by Jerry Boyd
“He is expected today, Boss. I will notify the Marines with him as soon as they arrive.”
“Good work, Gene.” I turned back to Nikki. “Anything else I need to be aware of, before I go back into the meeting that never ends?”
“I love you, and thank you for trying to make the galaxy safe for our kids to grow up in.”
“I love you too, and I hope your confidence isn’t misplaced.” Gene came over the speaker, “Commodore, the Ambassador will be arriving shortly. Please proceed to the landing bay.” I caught a transit, and started my busy day. I got there in time to be waiting when the Ambassador’s ship landed. He had come in a much larger ship today. It was then I noticed the Marines around the edges of the room. The bigger ship worried Topper as well, it would seem. The door opened, and uniformed Squirrels started out, weapons at the ready. It must have been their naptime, because they all had a little laydown before they got to me. Finally, the speaker on the outside of the ship came to life. “You have one of our comrades in custody. We will have him returned, safe, before this sham ‘negotiation’ can continue.”
I spoke up. “What do you propose if I don’t deliver him? Are more of you going to come out and get stunned?”
The Marines had closed up around me. Andre said, “Would you like us to clear the ship, so that you don’t have to shout to be heard, Boss?”
“Not yet, I don’t think. When did you get in?”
“About an hour ago. I would have reported, but they said you needed your sleep.”
“Yes, I did. I was up all night negotiating a treaty that I’m no longer sure is worth the paper it’s written on.”
“Murphy is our shepherd, huh, Boss.”
“That he is.” I turned to the ship, and added some volume. “Send the Ambassador out, or we’ll come in and get him.”
The reply was, “I slit his throat before we came here, monkey. Bring out our comrade, or our ship will open fire.” I texted Topper, “If they charge weapons, make sure they no longer have any weapons.” I got back, “On it, Boss.”
I turned to Andre. With a sweeping gesture, I said, “If you please.” As it turned out, most of the Squirrels with bad intent were already laid out in front of the ship. Andre came to the door and said, “The Ambassador is not aboard, Boss.”
“Thank you, Andre. Take these idiots into custody, and make for dang sure you check their cheeks.”
“On it, Boss.”
“Gene, get me Dingus.”
Dingus answered, “Yes, Bob?”
“Take command of the fleet till I get back to the bridge. The Ambassador was not aboard his transport. I have a claim that he is dead. I hope for their sake it was a brag. Stun their flagship till it glows, and then send every Marine who isn’t otherwise occupied aboard. I want the Ambassador, or his remains, aboard the Gene soonest.”
“On it, Bob.” The connection dropped. I ran for the transit. Once aboard, I said, “Gene, page Tikki to the bridge.”
“Yes, Boss.” After a rough ride, the transit opened at the bridge. I ran in. Saucy hollered, “Commodore on the bridge!” I replied, “As you were. My ship. Report.”
Topper said, “I stand relieved. Commodore Sloan has ordered stunner passes by several ships, and the Marines are in transit. Commodore Sloan would like to speak with you.”
“Put him on, please.”
“Bob, I’ve got the attack started, but there appears to be a large group of stunner resistant individuals in one section of the ship.”
“Guess we’ll get to see if that new bunch of Marines lives up to the hype, then.”
“What started this fracas?”
“The ship supposedly carrying the Ambassador arrived full of troops.”
“So, you’re checking up to see that the Ambassador is okay?”
“I am. I like him. I think we can do business. If these turkeys killed him, after we stayed up all night working out a treaty, I am not going to be amused.” Topper said, “Boss, sorry to interrupt, but Chesty is in contact with a Marine who has some information you need.”
“Put him on, leave Commodore Sloan in the call.”
Chesty said, “Boss, one of my Marines has found the Ambassador.”
“In what condition?”
“Sedated. He’s in his cabin, asleep.”
“That’s good news. One of the idiots who tried to take the Gene claimed he was dead. Are your boys having much trouble with the stunner resistant folks?”
“No, Boss. Commodore Mason provided them with flash bangs. Stunner resistance doesn’t do diddly for that.”
“More good news. You’re just a ray of sunshine today, Chesty.”
“You don’t have to get nasty about it, Boss.”
“Have your Marine bring the Ambassador, and a few changes of clothes. I want him on the Gene, soonest.”
“On it, Boss.” Tikki came running onto the bridge. “Yes, Boss?”
“Do you still have that number on your comm that I had you call the other day?”
“Yes, Boss.”
“Could you call him, and pipe it to the speakers in here?”
“Sure. When do we get to the hard part?”
“When I have to tell him his Uncle’s mission is going sideways.”
“Ouch! Glad you’re sitting in the big chair.”
The speaker came alive. “This is Captain Dressi, how may I help you?”
“This is Commodore Wilson. I’m calling to inform you that your Uncle has had some trouble keeping control of his mission. He’s had a mutiny, of sorts, but we have it under control for him. He was sedated, and has yet to wake up. Do you have some idea as to how we should proceed?”
“Could you tell me how this came about?”
“Yesterday one of his minders tried to kill me. Your Uncle revoked his diplomatic immunity, so that I could take him into custody. Apparently, the rest of the old guard aboard his ship objected to that. The ship that was supposedly bringing your Uncle back for more negotiations this morning, arrived full of troops, demanding the return of the prisoner. They are enjoying the fine accommodations in our brig. We then assaulted the flagship, in an attempt to ascertain the well-being of your Uncle. He is well, but still sleeping from whatever they gave him.”
“You’re saying your forces are in possession of our flagship?”
“At the moment, yes. I certainly don’t intend to keep it, I just wanted to get your Uncle to safety.”
“Thank you for that. Would it be alright if I brought a fleet to see for myself?”
“That wouldn’t be a problem, but be advised my entire fleet is in the system, and any hostile moves would not be taken lightly.”
“Understood. Please have my Uncle contact me as soon as he is able.”
“I certainly will. Sorry to call with such poor news.”
“To tell the truth, Commodore, the news is better than I expected. I thought they would force you to kill someone.”
“Not for lack of trying, that’s for sure. Feel free to call Tikki if you have any questions. She will be able to get you in touch with me.”
“Thank you for informing me. Hopefully, our next conversation will be under better circumstances.”
“I hope so as well. Good day, Captain.”
“Good day, Commodore.” I turned to Tikki. “Thank you for helping with that. Do you need anything?”
“A few minutes to take it all in, I think. You captured the flagship, just to make sure your friend, the Ambassador, was safe?”
“We did. I’ve been led to believe that your people respect shows of force. Is that not the case?”
“It is. What was that I saw in the culture pack? Oh yes, ‘Yours goes to eleven’.”
“You’re saying that a Squirrel wouldn’t have gone to the same extreme?”
“That’s what I’m saying, yes.”
“Did I go too far?”
“I don’t think so. You should have their attention now, though.”
“I doubt it. They seem to have difficulty taking
me seriously.”
“You may be surprised, Commodore. If you don’t need anything more, I’ll get back to my station.”
“Go ahead. I’ll have Gene interrupt you again if I need anything.” She headed out. Topper said, “The Ambassador is aboard, Boss. He has yet to wake up.”
“Have him sent to medbay, so they can keep an eye on him. Post a guard, just in case we have one of their mutineers running around loose. Do any of our Squirrel crew members have any medical training?”
“Haffi Witti has an advanced first aid certificate, about what Earth would call an EMT.”
“Have her check in on him, please. We don’t know enough about Squirrel physiology to know if we’re doing the right things for him.”
“I’m having Gene page her. What should we do with the Squirrel ship?”
“Get Lakki to get into their computer records, and see precisely what happened over there. Let the Marines keep control of the ship until the Ambassador wakes up and tells us what he wants done.”
“On it, Boss. Haffi is on the comm for you.”
“Commodore?”
“Yes. What can you tell me about the Ambassador?”
“They didn’t just sedate him. They chemically forced him into hibernation. Without the antidote, he’ll be out for a week.”
“I’m guessing we don’t have any of this antidote on hand?”
“There’s a problem. There are several drugs that can induce hibernation. Without knowing which one they used, I can’t administer an antidote. None of the antidotes are all that complicated to synthesize, but using the wrong one can be worse than no antidote at all.”
“Could an autodoc tell you which antidote to use?”
“Most likely not, since all of these drugs are very close to naturally occurring chemicals in the body.”
“You’re telling me that unless we can get the person who drugged him to tell us what they used, he’s going to be asleep for a week?”
“That’s the way it looks to me, Boss.”
“Lakki is trying to break into their computer records. If she’s as good as she claims, she should be in by now. Get with her and see if you can find anything that will help us pin down what he was dosed with. Even knowing for sure who did it would help.”
“I’ll get right on that, Boss. Do you happen to know where she is working?”
“I don’t, ask Gene. I’m sure he can lead you right to her.”
“On my way. I’ll let you know when we find something.”
“Later.” I turned to Sue. “Sue, could you look over your logs for last night, and see if any odd comm calls went out from the Squirrel ship?”
“I’m sorry, Boss. What do you mean by odd?”
“That’s a good question. Not part of the normal schedule, seemingly urgent, anything of that nature.”
“You understand there’s no way for me to know what was said, right?”
“I do. I have a pretty good idea what was said, if the call went out. I just need to know for sure if it did.”
“Okay, Boss. I’ll go through the logs, I should have an answer in an hour or two.”
“That should be quick enough. Thanks.” I turned to Topper. “All our vessels are in fighting shape at this point, are they not?”
“Yes, Boss.”
“Are the Armstrong and the Conrad free to maneuver?”
“Yes, Boss. The Aldrin and the Shepherd are handling operations with the Squirrel flagship.”
“Saucy, get me Captain Sloan.”
Dingus said, “What’s up, Bob?”
“That’s just it, Dingus. I’m not sure that anything is. The fellas that took over the Squirrel ship put Natti into hibernation. He won’t wake up for a week, unless we can figure out what antidote to use. I have to wonder if they were figuring to call in a fleet, while Natti was out, and cause enough of an incident to cancel the negotiations.”
“You think they were setting us up for an ambush?”
“Given the way they’ve acted so far, I don’t think I can discard the possibility, do you?”
“No, I don’t. What do you propose?”
“You take Diego, and whatever destroyers you think you might need, and lay low, a few AU’s out. If we get unwanted company, you can jump in behind them, and mess up their whole day.”
“As annoyed as I’m getting with these rascals, I might mess up their whole week, Bob.”
“Do as you see best, Dingus.”
“Have I mentioned I like working for you, Commodore?”
“You might have. Why do you ask?”
“Just the way you give assignments. Go do what needs doing. Holler if you need help.”
“You’ve got as much training as I do, unless you’ve been slacking. The chances of me telling you a better way of doing something are pretty slim. Besides, you need to get in the habit, for when one of these idiots gets lucky and does me some damage.”
“You really think one of these Squirrels is going to be able to hurt you?”
“If Dixie wasn’t as quick on the draw, one already would have. Managed to nick my ear with a poisoned knife.”
“Dixie got you an antidote before you got sick?”
“She did. Makes me wonder why they’re having trouble figuring out what’s going on with Natti. Guess it has something to do with it being related to hibernation, and Dixie doesn’t have any prior knowledge to go on.”
“Sounds reasonable. Anything special you want us to do while we’re out there waiting in the black?”
“Gee, I dunno. Figure us out a sensor that can see a ship coming in FTL, so we don’t keep getting surprised?”
“People have been trying to figure that one out for years. Nobody has had any luck yet.”
“Then it’s about due, don’t you think? Call if you need anything, Commodore Grandpa.”
“Asshole! You just wait till we play paintball again. Talk to you later.”
“Bye, Dingus.” I thought for a minute, and said, “Gene, could you connect me to Lakki?”
Lakki asked, “Yes, Boss?”
“Did Haffi find you?”
“She did. We found video of the Ambassador getting dosed. The Marines have the perpetrator in custody, and are taking him to the Grissom, for the personal attention of Captain Mason. We were also able to determine which quarters were his, and the Marines are in the process of searching them for any clues to what drug he used.”
“You two are quick! Good work! I have one more request, and then you can go back to what you were doing.”
“There is fear in my heart, Commodore. What do you need?”
“Could you grab all the files their medbay has on hibernation, and drugs to induce it, and ship copies to Dixie? Between her and Haffi, maybe they can figure out which drug was used on Natti.”
“Sure. I thought you would want something difficult. Haffi wants to know if she should stay here, or head back to medbay and help Dixie?”
“Do you need her for anything?”
“No, Boss. She’s good company, but I’m busy right now.”
“Send her back, then. Thanks again for all the good work, you two.”
“You’re welcome, Boss. Talk to you later.”
“Bye.” Sue spoke up. “Boss, I found that comm call you were worried about. Lakki told me when the Ambassador was drugged, and I was able to narrow the search. Looks like it went out about five minutes after the Ambassador went to sleep.”
“Any way to narrow down where the recipient might be?”
“No, Boss. I can tell you that no calls went out from the fleet to this particular recipient since they arrived.”
“Even with all the studying I’ve done, I still can’t make heads or tails out of the way they run their operations. If it was me, I would have had the backup fleet a light-year or so out, running quiet, so they could have been on top of us before we even knew the Ambassador wasn’t in charge any more. They’ve had what, six or eight hours, and they still haven’t sprung their ambush?
What kind of sloppy planning is that?”
Topper said, “It does seem strange, Boss. I don’t see what they could be hoping to gain, by a delay.”
“Neither can I. That makes me nervous. Usually, I can understand what they’re trying to do. Right now, I don’t have a clue.” We sat there pondering for a few minutes, until Tikki came onto the bridge, breathless. She said, “I just got a call from Captain Dressi. He wanted me to tell you that he has heard reports of attempted mutinies from five ships patrolling in our region. There are three other ships, not responding to comms, and presumed taken.”
Topper said, “There’s your answer, Boss. They had to take the ships before they could head this way.”
I asked, “Tikki, did he happen to mention how long ago all this happened, or how far away?”
“I got the impression he thought he was breaking security telling me that much. I doubt he wasted much time calling me, but I also doubt the Captains who had to put down mutinies would bother calling it in, until they had the situation under control. My best guess would be three hours ago, more or less.”
“I’m guessing he didn’t give you any idea how far away they were, either?”
“Nope. We did put new sensors in Black Beauty and her sister ship that might be able to pick up ships passing in FTL, but we haven’t had a chance to test them.” I turned to Topper. “Find somebody to ride with Shorty in the number two ship, and get them out between us and the Squirrels, on the most likely path.” He turned toward Sue. I said, “Nope. Think again. She stays here.”
“She is the best qualified, Boss.”
“That’s why she’s sitting Sensors on the Commodore’s flagship. When these idiots get here, we’re going to need the best data, as fast as possible, to plan our attack.”
Sue said, “Sorry, Mr. Topper, but the Commodore is right. Besides, I never finished my field training. I know a bot who can do the job, though. She’s on the Shepherd.”
I said, “Topper, get the data from Sue, and let Sally know we are borrowing one of her crew. Get those ships in the black as soon as you can.”
“On it, Boss.” I must have been getting more accustomed to the Gene, because I noticed the small jolt when the ships launched. I said, “Good work, Topper. Are Willum and your brother sleeping aboard Black Beauty?”