“You still got hurt,” Magnum said.
“That isn’t your fault,” Ben said. “Besides, I was so surprised by the attack that I probably would have been shot to pieces without ever taking a step if not for you.”
“Out the frying pan…” Magnum said.
“And into the fire? I don’t think so,” Ben said.
“Without that shield, we’d have been slagged,” Magnum said.
“We got lucky,” Ben said.
“You think the professor’s rocket will work?”
“In theory, it should. No one knows why a star forms,” Ben explained. “Is it just a natural phenomenon or are there conditions that cause them to form? And if there are conditions that trigger the work of gravity to form stars and black holes, is it possible that we could manipulate those conditions? I think it is.”
“You know the Confederates want to make a weapon from it,” Magnum said. “Once you finish that rocket, they’ll want their professor and all his research. Including your shield mechanism.”
“It isn’t finished yet,” Ben said.
“You think they care?” Magnum said. “Just the idea of a shield that can’t be penetrated is enough. It would tip the scales in their war with the Imperium.”
“Hardly,” Ben said. “It’s impenetrable from both sides. If you fired a laser blast while it was on the gravity fluctuation, it would spit it right back into your own ship. The same with missiles or torpedoes.”
“They won’t care,” Magnum said. “It’s tech the Imperium doesn’t have. They’ll do anything to get it.”
“Anything?” Ben said, finally cluing in to what his friend was saying.
“That’s right,” Magnum said. “We should consider finding a place to dismantle the ship.”
“You mean hide on an unpopulated world?”
“Doesn’t have to be unpopulated,” Magnum said. “Maybe just scarcely populated. Otherwise, we’ll be running forever, from both sides of this war.”
Ben thought about Magnum’s point for a long time. Getting off Torrent Four was a dream come true, one he had imagined a hundred different ways over the years. Getting lost on a newly discovered world was just one of the fantasies he’d imagined on the long, cold nights out in the salvage fields of his junk-littered home world. It didn’t seem so bad to think about being a lush world, where a person didn’t spend every waking moment scanning the environment for something that wanted to kill you.
Of course, hiding on a backwater planet on the fringe of the galaxy wouldn’t be easy either. There was no guarantee of food or safety on another planet. They might just be trading one set of dangers for another. Ben had heard stories of planets where the flora was predatory. Or worlds that were filled with giant beasts. And some worlds had diseases that wiped out any humans that tried to settle there. If they took Magnum’s advice, they would have to be very selective where they settled, and nothing would really guarantee that the Royal Imperium wouldn’t find them.
The thought of always looking over his shoulder didn’t appeal to Ben. But he couldn’t make the decision for everyone. The best solution would be to leave the others someplace safe and let the Imperium Fleet catch him. The thought of torture was not pleasant, and he couldn’t guarantee that he wouldn’t reveal who and where his friends were. It would only work if he managed to get killed in the process of getting caught. Perhaps he could allow the Fleet to vaporize the Echo, that way his friends could live in relative safety. But what if someone saw him dropping them off? The Imperium wouldn’t leave them alone if someone reported seeing them. It was too great a risk, not to mention the fact that he didn’t want to leave Kim. He had just gotten her back, and the very idea of leaving her alone again made him feel sick.
After running a scan to ensure that there weren’t any other vessels in radar range, Ben checked the ship’s systems. The Zexum was low, down to a quarter of a tank. He needed to switch the tanks soon, just in case they got into trouble. It wouldn’t do to run out of fuel if they needed to make a hyperspace jump.
He began making a mental list of all the things he needed to accomplish, like placing sensors on the hull to gauge the flux shielding and finishing the rocket he was building for Professor Jones. He was getting tired and hungry when Kim came limping from her room. She was still in the dress and barefoot with the small blanket wrapped around her shoulders.
“How are you feeling?” Ben asked.
“Hungover,” Kim said. “But it feels good to be alive.”
“Tell me about it,” Ben said, getting to his feet and helping Kim settle into the seat next to his. “Wouldn’t it be nice to stay that way?”
“That’s what I’m thinking,” Kim said. “So how do we do that?”
“I don’t know,” Ben said. “Magnum believes our only choice is to hide on some backwater planet and destroy the ship.”
“Oh no,” Kim said, running a hand along the console in front of her. “Not this ship, she’s home. You don’t destroy your home. That can’t be the answer.”
“That’s the thing,” Ben replied. “There are no good alternatives. If Jones’s rocket works, we’ll be hunted by the Confederacy as much as the Imperium.”
“So they can weaponize it?”
Ben shrugged his shoulders.
“So don’t make it,” Kim said. “If we don’t make it, we can’t be blamed.”
“We can’t just drop Jones at the nearest space station,” Ben said. “He saved your life.”
“Okay, then build it,” Kim said. “Maybe that’s the answer. If we have a weapon so powerful that everyone is afraid of it, maybe we can keep the Imperium and the Confederacy at bay.”
Ben thought about it. The idea had merit, but to prove it, they would have weaponized the rocket themselves. And if he was being honest, he knew the rocket was deadly enough already. He wasn’t sure what would happen if it was fired at another ship, but he didn’t think it would be good.
“It’s something to think about,” Ben said.
“I could live on a planet with you,” Kim said. “Or I could roam the galaxy with you. As long as I’m with you, I could make it work.”
“That’s how I feel,” Ben said.
Kim smiled. “At least there’s that. You want to fix me breakfast?”
“Just as soon as I’m relieved,” Ben said. “We can’t have the Imperium sneaking up on us, now can we?”
Chapter 39
“General!”
Pershing looked over at the navigation console. The woman at that station had been monitoring the Nav Network for a signal from the Special Forces tracking device for days.
“You have something?” General Pershing asked.
“Yes, ma’am. The tracking device just registered. It’s in the Delta quadrant, four hundred eighty light-years from here.”
“Captain Derringer, you may begin preparations to return us to the Celeste system.”
“Thank you, General,” the captain said, sounding relieved.
Derringer had been appalled by Pershing’s refusal to return to the Celeste system after the general recall of all ships. They would finally go back and Pershing could give the admiral general the solution that he needed.
“Coms, get me the Wind Sweeper,” Pershing said.
“Aye, General,” the communications officer said.
Brigadier General Alicia Pershing lifted a headset and settled it over her ears. There was a ping, then Major Le Croix’s familiar voice sounded in her ears.
“General?”
“We have the location,” Pershing said. “I’m taking the Deception back to Celeste.”
“The admiral general will be pleased,” Le Croix said. “What would you like us to do? The ship’s captain is about to burst a blood vessel to return to the capital.”
“He’ll have to wait,” Pershing said. “I want you here. Continue gathering our forces.”
“To what end, General? Forgive me for asking, but do you really think that one little ship is that dange
rous. We could have taken them so easily on Torrent Four.”
“Yes, that would have solved a lot of problems,” Pershing said. “Unfortunately, we were under orders not to engage. And to answer your question, I don’t believe we’re going to be fighting the Kestrel class ship, or the rebellion.”
“So why gather our forces?”
“Because there is a fight coming. I can feel it in my bones. Not just a power grab either, although that may happen if the Fleet is embarrassed again.”
“Would you take command?” Le Croix asked. “You’re the only senior officer fit to lead.”
“I appreciate that vote of confidence, Major, but you know I have no ambitions other than to lead our Spec Ops teams into battle. And if my intuition is right, that is exactly what I intend to do.”
“Against what enemy?”
“They haven’t revealed themselves yet, but I want our people ready. We’re the only ones with any real combat experience. If there is a war coming, we shall be needed.”
“I’ll make sure we’re ready, General,” Le Croix said. “Just be careful back at HQ. The politicians can be as deadly as any rebel squad. Maybe more.”
“Roger that,” Pershing said. “Stay here and await my orders. I don’t think you’ll have to wait long.”
“We’re ready and waiting,” Le Croix said. “Just give the word, General.”
Pershing signed off and nodded at Derringer.
“Take us to the jump point,” Captain Derringer said. “We’ll be in the Celeste system in just eight hours, General.”
“Excellent. I’ll be in my quarters until then.”
Pershing left the bridge and headed to the small room she had occupied since boarding the Deception. She didn’t mind small spaces. Unlike most people, she was used to small quarters, or even being stuck in very confining battle armor. The lack of distractions in a small space often helped her focus her mind on solving the problem at hand.
The stretch of going into hyperspace came and went while Alicia Pershing sat on her narrow bunk and thought of what lay ahead. She knew the admiral general well enough to imagine just how much pressure he was under to find a solution. The only question was, what would he do once Pershing revealed where the Modulus Echo was?
If the commander-in-chief insisted on charging in with guns blazing, the little rebel ship would simply vanish again. Pershing wasn’t a naval officer and had little knowledge of ship-to-ship battle tactics, but she had a few ideas of what might be effective against the rebel ship with the impenetrable shields. Of course, the last thing the admiral general would want from her was advice. If she could, she might be able to convince the admiral general that her ideas were actually his. But manipulation wasn’t one of Pershing’s strongest skills. She was much more straightforward in her leadership style and preferred clear communication over conniving tactics and implying threats.
There was only so much planning she could do before reaching the system. Admiral General Volgate had issued the general recall, but for all Pershing knew, she might get to the Celeste system only to find a new commander-in-chief calling the shots.
She stretched out on her bunk. The gentle hum of the ship’s life support systems was like a lullaby. It was a common Special Forces skill to be able to sleep anytime and anywhere. Stretching out on a comfortable bed was a luxury, and she felt herself growing drowsy almost instantly. The trip through hyperspace would last eight hours, which would give Pershing a solid six hours of rest before she got cleaned up and ready to meet with the other senior officers at Fleet HQ.
As her mind slipped into the place between waking and sleeping, she wondered about the short files she had read on the crew of the Modulus Echo. Ben Griminski wasn’t in any of the Royal Imperium’s systems. That wasn’t unusual for a native on a backwater planet like Torrent Four. They only knew his name because his face had been recorded by security cameras during a heist at the local Technical Institute. He was obviously mixed up in the theft of some Zexum, and the local Security Forces had shown his picture around enough to get a name, but nothing more. The man was a ghost.
Magnum Wallace, on the other hand, was a wanted man. Security Forces had a much thicker file on the fugitive. He had been picked up numerous times as a child, eventually being flagged in their system as a delinquent with possible ties to organized crime. He was on a no-fly list, but of course the rebels didn’t play by the rules.
Perhaps the most astonishing thing of all was the rebel ship itself. A Kestrel class starship was ideal for blockade running. It could fly in almost any atmospheric conditions and could also break orbit and jump into hyperspace. It had both cargo and passenger space, and could be converted to carry weapons. They were sturdy ships, but few in number. The price tag on them had been high enough that only commercial interests or the very wealthy could afford a Kestrel class ship. They had gone out of production over a century before, and from the video her people had recorded on Torrent Four, the Modulus Echo had been cobbled back together from a variety of parts. She looked like a quilted version of a starship. There were no sleek lines, or polished finishes. The Kestrel was a powerful, beefy design for a ship, but the Modulus Echo looked as if it had been rebuilt more than once.
Which brought her mind back to Ben Griminski. Le Croix had watched Ben pilfering through the salvage fields for most of the day. In the end, he had returned to the starship with what appeared to be a containment unit. What he had inside was anyone’s business. Pershing knew the rebels on some worlds used terrorist tactics like hijacking commercial vessels, blowing up government buildings, and the like. But there was nothing on Torrent Four worth terrorizing. The entire planet was essentially a garbage heap, and no one with the means to leave was still there. The only Imperium citizens were businessmen with contracts living in the few cities surrounded by seas of garbage and breathing tainted air.
Plus, the rebel was collecting items, not leaving things behind. Pershing was relatively certain that the outlaw named Ben Griminski had found something to put into the containment unit. Some old munitions maybe—there were plenty to be found in the salvage fields, she supposed. What type of person could find treasure amid the trash of a garbage world, Pershing wondered.
It was a Special Forces tactic, one that she impressed on her people at every opportunity. They were often deployed to strange worlds, and the most successful operators often found resources on the ground or among the locals they were helping or hunting. Pershing had watched Ben pilfering through what looked to be mounds of garbage. There was wreckage from old transports and starships everywhere on the planet. And most of his efforts had been under the top layer of trash and debris.
During the fight with the gang of locals, it had seemed that Ben rescued someone, a female, but her face was smudged and smeared. It wasn’t until the fighting started that her people realized she was part of the rebel crew. Or maybe not the crew, but a passenger they had come to collect. It was all very confusing. She couldn’t be completely certain that the locals were enemies. Perhaps it was simply a pick up gone wrong. Pershing knew the Confederacy had leaders, although much of the rebellion was localized to specific planets. The outlaw gang obviously didn’t answer to anyone but themselves, and it bothered Pershing to think that her Spec Ops unit had actually helped the rebels escape.
It was fate, she supposed. Brigadier General Alicia Pershing wasn’t a big believer in anything other than her own abilities, but she knew greatness awaited her. She had known that her whole life, and when she went into the Imperium military it was with the expectation that she would play a pivotal role in a galactic struggle. But years had passed, and outside of a few small skirmishes that could hardly be called battles, she had simply been a cog in the military machine. She was an officer, but there was little that she had been called on to do, that any other officer could not have done. And she had risen to the pinnacle of her selected branch of service. Still, deep inside, she felt something bigger in store, something pivotal to the galaxy. If t
hat wasn’t destiny, she didn’t know what it was. And if she had been selected by fate to play a key role in the unforeseen future conflict, perhaps the crew of the rebel ship Modulus Echo had as well.
Chapter 40
“It’s done?” Kim whispered.
“Mostly,” Ben said. “I just have to connect the stages together. It won’t take but a few minutes to complete. But I didn’t want the professor to know how easy it would be to finish it.”
“Because he’ll want to test it,” Nance said.
Ben nodded.
“But we don’t want that?” Kim asked.
“I don’t know,” Ben said. “I mean, if he’s right and it opens a portal, then great. It could change the history of the galaxy. They could be placed in strategic locations and allow people to traverse huge distances in minutes rather than days and weeks.”
“And if it doesn’t work out like he thinks?” Kim asked.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Ben said.
“And the Confederates will want it,” Magnum said.
“Which brings us back to where we started,” Ben said. “Should we test it?”
“How will it benefit us if we test it?” Nance asked.
“If it works, we could slip to the other side of the galaxy to escape the Fleet,” Kim proposed.
“But we can’t close it,” Ben said. “If it works the way he’s thinking, it will be a stable portal forever.”
“So the Fleet could just follow us through,” Nance said.
“Will it be big enough for a capital ship?” Kim asked.
“All good questions,” Ben said. “I have no idea.”
“I don’t think we should do it,” Magnum said.
“What would it take to do it?” Kim asked.
“I’d have to assemble it, then go out and mount it to the hull,” Ben said.
“We’d have to sync it to the computer’s weapon system,” Nance said.
“If you’re going out there,” Kim said. “You need to attach those sensors to the hull.”
Gravity Flux: Kestrel Class Saga Book 3 Page 18