"Who knows?" Taza hadn’t had time to consider the Quamat’s motivation, but whatever its intentions, they likely weren’t good. "They probably stumbled upon it. Happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. But something tells me there might be more to it."
"We need to find the creature and extract this information," Aldo said. "But, it’s probably long gone by now."
"Let’s see if our eye-witness can help us out on that front. Failing that, I have a few tricks up my sleeve."
As much as Taza hated to admit it, Aldo was right. The Quamat had likely fled to another Priodome and maybe even to another planet. They had access to space-travel after all. But if there really was a small gate on Ushtar, chances were the bastard would still be around.
They had entered the Shroud from some back door to do more than spread the retrovirus, and he was going to find that back door and the reason they were really here.
19
Mass Grave
Clio watched the bridge’s primary VD from inside her flight helmet. A vast sea of glittering flecks spread out before the North Star. The debris reflected the light of a nearby sun. A smattering of asteroids bobbed in the sea like long-dead ships.
A silent uncertainty hung over the crew as they watched what remained of countless ships stream and weave in something akin to a great stellar dance.
"I’ve never seen a debris field so large," Eline said behind her. "Scanners are struggling with the radiation levels. There’s debris as far as SR can see and LR readings are pretty much useless."
"Maintain shields," Grimshaw ordered. "The armor won’t keep that much radiation off us for long."
"Shields are currently at full power, but they won’t last longer than a day in there," Eline said. "The rendezvous coordinates lie beyond the field. Going around could add weeks or days to the trip. We’d miss the deadline. From the readings, I think we could make it through in four hours at full thrust."
The Shanti were known for being eager. Clio didn’t like the idea. A glance in Marilda’s direction told her that the Shanti pilot didn’t like it either.
"At full thrust, we risk hitting something big enough to cut through our shields," Grimshaw said, voicing her thoughts. "We can’t afford a breach with that level of radiation. And the way that debris is moving doesn’t make me feel any better about our chances."
"Exploding fusion cores have been known to cause strange anomalies but this is most unusual," Eline said. "It may appear random, but Ascari’s calculations have pointed out possible patterns. We might be able to plot a course part of the way through. But the deeper we get, the more blind we’ll become."
"Must be hundreds of destroyed fusion cores in there. The Confederation lost a few fleets out here during the Kragak War. They went all in at the end." The Captain took a deep breath and Clio wondered if the debris field hadn’t prompted his flashbacks. "The Krags lost quite a few too."
A monstrous shadow suddenly fell across the display.
"What is that?" Grimshaw said with some urgency.
The VD zoomed in. The hulking remains of a Confederation destroyer slowly drifted above the field. The VD zoomed in on the name painted on the hull: The Norwegian.
"Records confirm The Norwegian was lost during the Kragak War," Eline said. "No signs of anything out of the ordinary. Its core must have gone cold."
"Evans, what do you think?" Grimshaw said.
She gave Commander Eline’s feed a cursory glance. "With the Commander’s data, I think I could make it through in seven hours…fairly safely."
"Seven hours would be cutting it close," Eline said. "But going around isn’t really an option."
"I agree. Evans, take us through as fast as you can without hitting anything."
"Course already plotted, sir." She pushed the North Star forward, following the lines inside her flight helmet and making adjustments as Eline and Ascari updated the flight data.
The deeper into the field they flew, the less accurate short-range scanners became and the more she had to rely on optical feeds.
With intuition more than anything else, she felt her way deeper still.
Three times, a large chunk of debris appeared out of nowhere, almost crushing the North Star. Each time, Clio adjusted their course, directing the ship into clusters of smaller debris particles.
"Shields at seventy-one percent," Commander Eline said. "We’re cutting this close."
Clio felt Eline’s eyes on her back. She knew the Commander would have preferred Marilda to fly, but ever since the battle, the Shanti pilot had been all too happy to let Clio take the reins any time she pleased.
"Picking up an anomaly off starboard," Eline said.
"Visuals," Grimshaw ordered.
A small copy of the primary VD appeared in the lower corner of Clio’s visor. It showed nothing unusual.
"Ascari has run referential calculations. She’s detecting an active core. It’s unstable."
"How close?"
"Trying to figure that out, Captain."
"Evans," Grimshaw said. "Steer us away from it."
"It’ll take us close to a moving section of debris, sir," she said.
"The unstable core is less than a click away and it’s moving closer," Eline said with unmasked urgency.
"If we blow that core, the debris field radiation will be the least of our worries. Do it, Evans."
"Yes, sir." Evans plugged in the new course. Yellow proximity warnings instantly flashed in her helmet. She muted them and pressed on regardless. She removed another scanner feed and added another optical input. She had to rely more on her eyes than she would have liked.
She squeezed the controls tight and guided the North Star portward, adjusting her course back and forth, one or two micro-tilts at a time.
Two red warnings pulsed. She found the debris on her optics along with two other chunks the scanners hadn’t picked up. Making it through would be a tight squeeze. She edged the North Star between the four spinning chunks of twisted metal, dipping her nose slightly to be on the safe side.
The ship rattled as a support beam protruding from the debris below scraped along the hull. The rattle continued and several more warnings appeared on the edges of her vision.
"Evans?" Grimshaw growled.
"Either we scratch the keel, sir, or lose the communications array and risk a breach on the upper decks."
The debris above looked much bigger and less likely to move out of the way with a nudge.
The bridge shook more violently as Clio dipped under a long row of metal rods that made a kind of claw. She imagined a hole opening under her feet as the debris tore through the lower decks…which she knew was stupid since four decks separated the bridge from the keel.
"Armor plating holding," Eline said. "Just about."
The shaking ebbed to a continuous vibration. Clio made a minor adjustment and the vibration disappeared.
"All clear," she announced, taking a breath. "At least for a while."
"And the core?" Grimshaw asked.
"We’re well out of its way, sir," Eline answered.
"Good work, Evans," Grimshaw said. "Keep an eye out, Eline. There could be others out there…or loaded munition. The sooner we get out of this mess the better."
"Ascari has picked up another anomaly ahead."
"I’m looking at the VD, Commander," Grimshaw said. "Optics aren’t showing anything."
"What’s that?" O’Donovan called from the weapons stations.
"Direct all available power to forward shields!" Grimshaw shouted.
Clio maximized the visual inside her flight helmet. A huge wave of debris headed for them. She quickly considered her options and found they had none. The wave was too big, and backing up meant being crushed by whatever was behind.
"Another core must have erupted up ahead. The scanners aren’t picking up any movement, Captain. They must be scrambled entirely."
Innumerable hunks of debris from the size of a coin to the size of skyscrapers hur
tled towards them.
"Brace for impact," Captain Grimshaw called.
Clio gripped her arm rests tightly and squinted her eyes, for what good it would do her. There was no making it out of this one.
The broiling detritus struck….but nothing happened.
Clio opened her eyes and tried to make sense of what was going on.
"Damage report!" Grimshaw shouted.
"Other than the shield we already lost and superficial damage to the keel…Nothing."
"The space junk is moving again," O’Donovan announced.
The wave swept back the way it had come and the scene before the North Star heaved and rippled.
"Will someone tell me what the hell’s going on?" Grimshaw demanded.
"The scanners are jammed," Eline said.
"It’s parting," Marilda whispered in disbelief to Clio’s left.
She was right. The debris field twisted and spiraled as it cleared the way.
"It’s an optical illusion," Clio said.
"Then what about the radiation and the damage we took?" Grimshaw said.
"Ensign Evans is right," Commander Eline piped up. "Most of the debris is real. We’ve cleared the worst of that and entered a pocket of empty space. Whatever lies before us has all the signs of stealth tech."
"Stealth tech that size would require immense energy output…We would have detected vast amounts of…"
"Radiation," Eline said as she finished his sentence.
"Very clever," Grimshaw said. "They’re using the debris field’s radiation to mask their immense heat output."
"Their stealth field reflects the image of the debris field," Eline added. "Very effective when coupled with the scanner-scrambling effects of the radiation."
Grimshaw sighed. "But what are the Kragak hiding?"
Much of the difficulty in reading the debris suddenly made sense. Sections had been part of a mirror image. Clio’s new calculation took that into consideration and Ascari confirmed that they were indeed clear of the mass grave of ship remains. The reflection waved and wrinkled on the VD, and a solid black triangle appeared directly ahead.
"An entrance," Eline said. "I’m reading the Kragak signal the Omnion provided."
"They’re inviting us in," Grimshaw added. "Take us in, Evans. Keep her steady. O’Donovan, keep weapons armed. Remain on alert, just in case."
Clio obeyed and fired thrusters.
As they sailed through the triangular opening, the darkness ahead quivered and faded to reveal ships of all sizes as far as Clio’s eyes could see. She removed her helmet as the bridge’s VD zoomed in. Some of the vessels were bastardized things cobbled together from Confederation wrecks. But most were of a variety she had only seen in archive renderings.
"It’s not just a Kragak envoy," she muttered. "It’s a whole damn fleet."
"The Kragak never knew how to do anything on a small scale," Grimshaw said. "Hail them, Eline."
"Trying, sir. I’ve opened channels on all frequencies, including those supplied by the Omnion. So far, no answer."
"Close the channels the Omnion didn’t give us," Grimshaw said. "We can't appear too desperate. We need to think like the Kragak do. They’ll likely play games with us. Have the ship go to High Alert."
"Yes, Captain."
"O’Donovan. Remain on standby. Hopefully we won’t need to fire weapons, but the Kragak I remember communicated through violence."
"Aye, sir." O'Donovan said.
"I thought you knew what to expect." Eline didn’t sound too impressed.
"I’ve fought these bastards before, but as the Omnion pointed out, a lot has changed since the war ended. We’ve not heard a peep from the Kragak since then, so there’s no telling what to expect."
"Looks like we got their attention,” Eline said. "A dreadnought class just detached from the fleet and is heading our way."
"What about the hail?"
"Still no answer."
Clio watched the enormous ship grow bigger still as it sped closer.
“They don't appear to be slowing," Eline pointed out. "At their current speed, they’ll hit us."
The Shanti Commander was right. Clio watched as the dreadnaught approached like a monstrous battering ram. It advanced and showed no intention of slowing. "Should I move, sir?"
"No," Captain Grimshaw said. "They’re testing us. To see if we’re weak."
"Weak?" Clio said, not liking the looks of the readings on her dash. The dreadnoughts hull consisted of a composite she had never seen. It was more rock than metal. "I’m not one to run away from a fight, sir, but that vessel’s hull will crush the North Star like a tin can."
"They’re trying to frighten us." He sighed. "Testing our will. Hold her steady, Evans."
It took everything Clio had not to tell Grimshaw he had lost it. "Aye, sir."
She kept her hands on the flight controls, ready to pull the North Star out on a dime. These Krags meant business. Then again, if they meant to wipe them out, it would have been easier for them to open fire. They were vastly outnumbered after all. Perhaps Grimshaw had a point. She eased her grip on the controls, but only slightly.
"Warning," Ascari's voice warned. "Colossal object on collision course. Recommending evasive maneuver."
Clio looked back at the Captain. "Override the safety protocols if you have to Evans, but don’t let this ship move an inch."
She exchanged a troubled glance with Marilda.
She obeyed Grimshaw and disengaged the computer’s safety protocols.
"Warning, object on collision course," Ascari repeated. "Chance of survival, zero percent."
"Move closer, Evans. Take it slow."
She was about to object but remembered all the times Grimshaw had gotten them out of a sticky situation. She just hoped he hadn’t lost his marbles or somehow been infected with a brain bug without anyone noticing. "Aye, sir."
She gulped and edged the North Star forward.
"Faster," Grimshaw ordered.
"Any faster, sir, and we'll—"
"I said faster," Grimshaw cut in.
"Captain," Eline interjected. "You put the crew's lives in harm’s way. There’s no way the Kragak dreadnaught can—"
"The crew are as good as dead if we don't play by their rules," Grimshaw growled. "Faster, Clio, or will you disobey a direct order?"
"Increasing speed, sir."
She increased the thrusters and the velocity meter rose. They flew beyond the point of no return. Nothing Clio could do would avoid a head on collision.
"That's it," Grimshaw grumbled. "Let the bastards know we mean business. Three running cores would wipe them out and damage a significant part of that fleet."
It sounded like Grimshaw had an axe to grind. Perhaps the flashbacks from Gorthore were causing him to act irrationally. She was about to hit full reverse thrusters when the North Star jolted.
Their speed dropped sharply.
"Speed is falling, sir," Clio said. "I haven’t touched anything."
"They've caught us in some kind of gravity well," Eline added. "The Kragak dreadnaught is also slowing...Look."
The monstrous slab of gray rock and metal slowed to a stop.
"They're hailing us," Eline said.
"That's more like it," Grimshaw said. "Open a channel."
Clio looked back and caught him wiping sweat from his forehead. The Captain hadn’t been as sure as he’d sounded, but his gamble had paid off. She wondered what would have happened if she’d gone against his orders and engaged evasive maneuvers. Perhaps the Krags would have opened fire as he’d claimed. Perhaps not.
The VD flashed white, replacing the Kragak vessel with an image of a giant of sorts. He—for it looked male—had dark-gray skin with several pitted scars across his face. A circle of short black horns jutted from his crown. Beady black eyes stared out from under a heavy brow. His eyes somehow gave the impression of taking in the entire North Star bridge without moving. The creature could have passed for a distant relative to the
Varg, only it was bigger, broader, and its eyes shone with an ominous intelligence the Varg lacked. It wore a suit of strange armor not too dissimilar to the dreadnaught’s hull in appearance.
Two other Krags appeared at his sides. They were a head shorter and a tad thinner, but no less imposing.
Clio expected grunts and harsh guttural sounds when it opened its mouth.
"Captain Grimshaw," the Krag in the middle said. "You are a welcome sight."
Clio tried not to show her surprise at the creature’s eloquent speech.
"To whom am I speaking?" Grimshaw demanded directly.
"Straight to the point. I likes this Terran," the Kragak said with a haunting grin. He gestured to himself. “I am Haraus, Captain of the Unglakt. At my sides stand my commanders, Skah and Lorg."
Without a sound, the two commanders nodded, their piercing eyes locked on Grimshaw.
"Captain Haraus, we are here for the cure." Grimshaw’s voice boomed with certainty. "Hand it over."
Clio tried not to cringe at his directness.
"The little Terran speaks with a big voice. We have the cure of which you speak, however we cannot simply hand it over." The leading Krag said in a mocking tone. “You must speak with the Elders in-person.”
“Appearing in-person was not part of the arrangement. I must speak with Agent Lamnon."
"The Terran refuses hospitality,” Skah said with a much higher pitch than his Captain. He spread his giant palms. "This is a great insult."
"Yet, this is how it stands," Haraus growled. "Grimshaw must join us if he is to speak with Lamnon. The Elders demand this."
"Captain, they are powering weapons," Eline said with uncanny calmness.
"Return with everything we’ve got if they so much as loose a bolt of plasma," Grimshaw said.
"Aye, sir," O’Donovan said.
"The great Grimshaw was prepared," Lorg grumbled in a tone so low Clio’s armrests vibrated. "This is good. A leader who is not prepared should not be trusted. The Elders will be happy to learn this. Now that there is trust. We may speak."
"Normally we do not speak with weaklings," Skah added in his nasal tone. "But we will listen to the Grimshaw."
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