” Simmons chimed in. “Besides, aren't we just scouting it?”

  “Exactly. We go in, look for trouble, catalog what we can see, and then get out. We make our report, get checked out, and then resupply and go on our primary mission,” Colton stated. He shot a significant look at Skye, Mack, Simmons, and especially Fitz. “That means we don't touch anything. Just look, don't touch.”

  “How do we know the virus is there if we don't access the equipment?” Skye asked in a peevish tone of voice.

  “We don't. We just look. We'll go from there,” Colton stated flatly. “Let's not go borrowing trouble,” he growled. Mae grimaced but nodded in agreement with him.

  “If we're leaving tomorrow on the morning shift change, then we better get that requisition list together,” Mack said. “I don't know about you but I want secure comms. We also shouldn't use the robots.”

  “I don't know. If we used them on a hopping encrypted frequency and change frequencies regularly …,” Skye protested.

  “Do we know if the A.I. can take control of them? Or is this a moot point since Admiral Irons had the base shut down before he left?” the ship's A.I. asked.

  As they began to argue over that, Colton shook his head. He had what he needed. He looked over to Mae. “You good?”

  “Yeah,” she said softly. “I'll go check the sims out,” she said.

  “You do that,” he said walking out with her.

  Chapter 18

  Executioner in Hyperspace

  Admiral De Gaulte stood in his quarters, staring at the screen on the eve of jumping out into the home star system. Everything was running smoothly. He needed to get some rest, but he couldn't bring himself to sleep.

  A liberal dose of alcohol usually did the trick, but they'd pretty much drank themselves dry on the way up to this point. That sucked, he could really use a belt right about now.

  "Whatever happens, sir, it was an honor to serve you," Wilfred murmured.

  He turned slightly to look over his shoulder to his steward. "Thank you, Wilfred," he murmured. "I'd like to spare you and the staff from the fallout if I can. Should I have some creative paperwork done? Reassign you to someone else?"

  "I … whatever you decide, sir," his steward said. "Whatever you feel is necessary, sir," he murmured.

  Cyrano nodded. "I'd like to but it might draw a bigger target on you, like you are trying to hide something. I'll do what I can though," he said as he turned back to look at the video screen. He heard his steward softly withdraw after a moment.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  The Admiralty moved forward on the plan to raid the Federation's southern flank and explore New Horizon's area. Malwin worked with Lewis to find the right ships to put together to form the force. They wanted at least two divisions of battle cruisers along with a squadron of cruisers. He'd initially pitched the idea of sending along a CEV and fleet train. The CEV idea had been nixed though; they needed all of their pilots to defend the homeworld.

  That meant they had to rely on the cruiser's fighters for defense.

  Each of the cruisers and ships had to be carefully considered. They needed crews that could do the job in ships that could handle the Federation ships. They needed not only the legs but also the fighting power and spirit. Finding the right combination was turning out to be trickier than they'd initially thought.

  It didn't get any easier as they also moved on a second plan, this one to have a forward defense in the H002-H001 jump line along with possible spoiler raids on Garth. They needed to find some way to throw the enemy off balance in a hurry. The spoiler raids were the direct path but any ship they sent in would be pote
ntially lost as it went up against the enemy's battle line or screening elements.

  No matter how they massaged the data in the simulations they weren't finding any easy answers.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Admiral De Gaulte was on his flag bridge with his staff as they returned to Horath in shame. He was honestly surprised that their IFF was accepted. No, he shouldn't have been, after all, Executioner and the other ships were not to blame. They were also going to be desperately needed for the battles to come.

  Finding a way to fight them was going to be hard. He wasn't at all certain he'd be alive to see that though.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  The emperor was enraged when he was informed of a delay in getting Admiral De Gaulte to the palace. The Admiralty wanted to personally interview him first. "They are trying to shield him," he snarled, waving a hand to emphasize his point.

  "Who, dear?" his mother asked.

  He turned a glower on her. She knew very well who but was playing dumb. "My Admiralty of course!" He scowled blackly. "I need to clean house," he growled, turning a significant look to the Shinobi nearby.

  "Now that you can't do," his mother said.

  He turned back to her in surprise. "Excuse me?"

  "You heard me. Stop acting like a petulant child and listen," she said, resting her hands in her lap. "If you decide to walk that path, you will be putting the final nail in your coffin. Our supporters back us because we control the military. Kill the heads of the Rico, Cartwright, De Gaulte, and other clans and you'll look like you are lashing out. It might be justified but it will be seen as a panicked reaction and those waiting will see it as the final straw to act. They'll have to act to save themselves."

  He scowled for a long moment, but it didn't take him long to run the political calculations himself. She was right. He could do something about the others individually over time though. In fact, he should have done so earlier. His mother had argued against it; she saw each as an investment and any disruption would be dangerous to them, especially now.