Darkest Reach

by Eric Warren

  “Correct. We also use them to track the history of the universe. Or at least what we can see of it.”

  “Your libraries must be vast.”

  “Vast and detailed. The second stamp is ready.” Zenfor entered a sequence into the computer. The screen flickered and the fuzzy image sharpened, but wasn’t as clear as the one for the Iphigenia. “I had to bounce this off what you call the Norcon system. It’s much further away so our resolution won’t be as good. There’s also a better chance of losing the signal.”

  The image flickered as Cas barely made out the USCS Genesis come into view, along almost the exact same path as the Iphigenia. Though they were looking at it from the underside, rather than the port side view. Cas couldn’t make out the SCAS logo on the Genesis but the configuration of the ship matched what he knew the Hermes-class Destroyers used to look like.

  “It’s harder to see, but I believe we’re witnessing the same event,” Zenfor said. “The Kryon Radiation is present here too. As are the electromagnetic bands.”

  “And as soon as Genesis gets close enough to touch one they’ll be ensnared. Just like Iphigenia. Just like us.”

  “Correct.”

  20

  Captain Cordell Greene surveyed the scene before him. All his best people were at their stations and yet he couldn’t calm the unease that had grown within him ever since they’d dropped out of the undercurrent and heard that distress signal. And now they’d lost precious hours to some unknown space affliction and he wasn’t about to lose anymore. It was time to engage plan A. With any luck, they’d be out of here and back on route to Omicron Terminus within the hour.

  “Commander? Is everything ready?” he asked his first officer.

  “Lieutenant Zaal and Ensign Ronde report the ship is ready,” Diazal noted.

  “Issue a general alert. Tell the crew to hang on to something.” He took his seat and engaged the restraints.

  The commander pressed a button on the arm of her chair. “Attention all personnel. We will be attempting to use vibrations to shake the ship loose. Lock down all loose containers and prepare for turbulence.”

  Greene had to admit it, Diazal was one of the best he’d worked with. Despite the fact sometimes her methods were…unorthodox. In the end she always did the right thing and she was good at her job. He only wished he’d found her years ago. If they somehow survived this impending threat from these aliens, he didn’t think it would be long before she was offered her own ship and he’d have to take on yet another new first officer.

  “Station heads report all sections of the ship are prepared, Captain,” Diazal said.

  “Okay, everyone. Let’s hope this makes a dent. Lieutenant, Ensign, engage when ready.”

  “Aye,” they responded at the same time.

  At first Greene couldn’t tell if anything was happening. Then he felt it: a low rumble in the ship itself. As if it were a great beast waking from a long sleep.

  “Vibrations at ten percent,” Ronde said.

  “Is it making a difference?” Greene asked.

  “Nothing yet, sir,” Zaal reported.

  “Turn up the heat. I want out of this thing.” The rumble increased. Enough so that Greene felt his own chair begin to tremble. It wasn’t much, but the reverberations traveled up through the chair and through him as well. He found if he clamped down on the arms of the chair, the effect was negligible. “Anything?”

  “Still nothing, sir.”

  “Ronde, turn us up to fifty percent. If whatever has us has the capability to adapt, let’s try to keep it on its toes.”

  Ronde nodded, inputting the necessary commands. The ship shook with a violent force, tossing Greene back and forth. Had he not been strapped to the chair he would have been thrown from it. He gripped the armrests with white-knuckled hands. “Report!”

  “Vibrations at fifty percent, sir. No detectable effect,” Zaal yelled. The bulkheads shook as if they’d pull from their housings. This was fifty percent? What was a hundred?

  “Can we give it anymore?” he asked.

  “I don’t think so, sir, otherwise the ship will begin to tear itself apart at the seams. It’s not making a difference.”

  “End it,” he ordered. The vibrations stopped within moments. Greene slammed his fist down on his armrest and retracted his restraints. “What happened?” He made his way over to Zaal’s station.

  “Whatever has us immobilized doesn’t respond to a physical shaking,” Zaal said. “If anything we might have made it worse. The pull on the ship is even greater, and the engines are now working overtime to keep the ship in place.”

  “How much longer can we stay in our current position?” Greene asked.

  “That depends on how much strain you want to put on the engines,” Zaal replied.

  Greene turned to his XO. “I’m at a loss.”

  “Maybe we can try using pulses with the vibrations rather than a constant barrage. Quick bursts of the vibrations might do more to break us free than a gradually increasing force,” Diazal replied.

  “Commander, I’m not sure a physically oppositional force will—”

  The hyperdoors opened at the end of the room, cutting Zaal off. Robeaux and Zenfor spilled out, both landing on the floor as if they’d been stunned.

  “I think I’m gonna throw up,” Robeaux said. The consul stood but placed her hand on the wall to steady herself. She didn’t look much better than he did. Had they been in the hypervator during the vibrations?

  “What’s going on?” Greene asked. Surely they’d heard the alert; what could be so important they risked moving during the vibrations?

  “We’ve made a discovery about the creature,” Robeaux said. The last word came out with a burp.

  “Commander, perhaps you should visit sickbay. We can discuss this once you’re feeling—”

  Robeaux waved him off. “We were trying to tell you to stop the vibrations. They could have the opposite effect.”

  “That seems to be the case,” Zaal replied. “We are now being pulled in at a greater rate of speed.”

  “You are not the first ship to experience these issues,” Zenfor said. “Both the Iphigenia and the Genesis fell into a similar snare. All three are experiencing the same problem, twenty-seven years apart, each.”

  The Genesis? That was a name Greene hadn’t heard in a long time. He’d been a few years old when the ship was lost and remembered it had been a big deal at the time. But he’d thought the ship had disappeared closer to Naraka. Had it been in this sector? He hadn’t even thought about it. “Lieutenant Zaal?”

  “Confirmed, sir. The USCS Genesis was reported lost in the vicinity of the Excel Nebula, fifty-four years ago.”

  “Why didn’t this come up in your information previously?”

  “I apologize. It seems the information was mis-filed in Coalition data storage. It is filed near Naraka but the file clearly says Excel Nebula.”

  Damn sloppy archivists. Greene turned back to the commander and Zenfor. He could feel Diazal’s presence at his side. He hadn’t been blind to the tension between her and Commander Robeaux ever since he’d been reinstated, but he trusted she could handle it. Though he had been disconcerted to see a reprimand come across his desk for Robeaux. Was this part of that, or something else? “You say you know both ships suffered the same fate? How? The Coalition has no records on their disappearances. Unless I’m mistaken.” He turned to Lieutenant Zaal again.

  The Untuburu shook his head no, though his face betrayed no emotion.

  “Consul Zenfor used some…proprietary technology to discern their fates. I’m not at liberty to reveal—” He coughed twice and closed his eyes, pushing himself up on his hands and knees. “Sorry, sir. I’m not at liberty to divulge the Sil technology. By order of the consul.”

  “Medical to the bridge.” Greene regarded them. When he’d taken the Sil onboard he’d expected a scenario like this might arise, though he hadn’t anticipated it coming so quick. His orders were clear: keep the p
eace, no matter the cost. Which meant he couldn’t order Robeaux to talk about how Zenfor had discovered the information. He would have to trust Robeaux’s first priority was the ship and the crew’s welfare. It made him feel better the man had decided to rejoin the Coalition; at least there could be consequences if he defected again. But he was also something of a loose cannon ever since his return from Sargan space. Greene had spent considerable time reviewing the man’s former service record and it was hard to reconcile the two. The Caspian Robeaux splayed out on the floor before him today was a far cry from the first officer of the Achlys. “Ensign, help the Commander,” Greene ordered. Ronde jumped out of his seat and hooked a hand under Robeaux, bringing him to his feet. His face was a pale shade of green, but his eyes were alight with activity. Greene also noticed Commander Blohm had left her station and was standing close. “You say both previous ships suffered the same fate? This pull on the ship?”

  “Yes, sir. And if we don’t get out of it, I believe something bad will happen.” His eyes left Greene’s for a moment, shifting left to his XO.

  “Are we receiving a distress signal from the Genesis?” Greene asked.

  “No sir. Just the Iphigenia. No other signals have been detected,” Lieutenant Uuma replied.

  He turned back to Robeaux. “Do you think the Iphigenia is still intact in there somewhere?”

  He shook his head, still using Ronde for support. “I don’t know, sir.”

  “I don’t understand. Why haven’t any other ships that come through here been affected? There are two undercurrents that intersect not far from here. Ships pass through here by the week.” He only shook his head. “Damn.” Greene returned to his seat. “And what about the creature in the center? Does it have anything to do with this? Is it what’s pulling us in?”

  “We think so,” the consul replied. “It could be a natural reaction to something invading its territory, or it could be completely oblivious. We don’t have enough data to speculate. All we do know is there is an electromagnetic field that surrounds the area and when a ship approaches it, it can become stuck in the field and drawn in.”

  Greene turned to his XO. “We need another solution. The vibrations obviously didn’t work. What else do you have?”

  Diazal fixated her gaze on Robeaux. “Commander, what is your status?” There it was again, that tension. Robeaux only stared back at her, but somehow he looked paler than he had before, his eyes wide.

  “I…uh…” He closed his eyes and pitched forward.

  “I’m afraid we’re still working on a backup. We’ve been trying to modify the spacewings to produce an anti-grav field so they can operate out there. I haven’t received any updated reports, so I’m sorry to say they aren’t ready. But I believe it is our best chance of getting out now that we know the vibrations won’t work.”

  This was unlike her. Usually when he needed something she was right there, ready with options. Could her lack of preparedness be because of Robeaux? “I like the idea, Commander. When would they be ready?”

  She turned and stared at Robeaux again. Ronde had helped him into the specialist’s station while Zenfor stood off to the side, pressed against the wall. “I can’t say, sir. Soon. I’ll work with my department heads to have an update for you shortly.”

  The other hypervator doors opened to reveal Nurse Menkel and the robot, both who made their way over to Robeaux and the consul. “What happened?” Menkel asked.

  “They were in the hypervator when we were making the vibrations,” Diazal said.

  Menkel ran his scanner over Robeaux. “He’s got severe vertigo; his equilibrium has been disrupted.” He checked Zenfor. “If I’m reading this right, the consul has a similar affliction, though not as severe.”

  “Get them both down to sickbay,” Greene ordered. “Were there any other injuries?”

  “Only minor ones, sir,” Menkel replied. “A few falls from people who didn’t get to their stations fast enough. Nothing serious. Certainly no one else was stupid enough to ride in the hypervator at the same time.”

  The robot hoisted Robeaux up, holding him under his arms as he groaned while Menkel helped escort the consul back to the hypervator. “They should both be okay in an hour or two, the doc will check and make sure there isn’t any permanent damage.”

  “Very good,” Greene replied. “Ops, continue scanning for any additional signals inside this area of space. If there’s even a hint of the Genesis out there, I want to find it. Engineering?” Blohm had returned to her station. “Keep me updated on our engine output. I don’t want to burn them out trying to stay in one place. If it makes sense to release them some, let me know.”

  “Yes, sir,” she replied.

  “Commander, keep working on your plan. I want an update in an hour. And a third contingency. The way this is going we’re going to need to try everything and then some.”

  “Aye,” she said, having not taken her eyes off Robeaux even though he was almost to the hypervator. “I’ll have an update for you very shortly.”

  Greene returned his attention to the screen at the other end of the room, nothing but black stretched out before him.

  21

  “I tried to tell youuuuu…” Box sing-songed as the hypervator stopped on level seven and the doors slid open.

  Cas wanted to roll his eyes but he felt like any voluntary movement might cause him to throw up right there in the corridor. Box still held onto him, keeping him upright and from collapsing to the ground. When they’d heard the claxon and the announcement from Evie, he and Zenfor had rushed to the hypervator in an attempt to get to the bridge as quickly as possible. Cas had tried the comm system but she wasn’t answering him. Had he known the deleterious effect the trip would have on them while the ship vibrated he never would have tried it. And it ended up being in vain anyway; the ship was now being pulled closer to the center of the phenomenon.

  “Tell him what?” Zenfor asked.

  “That he should have followed Commander Diazal’s orders,” Box replied. “Instead of going off on his own.”

  Cas exchanged glances with Nurse Menkel who averted his eyes, looking embarrassed to be overhearing this conversation. “Can we discuss this another…time?” he asked, his voice strained.

  “Why? Everyone already knows you broke protocol.” Box replied.

  “How? She didn’t make that report public,” he replied.

  “I think Chief Rafnkell had something to do with it. When you didn’t return to the Bay. I recall her asking me something about your work ethic—”

  “Box! You could have told me.” Now he was going to throw up.

  “It wouldn’t have mattered. She’d already written you up. All that would have done is aggravate you further. Then you couldn’t have made any progress on the Genesis.”

  Zenfor turned to him. “How do you know about the Genesis?”

  “Who do you think told him about it?”

  Zenfor turned back to Cas. “Perhaps he should be assisting me and not you.”

  The entire corridor spun wildly and Cas lost what little footing he’d gained with Box’s help, collapsing in his arms. “Boss, I know you’ve fallen for me, but this is over the top.”

  “Can’t…see…”

  “Hold him there, Box,” Menkel shone a light into Cas’s eyes. It spun too. “Let’s get him to Xax, double-time.” Cas felt himself being hoisted up and then not only was the corridor spinning but it was bouncing along, as if he was on the Death Loop on Antares seven. He’d only been once as a kid and had found most of the rides too extreme for him. But he’d tried the Death Loop on a dare and regretted it ever since. He shut his eyes, hoping he couldn’t see the inside of his eyelids spinning.

  “Something doesn’t feel right,” he said. His head was splitting despite the darkness, and the queasy feeling was getting worse. He still hadn’t thrown up yet, though it usually didn’t take much.

  “Put him over there,” Menkel ordered and Cas had the sensation of falling, but then bei
ng on something solid. “Box, immobilize him, he’ll roll off the table otherwise.” The feeling of a tight blanket all around him keeping him in place materialized and he had the sensation of the table being turned upside down and him hanging from the ceiling. Had they lost gravity? He didn’t want to open his eyes to look.

  “Cas, can you hear me?” It was Dr. Xax.

  He tried to nod but thought better of it. “Yeah.”

  “You’re going to be okay. Some of the components in your inner ears have been dislodged. We’re fixing them now and you should feel better in a few moments.”

  Cas could only trust her on that. It felt like what little tether to reality he’d had disappeared and he was free-falling through space. He could imagine himself, out there in the darkness being pulled toward whatever creature was in the middle, invisible and dark and having no control over his own body. That’s what this felt like. He needed his anchor back otherwise he’d never be able to focus on anything ever again.

  “Caspian, try opening your eyes,” Xax said.

  He squinted, then wrenched them open to find the room was no longer spinning.

  “Everything look okay?” Xax asked. He nodded. “Let’s get you mobile.” She pressed a button under the table and suddenly he could move again. “Try sitting up.” Cas did and while there was a small wobble in his vision, it wasn’t anything like it had been. “Better?”

  “Yeah. Everything’s…stabilized.”

  Xax smirked with her small mouth. “See? Simple inner ear repair. Your ride in the hypervator must have shaken you up too much. Enough to cause some damage. But I did a scan, looks like everything else is fine.”

  Cas glanced around the room. Box was off in the corner working on something he couldn’t see. Menkel tended to Zenfor, who sat on the edge of the next table over, her back to him. “What about you? Feeling okay?”

  “I feel fine now. It was only temporary.”

  “Her ear construction is similar to ours, but much sturdier.” Menkel showed Cas the scan he’d taken of Zenfor. “Less prone to problems like the ones we’re used to.”