It Ain't Over

by Robert M Kerns

  As Cole considered that, a notification of a new message popped up on the console. Cole selected the notification and instructed the ship’s computer to display the message. As soon as it appeared, Cole skimmed through it, seeing it was a notification from Mr. Müller at Credit Suisse; the remaining rhodium had sold, and he credited 97,873,959 credits to Cole’s personal account. All branches should have the updated sum within ninety days. Cole looked at the time-stamp on the message and saw it was seventy-five days old. Well, those extra credits would certainly help; Cole wanted to provide signing bonuses to everyone who signed on with him.

  A thought forced its way to the forefront of Cole’s consciousness, and he fought to keep his reaction to it from showing on his expression. If the berthing compartment he’d seen down on Deck Five was any indication, this ship would support a ginormous crew, which meant Cole would need a rank structure, with ratings and matrices delineating what was necessary to achieve promotion. And Cole had not prepared any of that yet…hadn’t even given it any thought.

  Cole swiveled his seat and saw someone he didn’t know in the command chair. Cole blinked and glanced to his left, checking the time on the right-third of the helm. Wow. No wonder Sasha wasn’t in the command chair; it was a little past 12:47 GST. Cole had worked through lunch. Cole was just about to swivel back to the helm when Mazzi and Sasha returned to the bridge. They were smiling, and it looked like they might have been laughing before stepping onto the bridge. Cole checked the helm one more time, and seeing an estimated time to intercept of seven hours and change, Cole decided to discuss the matter of rank with her.

  Just as Sasha was about to assume the command chair, Cole approached her, saying, “May I have a word in my office?”

  Sasha nodded once and said, “Mazzi, you have the conn.”

  The individual who had vacated the command chair for Sasha moved to the helm as Mazzi moved to the command chair. Wixil hadn’t moved from the main weapons station yet, so she didn’t need to move back.

  Cole headed for the port hatch and stopped, turning to Mazzi and saying, “Oh, Mazzi…just as an FYI, the Solars lit off their drives about twenty minutes ago, and I calculated them on an intercept course for us, which will happen in a little over seven hours.” Without waiting for a response or acknowledgement, Cole pivoted and led Sasha off the bridge.

  They stepped across the corridor and entered Cole’s office after passing through the outer office. Cole sat behind the desk and gestured for Sasha to pick a seat.

  “We may be working our way into a problem,” Cole said.

  Sasha frowned. “How so?”

  “Ranks and paygrades. Less than five minutes before you returned to the bridge, I realized I haven’t given the slightest thought to ranks and paygrades. If we crew this ship, I may run out of funds…fast…which would put me in the position of doing something I don’t want to do.”

  A mischievous grin curled Sasha’s lips as she said, “What…turn gigolo or stripper?”

  Cole gave her a flat look. “No. Look, you’ve leveled with me. Well, by that, I mean I know your situation with the Commonwealth. I suppose you deserve to know my situation as well, but I would ask that you not discuss this with anyone…not even your sister. Agreed?”

  Sasha was frowning now. “Okay, but seriously…you’re not some kind of crime lord, are you?”

  “I’m sure some people would say so,” Cole replied. “My name is Bartholomew James Coleson, and I am the heir to the Coleson Trust.”

  Sasha’s jaw dropped. Her mouth hung open as she stared at Cole. When her mind re-engaged, all Sasha said was, “Bullshit.”

  Cole shrugged. “It’s true. Remember me telling you about my parents being dead? My whole family was massacred in Beta Magellan. Garrett found me alone in a shuttle orbiting Beta Magellan IV. He helped me create the identity ‘Jax Theedlow,’ and I used that identity to hide in unclaimed, unaligned space for thirteen years. Remember Pyllesc system?”

  Sasha nodded.

  “I was going to scuttle that freighter and steal an ore hauler from the mining camp, before your destroyer shot the freighter out from under me and left you dancing with the stars. I have seven metric tonnes of precious metals hidden in Beta Magellan, just waiting for me to pick them up and sell them. It was all supposed to be my ‘buy a planet and disappear’ stash.”

  “What changed for you?” Sasha asked.

  “Well, two things. First, I found this ship; it’s not a runabout. Sure…I could’ve worked with Srexx to make it almost automated, but I’d still need at least some crew. Second, you happened. Well…you and your sister…and maybe your whole family. The Commonwealth gave you guys a raw deal. No one was there for my family, and I will see what I can do to be there for yours.”

  Sasha nodded. “Okay. We will table the claim you’re some kind of lost heir to the vast riches of the Coleson Trust for right now, and I’ll get with Yeleth and have a rough rank and pay scheme by the time we dock.”

  “Thanks. Do we have firm numbers yet on who wants to sign on with us?”

  “Oh, all of them…all 657 of them…but we’re only keeping about 640 of them. The Kiksaliks wouldn’t pass seventeen; either they lied about their identities, or they lied about not selling out Talia and me. Either way, they’re not people we want on the ship.”

  Cole shook his head. “Nope. Not at all. Oh, and make sure Yeleth also has an inventory of what we have on pallets down in Cargo One. We will need to outfit berthing compartments, galleys, and mess halls, and I want to use what we have before we buy more. Oh…and think about some kind of training regimen for me. It feels kind of odd being the captain and not knowing anything about what I’m supposed to be doing.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Sasha said with an impish grin. “I rather like it.”

  The passage of six hours found Cole, Sasha, and those Cole was coming to think of as the primary command team back on the bridge. Matter of fact, Cole had just taken a seat at the helm when Jennings at the comms station announced that they were receiving a hail from the Solar Republic ships.

  “What’s the comms lag with them, Jennings?” Cole asked.

  “We’re close enough now, sir, that it’s negligible.”

  Cole nodded. “Okay. Is the message text, audio, or video?”

  “Video, sir.”

  “Throw it on the forward viewscreen, but do not open a channel yet.”

  The forward viewscreen activated and displayed a still image of a woman’s head and shoulders. She wore the white ship-suit that was the standard uniform for Solar Republic Navy personnel, and her decorations were impressive…even if Cole didn’t know what they meant. She was of Asian descent, her eyes a dark brown, and gray streaked through her hair that was otherwise almost black as the void of space. Then, she spoke.

  “Attention, unrecognized ship, this is Admiral Himari Sato of the Solar Republic Navy. The Caernarvon system is under our protection, and we ask your intentions. If you do not respond, we will have no choice but to assume your intentions are hostile and act accordingly. Sato out.”

  “Cole, if you’re going to talk with the admiral,” Sasha said, “you should sit in the command chair.”

  Cole swiveled to face Sasha and grinned, saying, “Only if I send full video of the bridge. Do we want them getting a look at the bridge?”

  Cole watched Sasha’s eyes roam over the bridge before she shook her head. “No…probably not.”

  “Jennings, hail the admiral, audio only,” Cole said. Within a few moments, the bridge’s speakers chirped to indicate a comms channel was established. “Greetings, Admiral Sato. Thank you for your welcome to Caernarvon. I’m Cole, and I am the owner and captain of the Battle-Carrier Haven. We are putting into Caernarvon for supplies and harbor no hostile intent toward any resident of this system.”

  “Captain Cole, this is Admiral Sato. I must say…that’s a rather conditional statement of non-aggression.”

  “Yes, well…my parents were murdered, Admiral. If
I can ever locate the person or persons responsible, I promise you I’ll have all kinds of hostile intent toward them. Otherwise, I’m very much a ‘live and let live’ kind of guy.”

  “You don’t sound military, Captain Cole. Why should I believe you?”

  “I’m not military, Admiral. As for why you should believe me, I have no idea. I’ve been honest with you from the start of the call, but I don’t have any way of proving my veracity.”

  “Would you consent to a boarding party searching your ship?” Admiral Sato asked.

  Cole frowned. “To be honest, Admiral, I’m uncertain you have the authority. We’ve committed no acts of aggression. Granted, we’re on a hot approach to the orbital station, but we’re running out of food and need to resupply. Besides that, you’re not part of the Caernarvon system authorities. If you attempted to stop this ship and board us by force, that could open you guys up to charges of piracy in the Interstellar Court. Now, if we put aside all talk of authority to conduct a search and just focus on logistics, how many people would you commit to such a search? Fifteen, maybe? Twenty?”

  “I would commit as many people as required to see the job accomplished,” Admiral Sato said. “Why do you ask?”

  “Admiral, how many decks does your battleship have, and what are the overall dimensions of a deck?”

  “That’s classified, mister. You can’t honestly expect me just to give you such sensitive information.”

  Cole sighed. “Admiral, my ship has sixteen decks, and each has a habitable area of 300 meters by 130 meters. Are you willing to turn out the equivalent of one of your battleship’s crew to get this done, assuming that I even agree to the search?”

  “A single individual has no business owning a ship like that. I’m thinking it would be better for all concerned if we confiscate that vessel.”

  Now, Cole felt his anger rising. “Admiral, you’re so far outside the jurisdiction of the Solar Republic, it’s not even funny. You can have this ship over my dead body, and you’d better be absolutely certain that’s the path you want to take. Once you start it, there’s no turning back…and I promise you, we’re not the easy mark you’re thinking we are.”

  Cole accessed his implant and sent a text message to Srexx: Prepare to disable their ships. Prefer non-lethal and difficult to reverse, but if they start the party, finish it as you see fit.

  Cole also angled to his right just far enough to tap the command on the right-third of his console that would bring the ship to alert status. The status lights on the bridges glowed a bright gold, and the lights dimmed just enough to notice. The ship’s computer diverted power to the shields, charging all three levels, and brought the energy weapons online.

  “If you’re so innocent with non-hostile intent, Captain,” Admiral Sato said, “why are your shields charging?”

  “Because you’ve threatened me and my ship. If you’re stupid enough to start a fight, I’d be an utter fool to be sitting here all defenseless and let you roll over me.”

  “I think we’re finished here. Let’s see what you think when you’re in one of our brigs…or begging to surrender.”

  The bridge speakers chirped again as the channel closed.

  “Captain,” the man at the sensors station said, “they’re moving into a battle formation and have locked weapons on us.”

  Cole sighed. “Why do people have to be so pig-headed?”

  “Well, Cole,” Sasha said, “you basically called her stupid, and I’ve heard of Admiral Sato. She’s one of their best.”

  “She might be one of the Solars’ best, but she’s no Srexx. Srexx, are you listening?”

  “Yes, Cole.”

  “How much access do you have to the computers on those ships?”

  “I have just finished scanning the computer cores and copying their information, setting aside the encrypted archives and files for later decryption. I do not believe they are even aware I am accessing their infrastructure.”

  “What type of power plants do those ships have?” Cole asked.

  “Like most ships we have encountered, including the Dawn-class destroyer you encountered in Pyllesc, the ships of the Solar Republic battlegroup have fusion reactors as their power plants. The size varies, however, by class of ship.”

  Cole nodded. “Okay. Can you trigger the emergency core ejection and lock out any local overrides?”

  “Which ship do you want, Cole?”

  “All of them.”

  A few minutes later, Srexx said, “Done. All Solar Republic ships are now on emergency power. They have limited maneuvering capability, so within a few weeks, they should be able to reverse course and retrieve their reactor cores. I also recommend altering speed, either increasing at least to sixty-five percent of lightspeed or decreasing at least to thirty-five percent of lightspeed. Doing this will ensure we avoid colliding with the Solar Republic ships.”

  “Captain,” Jennings at the comms station said, “all ships of the Solar Republic battlegroup are now transmitting ‘Ship in Distress,’ and their running lights are flashing the emergency code.”

  “Good for them. Hail station control and request permission to dock. If they get surly, explain we’re low on rations and only want to resupply from the station’s chandlery. We’ll be leaving their oh-so-welcoming star system immediately thereafter. Oh…put me on ship-wide address, please; the people aboard deserve an explanation why they’re not getting shore leave here.”

  The speakers chirped, and Jennings said, “You’re on, Captain.”

  “May I have your attention, please? This is the captain. I regret to say we will not be lingering in Caernarvon for any extended time. We found a Solar Republic battlegroup in-system, and they chose to lock weapons on us as the opening gambit of a move to take this ship. That situation has been dealt with, and the Solar ships are no longer a concern. That being said, however, I see no reason to patronize a system that tacitly supports such actions…whatever their reasons for doing so. We will top off our food supplies and order any necessities we need from the chandlery before moving on. Anyone who wishes to leave here may do so; just log your departure with Purser Yeleth, so we won’t search the ship trying to find you. Those of you who have been offered employment will be compensated for losing shore leave, if you wish to stay aboard and accept said employment, and we will begin the onboarding process at our next port of call. Captain out.”

  “Captain,” Jennings said, “Docking Control is asking how long we’re planning to stay before granting permission to dock.”

  “Tell them we will only be here as long as it takes the chandlery to deliver a massive food order. Sasha, what’s a good, neutral system where we can take time to get everyone established?”

  “How much travel were you thinking?”

  Cole shrugged. “I don’t care. I want it to be somewhere not here.”

  “There’s always Tristan’s Gate,” Sasha said. “It’s on the rim-ward side of the Commonwealth, about sixty lightyears from Zurich. They’re rugged individualists there, and militant about it to boot.”

  “Sold,” Cole said. “Jennings, tell Docking Control we want to buy enough food for 800 people across 180 days. However long it’ll take the chandlery to deliver that is exactly how long we want to stay.”

  A few moments later, Jennings said, “Docking Control asks if we’d accept the chandlery delivering it to us at fifty thousand kilometers, since they’d have to use cargo shuttles anyway.”

  “Yep…never coming back here again,” Cole said, sighing. “Fine. Have them send navigation data for where they want us to park.”

  Four hours later, the last cargo shuttle from the chandlery departed from the flight deck, and the pilots agreed to transport the seventeen undesirables back to the station. Cole asked Jennings to notify the station of their departure while he locked in Tristan’s Gate as their destination.

  Cole thought about those seven thousand kilograms of metal in his stash and changed his mind. Running quick math through the helm co
nsole, he saw 85-percent power would deliver them to Beta Magellan in just under eleven days, with a little over nine days from Beta Magellan to Tristan’s Gate. He chose Beta Magellan as the destination. The computer provided a least-time path to the system’s periphery, and Cole locked in that course, setting the engines to half-lightspeed. A little under fourteen hours later, Cole saw the ‘Engage Hyperdrive’ control light up, and he pressed it. Haven vanished from Caernarvon.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  In Transit to Beta Magellan

  31 July 2999

  Cole sat at the workstation in his office, thinking about their current destination while he waited for his old friend and a Kiksalik to arrive. He’d arranged for the ship’s computer to display a destination of Tristan’s Gate on the helm console and to answer questions about their destination as being Tristan’s Gate. He didn’t like deceiving his crew like this, but he didn’t want word of his identity getting out before he was ready. With a sigh and a shake of his head, Cole put those concerns aside.

  “Srexx?”

  “Yes, Cole?” Srexx’s voice broadcast through the speaker installed in the office’s ceiling.

  “What do we need to bring this battle-carrier to full function?”

  Srexx was silent for a time before answering, “We need 128 turrets for the dorsal and ventral mounts; 3,072 shield emitters for the extra two shield layers; and full missile and torpedo magazines.”

  “Can the fabricators aboard supply all that?” Cole asked.

  “Yes, Cole. The only true lack we have is raw materials. The recyclers can take almost anything and re-form it at the atomic level to match the materials needed by the fabricators.”

  “So…what you’re saying is that we could use anything as source material? Even asteroid regolith?”

  “Yes, Cole.”

  Cole nodded. “When we get to Tristan’s Gate, that’s just what we will do.”

  The hatch to his office irised open, and Garrett poked his head inside.