“Sounds like it was fun.”
“It was, and I'd love to see another free port, but I don't think it'll happen here. We haven't seen the last of the Vindyne fleet and the people down there are going to be on edge. I have a bad feeling about this, Jonas.”
I squeezed her a little tighter and nodded. “I'll be careful. Besides, Oz is bringing a security detail with him.”
“Good, we need you back up here safe and sound. If you ask me we shouldn't stay here longer than we have to.”
“At the very least I'm going to collect on whatever this compensation they're offering is, and see if I can get us an energy shield system.”
“Well, just make sure it's not a plasma based shield. We could already make one if we had to, but they're energy hungry and hard to maintain. I don't like the idea of surrounding the ship with a controlled explosion.”
“They also haven't been in wide use for almost three hundred years. Too dangerous. All right, no plasma.”
“And be safe. I want you back soon.”
“Don't spend all your time worrying about me while I'm down there,” I smirked.
She laughed and shook her head. “I doubt I'll have time. We have to build a new rail cannon turret from scratch to replace the one that got slagged and we're using a new design. We almost lost a gunnery crew, so we're going to try a concept with more protection.”
“Good, how is the gunnery team from that turret?”
“They're recovering. Our new doctor is fantastic. They'll be back on duty in a few days. You should go by medical when you get back, I'm sure they'd love a visit from their Captain. I've been stuck in medical before. It's boring. They'll appreciate the distraction.”
“Another good idea. What would I do without you?”
For some reason she completely ignored my comment, instead she just kissed me and laid her head on my chest for a few moments before telling me. “I have to get back to engineering. There's still a lot of work to do.”
“I'll walk you down,” as we left my quarters, I couldn't help stopping at the door for a moment to look back while the lights were dimming. My quarters were so new to me they didn't feel like home yet.
I had just left Ayan in engineering and was starting to make my way to the flight deck when Alice chimed in on my left ear piece. “You're forgetting something, aren't you?”
I stopped in my tracks and thought for a minute. “Nothing I'm aware of..”
“Your inoculation? It's procedure. Unless that's another policy you're loosening up.”
“Don't they still stock the shuttles with inoculations?”
“It's better to go to medical. My existence would get pretty boring if the human I'm strapped to died because of some alien strain of influenza.”
“You really know how to make me feel special.”
I took the next lift up to main medical and was completely taken aback when I stepped out. There were a dozen or so wounded who were still being kept for observation and most of them noticed me right away. I don't know what kind of greeting I expected, but I didn't look forward to visiting the main treatment center.
I should have. Seeing the consequences of my decision to involve the crew in a firefight we knew little about taught me more in seconds than I could have learned in ten years of officer's training. The instant smiles on everyone's face as I came out of that elevator tube taught me even more.
"Captain on deck!” One fellow with a patch on one eye and a burn treatment wrap across the rest of his body called out with a raspy voice. He was one of the gunnery crewmembers who barely got away from a turret before it exploded. His jacket hung on a chair at his bedside and it told more of the story than the trappings of his treatment. The back of the protective material, able to sustain harsh radiation and over two thousand degree heat, had almost completely burned through. The fact that the man was alive at all was a miracle.
I had initially come for an inoculation but that wasn't my purpose any longer. I remembered seeing friends in the hospital after the war and the lessons learned then came back to me. I looked this man in the eye, ignored the bandages and trappings of his recovery, walked over to him with a smile and clasped his good hand as soon as he offered it.
“How are you feeling Bruce?” I asked him.
“Couldn't be better. The Doc's got some powerful good pain meds.”
“It's the least we could do.”
“He says I should be back on duty in a couple of days. That is, whenever they build a new turret for Greg and me.”
“Take your time in medical, Sergeant. We're building you two something special, courtesy of our Chief Engineer.”
Doc smiled as he walked across the treatment center and put a hand on my shoulder. “Let's do the rounds, Captain,” he invited.
We did just that, going from crew member to crew member. I stayed and chatted with each one for a few minutes while Doctor Anderson checked their status, then we moved on. I didn't catch an evil eye from a single one. When we were finished, we went to a small corner in the infirmary that afforded us some privacy.
“Thanks for your help Doc.”
“With what?” He asked as he prepared an injector with my inoculation.
“Talking to everyone out there. I was really just coming for my inoculation, didn't know what to expect when I got here. That's not exactly something they prepare you for in basic training, and what they teach you in officer's training sounds good but standing there and saying; ‘good work soldier, carry on!’ just doesn't feel right.”
“That training is for wooden officers who know how to follow regulations and orders, not people who have to live with their crew for more than a few weeks or months at a time. I just gave you a pace, the rest was all up to you. You did fine for a man caught off guard. I saw the look on your face when you stepped out of that elevator. Glad you could join in on a long standing tradition.”
“What's that?”
“Honouring the wounded. They used to call it walking the battlefield a couple thousand years ago. Of course, back then, the commanding officer would have a few men with him to put those who were too badly injured out of their misery.”
“Glad that's changed.”
“So am I. I had a lot of practice on the Apollo with Colonel Darius. After every engagement he'd be in medical, visiting everyone for a few minutes if he could spare the time.”
“Sounds like a good commander.”
“One of the best. Career officer for over thirty years, you'll never find a more die-hard traditionalist. He's a great thinker as well, and gets along with his crew. You remind me of him in that respect. It'll serve you well, especially on a long mission like this.”
“Thank you, I've still got a lot of mistakes to make before I can really be compared to that kind of Officer,” I said as I got up to leave.
“We all do. Oh, there's another exit just there," Doctor Anderson,” Doc said as he pointed to a smaller door that looked more like a storage room hatchway. “And don't they equip those boarding shuttles with inoculations?”
I couldn't help but look down at my command console for a moment as I made my way out of medical. “You know, I'm pretty sure they do.”
Chapter 2
Concordia
The First Light reached orbit just as everyone was set up and ready to depart in the boarding shuttle. The machine was an efficient design, with three-way adjustable seating for thirty-six that could brace the passengers in chairs, vertically or horizontally. It was equipped with enough supplies and energy stores for one month and a short range hyperspace system. There was also empty space for cargo or more modular equipment.
It was almost exactly like the one Minh-Chu and I served on with his infantry unit during the All-Con war, hopping from one manufacturing site to another, breaking or sneaking through their defences and blowing them up or setting them ablaze. The major difference was a little more space, slightly more modern systems and two rail gun turrets instead of only one. Since the advent of am
munition materializers that could generate hundreds of rounds per minute, the need to store a ton of munitions per weapon was gone.
It was unusual sitting near the front end of the main cabin with only six other people. When boarding craft were in use you'd rarely see them without a full compliment, so it was always a cramped, busy ride. With the main cabin empty and a large section of the port hull set to transparency mode, it seemed spacious and I felt a little uneasy.
Oz, Jason, Doctor Lang, three security officers and I sat looking out that transparent section of hull, three meters wide by one meter tall, as we left the launch bay. The sight that greeted us was unlike anything I'd seen.
Concordia was a bright azure and emerald planet. I could see the north polar cap, jagged shapes of the lush coloured green continents, and brighter, yellow land masses just south of the equator. The swirl of clouds drifted across the blue, green and brown so slowly and gently in gossamer white shades. One long continent was nothing but mountains, like the spine of some sea creature breaking the water, and it led from just above the equator all the way up north to the icy polar region.
All-Con Prime was the only planet with an atmosphere that I had ever been on before then and it was a charred mess. A pitted and ruined toxic hulk.
What I was seeing in front of me as I looked at Concordia was so delicate, so vibrant, and such a fine thing that I was loathe to blink during those moments.
“Are you all right Captain?” Carrie, one of our security team asked in a whisper.
“I'm fine, I've just never seen anything like it,” the hull went opaque as we neared the atmospheric entry point and I buckled myself in.
“It's an agricultural world. I've seen one before. They're beautiful.”
“Yup, really pretty to visit but boring to live on. I couldn't imagine a life of tending crops, waiting for whole seasons to go by,” Oz added.
Atmospheric entry was a little rough, but short, and the hull plating beside me became transparent once more. We were following the mountain range I had seen earlier. Its sides were covered with trees, the peaks topped with glimmering snow. Just over the tops of them I could see that the ocean went on to the horizon. It was the most pure blue I had ever set eyes on.
“I'd say that's why the Vindyne fleet decided to turn away.” Jason said as he pointed just up ahead.
There was a massive planetary defence cannon hovering over the ocean. Its base was hundreds of meters across. Cables trailed behind it in the water as it drifted lazily beside us. “That barrel has to be at least fifteen meters wide. I wonder what kind of cannon it is.”
“Antimatter. I've seen one once before, but it was one hell of a lot smaller.” Oz said. He looked mesmerized by the sight of it. “That thing could blow asteroids apart, never mind combat carriers. No wonder they've been able to stay isolated. Freeground could use a couple of those, forget shielding.”
“Well, maybe we have something we can trade for the designs on one, who knows?”
“I wonder how many they have, just the same.”
“I don't know how keen they'd be on giving up that kind of information, especially since they’ve probably hidden several.”
“Good point, I know I'd want to keep that a secret,” Oz agreed.
Our destination came into view then, and it occurred to me that if Freeground were on land, it would probably look something like what I was seeing. Just like the massive antimatter cannon, the port was in stark contrast to its surroundings. It was just north of the end of the mountain range, built on a flotilla of ice. It was a construct of domes built atop circular pilings with pylons reaching up and away from the main city building. Several landing platforms reached out from each pylon. Two of the larger ones supported massive barges a kilometre long. They were nothing more than container ships, most likely for moving crops off world to transports waiting in orbit.
The port was quiet. I could only see a handful of smaller ships taking off or circling; no one was landing. We went straight in and landed on one of the lower platforms in one very swift, smooth motion of descent and deceleration. I flipped a switch and opened a connection to the cockpit. “Hello Minh, I should have known you'd be along for this trip.”
“What gave me away?”
“Oh, I don't know. The indirect flight path, the scenic view, and the drop and swoop landing was a dead give away.”
The cockpit doors opened. He and his copilot, Derek, were working through the post-landing checklist. “In my mind I am a bird, and the wind carries me lightly.” He said over his shoulder. “I'll be a few minutes while we go through the post flight. Why don't you kids go out and play? It looks like your friends are waiting.”
“See you out there bird-brain,” Oz replied as we unbuckled and started making our way down to the main debark hatch.
The hatches on boarding shuttles were made to slide up and out of the way in a second or less, so when it slid up to expose us to the harsh, icy wind, it was like a frozen slap across the face. Everyone took a step back. The tiny specs of snow on the wind felt more like sand as they stung our cheeks. My vacsuit adjusted the second the temperature changed, but that didn't protect my head.
I looked to my right and saw that Oz already had his headpiece on. “What?” He asked with a shrug.
“No one puts their headgear on. Let's greet our new friends face to face.”
“Hey, why do I have to freeze my head?”
“We have to make a good first impression. Besides, if they can take the cold, so can we.”
“I haven’t been this cold since boot camp. I'm definitely a tropical person.” Oz commented with an exaggerated toothy grin as he pulled his headpiece down.
I steeled myself against the cold and started down the walkway leading to the station proper. It was ten meters wide with a chest-high railing but it still felt like we could get blown over the side and down to the ice or water hundreds of meters below.
“Welcome to Northern Concordia. I'm Governor Samuel Finnley, this is my assistant William Kam and Elise, my legal consultant and daughter,” he shouted over the sound of the wind, gesturing to a tall fellow in a thick brown parka and a young woman in a hover chair piled high with blankets. She looked so comfortably tucked in that I almost envied her.
“Greetings from the crew of the First Light and her Captain. This is my communications officer Jason Everin, my medical officer Doctor Fiona Lang, my security officer Terry Ozark McPatrick and his team. Our Pilot, Minh-Chu Buu and his copilot Derek Gregor are still on the shuttle. They'll be along later if that's all right.”
“Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you, but you must be freezing! There's a warm hallway leading to a boardroom just behind me. Let's move this inside,” the Governor invited. He seemed right at home in the weather and smiled easily. The dark grey parka he wore was half undone, and I could see there was nothing special about the suit he wore underneath. I had seen many civilian dress suits on Freeground, typically a thin black jacket with a low collar and black pants. His was no different, but his suit looked a little faded from what I could see.
Once we were inside and sitting down at a long white boardroom table with a live animation of the ice flows stretching across it, I took a moment to look around. Instead of transparent steel, one wall featured a four part glass window that stretched the length of the room, and the lighting fixtures hung from the ceiling in thin, shielded tubes. The space was nicely built, with a thick fibre carpet, plaster walls painted in a gradient of blue and green ceiling to floor, and the chairs were deep and comfortable. I was reassured, however, that most of the technology that they used to construct the room was at least four hundred years old. “I hope you don't mind me asking, but how long ago did your people build this port? It's in fantastic condition.”
“We finished building it three years ago to replace a landing platform that was attached to the bottom of the ocean. This city can drift above the water, across land or ice and produces no emissions. It's absolutely state of the art.”
I tried to hide my surprise and focus on the style more than the severely out of date technology. “It blends right in with the ice.”
“I know. The cold temperature is perfect for a port. Most dangerous bacteria and such are killed right away, so our experts say. If I had known the custom in which your people dress, I would have warned you to bring warmer clothing,” the Governor mentioned as a young man entered the room carrying a tray. It was loaded with a steaming hot kettle and a number of mugs.
“Ah, our vacsuits. They're only one to three millimetres thick, but they can protect us from extreme temperatures. Only our faces and ears felt the cold.”
“I've never seen a suit so thin that can do so much. I suppose that's something I should keep in mind if we trade. I hope we get the opportunity.” the Governor said as he sat down. His daughter sat on his left as an aide removed most of her blankets. His assistant sat to his right with a thin display tablet that he tapped and dragged his finger across, moving icons and adding notes to whatever information storage system these people used.
“We should take care of current business first, sir,” his assistant said without looking up from his work.
“Yes, old business before new,” he nodded as the servant poured him a mug of thick brown liquid. “Have some hot chocolate while we talk.” He gestured. “So, our Defence Command reports that you managed to defeat one corvette and assist in the destruction of another. You also dispatched over three dozen smaller ships. According to the assessment committee that's worth thirty seven million, two hundred twenty four credits. What currency would you like it in?”
I thought for a moment and tried to recall the itemized rewards list that Freeground used when paying mercenaries but couldn't remember any figures. It had been years since I had even glanced at it. “That's just less than half of what Freeground offers, Jonas, but it's enough to replace our fighters and a little more by the pricing I have on file,” Alice whispered through my ear implant.
Spinward Fringe Broadcast 0: Origins Page 14