“Agreed.” The Commander watched the other ship’s manoeuvring engines firing as she slowed. He keyed his link. “Beagle, run a comparison check against the known Consortium ship conversions, please.”
The ship’s voice acknowledged the order, and a series of images populated the Commander’s console one by one as a sort of slideshow. It stopped at one. “Match found. It is identified as the former Jellabah Khan. Cruiser conversion. Reported lost at the cessation of hostilities in 2210.”
“Ah.” The Captain hesitated. “Are any of our surveyor craft still away or due for detachment apart from Two?”
“No, sir. Five has just docked, and the team due to visit Two hasn’t left yet.”
“Good. I’m not sure about this visitor.” He nodded to the comms warrant officer. “Open a link with him if you can. Let’s see what he claims he is about.”
“Vocal link open, sir. No holo-visual.”
“Jellabah Khan, this is Beagle. What brings you out this far?”
“I should ask you the same thing, Beagle. This is nonaligned space, as far as I am aware.”
Captain Kretzmann’s eyebrows rose as he glanced at the Commander. “So it is. We are a research and exploration ship. Our mission to this sector has been well publicised on Earth and throughout the colonies.”
“That’s a dangerous mission for an unarmed research ship, Captain. Perhaps it’s fortunate that we found you.”
Again, the Captain and the Commander exchanged glances before Captain Kretzmann replied. “So far we have little reason to feel threatened, Captain. Perhaps you’d like to tell me what brings you out here.”
Laughter sounded over the link. “Perhaps, and perhaps it’s just a pause to carry out some maintenance while my crew have a bit of recreation planetside. You’re not the only ones doing exploration, you know.”
The Commander’s personal link chirped. He silenced it and headed for the door. Outside the Command Centre, he answered it.
“Commander here.”
“Commander Polen, I understand that a ship has arrived here, and it’s not from the Fleet. I demand that you prevent them boarding the alien derelict or landing on the planet.”
“Dr. Palmer, as we have no idea of their intentions at present, you are a little premature. Since they are heavily armed, we may not be in a position to prevent them taking any action.” He changed tactic. “We are still unable to identify who they are. They could be your friends from the LPSL for all I know, but they refuse to identify themselves properly.”
“Of course it’s not the Shepherd! The last official contact I had from our Foundation said that they’d been delayed.”
The Commander enjoyed Palmer’s agitated response. It’s just so easy to wind him up, he thought, but he kept his reply professional.
“Ah, so I had better inform the Captain that this is not the LPSL’s ship. Perhaps you will meet me in fifteen minutes in the conference room and let me have the recognition codes for the ship you are expecting. We wouldn’t want any further misunderstandings. Now, please excuse me. I must speak to the Captain urgently.” He cut the link and keyed the access code to the Command Centre.
The Captain’s raised finger warned him that the comlink to the visitor was still active, so he nodded, found a tablet and keyed in a brief message while listening to the verbal fencing over the channel. Handing the tablet to the Captain, he watched as the other read it then replied and handed the tablet back.
“Mr. Heron, join me and Lieutenant Commander Penn in the Navigation Centre. At the double please.”
“Aye, aye, sir,” Harry was on his feet and heading for the door before his book reached the table. Several other officers relaxing in the wardroom wondered what was happening, but he didn’t hear their questions as he hurried out of the room. At the door of the Navigation Centre, he almost collided with the Commander arriving from the opposite direction.
“Good, you’re here. Is your link with the ship active?”
“Yes, sir.” Harry didn’t bother pointing out that it was hardly ever inactive unless he demanded it of the ship.
The Commander said, “We have reason to believe that the crew and officers of the approaching ship are up to no good. We may need to get out of here fast, and Lieutenant Commander Penn agrees with me that if we need to transit in a hurry, you’re the best person to do it.”
“I see, sir.” Harry felt his heart quicken. In his thoughts, he asked Beagle what was happening. Almost instantly, he had a clear image of the intruder and the ship’s analysis of the newcomer’s armament and capabilities.
“What do you need?” Commander Polen asked.
“A moment to plot some emergency manoeuvres and to calculate our entry to transit as well as possible trajectories, sir.”
“Will it take long? I suspect these guys aren’t going to stall. They’ve already run scans of us. I think they’re planning to board the Beagle. They must be low on supplies and spares.”
“I don’t need long, sir.” Harry seated himself, his head full of streams of data as the ship processed his instructions. “That alien ship is matching orbits with this planet’s outer moon, sir. It seems to be stalking us or the Khan.”
“What? Damn, that’s all we need. Where the hell did they come from?”
Beagle’s voice sounded through the comms system.
“The aliens appeared three minutes after the Jellabah Khan, Commander Polen.”
“Thank you, Beagle.” To Harry, he said, “I wonder who they’re after. Do our visitors from the Khan know about the alien ship?”
“It appears not, sir. They’ve given no indication of being aware of it. They may not have noticed it. We can only detect the ship because we’re watching for occlusions of other objects.”
“Can you find a way to get us out from under in a hurry—preferably one that keeps us clear of weapons fire from either ship?”
Harry did some quick calculations. “I believe so, sir.” He spoke to the ship in his thoughts. “Beagle, plot a transit position directly above the moon that the alien is hiding behind. Get as close to it and the surface as you dare. We may just see what’s stalking us, and get rid of these others at the same time.”
The solution appeared in Harry’s mind and at the helm position. “Keep it updated until I give the command to go.” To the Commander he said, “I have a solution plotted in, sir. It will catch both adversaries by surprise. We will enter a transit point close to the surface of the outermost moon. The energy surge should reveal the alien and hopefully prevent either it or the Khan from following us.”
“That close to the moon’s gravity, the power surge will play merry hell with their navigation if they try to follow. I’ll warn the Captain.” The Commander paused. “Listen in to the comlink between us and them. If it turns ugly, don’t wait for an order.”
“Aye, aye, sir.”
From his post in Navigation, Harry was amused by the verbal fencing between the two Captains. His Captain played a rather thin hand skilfully enough to make the other hesitant to show his.
Harry watched the Khan through the ship’s scanners. “The Khan is closing, ma’am,” he said to Lieutenant Commander Penn. “He’s using manoeuvring jets in brief bursts to close the distance between us.”
“You’re right,” she replied. “He’s damned good at it too. You can’t see the discharge at this angle, but he’s closed the distance on us, alright. I think he’s going to launch a boarding party.” She activated her link and waited for the Commander to answer. “Commander Polen, he’s closing on us using docking engines. It seems they’re planning an assault by boarding.”
“Well spotted. Yes, we think so as well. He’s obviously saving his interceptors—probably doesn’t want to risk damage to them if he can’t repair or replace them. Is Mr. Heron ready to move us as and when necessary?”
Harry nodded his acknowledgement. “I suggest making our move as soon as he launches his assault, sir. He won’t risk using his main weapons for fear of
hitting his own people.”
“Good. Make it so.” The Commander paused. “Anything happening with our other visitors?”
“Nothing yet, sir. They’re still there, just beyond the moon.” Harry stiffened. “The Khan seems to be preparing to launch. He’s opened his cargo doors.”
“It’s in your hands, Mr. Heron.”
“Aye, aye, sir.” Harry stared at the display while he listened to the ship. He was aware of the sudden appearance of a swarm of EVA-suited figures leaving the open holds. “Helm, hyperpods online. On my mark.”
He watched as boarding sleds emerged and the suited figures clustered around them. He heard the Jellabah Khan’s Captain saying, “My weapons are locked to your ship, Captain. Cooperate with my boarders, and we can avoid any unpleasantness.”
“Stand by, Helm.” Harry watched as the boarding parties closed. “Now—full power. Hold the bearing for the moon. Transit on my order.”
The ship surged into movement, the drive pods lighting up as the power poured through them. Bolts of plasma from the attacker’s main weapons singed past, their aim thrown off by the sudden acceleration.
“He’s attempting to follow us,” exclaimed the Lieutenant Commander.
Harry didn’t reply. He was counting down the seconds as speed increased and the moon drew closer. He reached his mark. “Now. Enter transit.”
The ship lurched as it entered the singularity created by the hyperpods. As Harry had anticipated, the proximity of the moon affected the transit, and the massive power surge lit up the huge ovoid ship partially in the shadow of the moon. In that moment, Harry got a good look through the ship’s scanners, and then the Beagle was in transit.
“A bit close there, Harry,” Joan Penn said with relief. “Any sign of pursuit?”
The scan operator replied. “Negative, ma’am.”
“Good. Did anyone get a look at the other ship—the mystery one?”
“I did, ma’am,” said Harry. “I think we got some images on the recorders.”
“Let’s take a look at them then.”
In the living room of the ancient house overlooking Strangford Lough from its perch on the shoulder of Scrabo, Naimh L’Estrange looked up as her brother, Vice Admiral James Heron, entered the room.
“So you’re off again, James? Where to this time?” She smiled. “I suppose it’s a secret as usual. You’ll miss Theo. He’s coming tomorrow and will be sorry not to see you.”
“No secret mission this time, Niamh. I’m going out to relieve Erwin Hansen. I’m taking command of Fleet Four. My flagship will be the Vengeance.” He paused. “Will Theo be staying on as Chief Justice, or does he plan to carry out his threat to retire?”
“He’s decided to stay in post for another year.” She grimaced. “I wanted him to step back a bit, but you know him—he loves the daily challenges.” She changed the topic. “Is there anything to the news report that the Beagle has discovered a new civilisation?”
“They’ve discovered traces of one but nothing more.”
“Not according to the latest news reports. According to their man on the Beagle, they’ve encountered a very large alien ship that has twice tried to make contact and been thwarted by the actions of certain junior members of the crew, as the reporter put it. Is he trying to infer Harry’s involved, do you think?”
The Admiral shrugged. “Possibly. Wolf Kretzmann has filed several complaints about Dr. Palmer’s attitude toward members of the crew, the installation of a private hypercom transmitter on the ship, attempts to access classified and personal information, and a whole lot more.” He hesitated, knowing his sister’s likely reaction to Harry, Ferghal or Danny being in danger. “They’ve now managed to evade three attempts by a ship of entirely unknown type to ambush them. It’s far bigger than anything we’ve ever seen before, and our scanners can’t see it.” He chuckled. “At least, they couldn’t see it until Harry apparently opened a transit point right on top of it while evading one of the Consortium’s supposedly lost ships. Now we know what it looks like, and we’re worried—but that’s for your ears only, please.”
Niamh frowned. “So not only is Harry in danger again, but you’ve let them put some of those damned LPSL people on his ship to harass him? The Beagle’s defenceless, and now they’re evading an unknown alien ship, Consortium renegades and the damned LPSL? Really, James, what is your precious Fleet thinking?”
“There is a cruiser squadron on its way to escort them.” He hesitated, his own face reflecting annoyance. “You know the boys mean as much to me as they do to you. Beagle was not expected to encounter anything in that sector. Otherwise, she’d have had an escort long before this. As it is, the squadron was on its way at the first news of the contact and would be there by now if it hadn’t received a distress call from the LPSL and diverted its course to investigate.”
Chapter 8
The Missing Life
Captain Kretzmann rapped the table. “Ladies, gentlemen, I have some news for you.” He waited until he was sure that he had their full attention. “We are returning to Objective Six. A Fleet squadron will rendezvous with us at seventeen hundred ship standard time tomorrow.” He shot a pointed glance at Dr. Palmer. “They’d have been here five days ago if they hadn’t been diverted to a false distress call.” He was slightly disappointed to see no reaction from the doctor. “Our orders are to continue the examination of the planet. As you would expect, there is huge interest in it and some serious questions regarding the absence of life forms on land.”
A young research assistant seated in the Alien Cultures group asked the first question. “Do we have any instructions concerning the unknown ship, Captain?”
“Yes. We are to avoid contact. This ship is defenceless against anything bigger than an interceptor.” He glanced at everyone seated around the table. “Your safety and data, and your expertise take priority over any first contact opportunities. My orders are unequivocal: If we are threatened in any way, I am to transit immediately and get you all to a designated place of safety.”
Everyone was speaking at once. He waited until they settled again. “We don’t know anything about these ships. They’ve never been seen before, as far as we are aware, and we don’t know what the connection is between them and the disappearance of all the life forms that the evidence says should be on Kepler 646-4. Until we do, any first contact will be between them and ships capable of defending themselves.”
Roberta Klonowski cut in ahead of Greg Palmer, who already had his mouth open to speak. “That will obviously restrict our activities, Captain. If we are to remain aboard, there will be very little ground work we can engage in.”
“True, but we think it can be managed in ways that will allow us to achieve our tasks.” He paused. “Our headquarters want us to focus on finding out what happened to the population of this planet.” He glanced at Harry. “They want to know what sort of weapon caused those craters and why the plant life around them is so stunted. I hope that by combining the expertise of your geology team, Dr. Klonowski, your ecological team, Dr. Fanner, and your expertise on the plant life, Dr. Winter, we might be able to piece together some ideas of what sort of weapon caused the damage and what effect it had on any animal life here.”
The team leaders nodded and exchanged glances. Roberta Klonowski spoke first. “I agree, Captain. It is a good idea to pool our knowledge in this way.” She glanced at Harry and winked. “There are some interesting theories to explore, I think.”
“Good. Now, Dr. Palmer, I hope your team will work in cohesion with the archaeologists. Use your linguistics expertise to examine every artefact. We need to know who built those cities and why they vanished so completely. Dr. Borner, we know there are some burial sites. Perhaps you could examine any remains and discover what manner of beings built the cities. Dr. Bamford’s archaeology team will be keen to work with you in examining the remains and any artefacts discovered among the burial site.”
Dr. Palmer nodded to the archaeologist. “Of
course. The archaeologists can dig to their hearts’ content. We prefer to work with living beings and their artefacts. We’re deciphering some of the aliens’ inscriptions, and we may be able to compare them to the graffiti from the derelict ship.”
Dr. Martin Borner, a tall bald-headed figure with an athletic build who was head of the Biological team, looked up and smiled. “I expect that we’ll be able to work something out. We might find some viable DNA in the graves.”
“Good. One more thing: As we can’t detect the alien ships unless we spot them moving across something else, we will keep the landing craft on the ground and ready to lift. All teams are to remain within two hundred metres of the landers.” He paused to gauge the reactions. “If they have to evacuate in a hurry, they will have orders not to wait for stragglers. We cannot risk everyone else for a single individual or even a small group. I must stress that should an evacuation call be heard, everything should be left where it is, and all personnel should get back to the lander as fast as possible.” He nodded to Dr. Palmer. “It is imperative that we don’t interfere with the aliens, whoever they are, until we know a great deal more about them and their intentions toward us.”
The landing party found a puzzle. The street layout and the landscape suggested a highly developed society, and the architecture supported this theory. Many of the grander structures still standing would have passed as objects of art created by avant garde sculptors in human society. The state of the buildings suggested the evacuation or abandonment of them was recent. Vegetation had begun to invade the structures, but had not taken over completely.
Harry crouched to see what Roberta was studying. “Any answers yet?”
Roberta shook her head. “Not much. Some evidence of something very unusual, but we’re not sure what it means yet.” She indicated the surface. “See? The rock is fused as if it was melted by some force.” She squatted on her haunches and indicated the rest of the crater with a wave of her hand. “The soil is full of the sort of glass beads that you see in volcanic ash or in the debris surrounding an impact crater left by a meteor, but this isn’t the sort of thing that a meteor would produce, nor are the chemical and mineral changes in the soil here.”
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