“My government is not here. Do you really want to take me on?” The gleam in his eye reflected his intention. He knew exactly what he was doing.
The Centauri was at a loss. His jaw twitched, his eyes clouded in confusion and his arrogance disappeared.
“Target main bridge,” John ordered. “You have two minutes left.”
“Main bridge targeted,” McReidy confirmed.
John coughed suddenly. His hand rose to cover his mouth. “Sam?” he whispered into his communicator.
“You’ll only get one chance,” came the muffled reply.
“That’s all I need.” John’s throat cleared and his hand returned to McReidy’s console. He pointed, and hoped like mad she was paying attention. She noted where his fingers pointed and changed her targeting accordingly.
“You don’t have the firepower.” The Centauri called John’s bluff.
“Take out their shields,” John ordered.
McReidy fired. The sudden drain of power to the weapons temporarily dimmed the bridge. It was enough to break through the Centauri shields even if it didn’t cause damage.
“Got her!” Kowalski called before the lights were back up.
John sighed with relief. Giacomo nearly fainted. It took the Centauri a few minutes to realise what had happened. He began ranting in his own language so quickly the translator couldn’t keep up.
“Don’t,” John warned. He knew the Centauri ship was not equipped to fight but a return of fire was to be expected. “Take your cargo, and go home.”
“What am I supposed to tell my superiors?”
“Three crystals out of two tonne? There won’t even be a weight discrepancy. No one will know unless you tell them.”
The Centauri was not happy. A range of emotions crossed his face but he could see that he had no choice. He took a breath, puffing up his chest and his chin with assumed righteousness.
The transmission ended, the Centauri ship turned and disappeared into space.
The atmosphere was stifling. John returned to his chair and sat down heavily. He heard Giacomo’s voice and guessed what he was asking. “No, you’re staying here.” Lorraine was quite capable of taking care of herself.
“Sir, request permission to take jackets off.” The request came from Gillespie. His hair was wet and plastered to his forehead.
It should have been an easy answer, but, even after all this time, John found it hard to break one of Captain Decker’s rules. With loss of climate control, engineering had warned the ship would heat up. Everywhere else, the uniform rule had been dropped. It was still enforced on the bridge.
“It’s thirty nine degrees centigrade,” McReidy added for extra persuasion.
John looked at each one of them. They were all suffering from the heat. “Jackets off,” he agreed.
The following shifts were notified of the change, much to their relief. The temperature had been slowly climbing. Where the ventilations systems were working, they blew hot air. Engineering was almost like a furnace. Engineers were on short shifts and continual medical supervision to keep a check on heat stroke.
McReidy caught up with John in the bar: where ice water was lukewarm – and still the most popular drink on the menu. Soghra complained constantly. As did the women, who would do just about anything for running water. John seriously doubted that they would, but a long hot shower was an absolute dream.
If he wanted any peace and quiet tonight, it would not be in the bar. McReidy’s approach assured him of that. If she wanted to see him, it would have to be in his quarters because that’s where he was going. And if she was going to yell at him again, over today’s incident, he would pull a cushion over his head and pretend to go to sleep.
She came straight to the point as the door closed behind her and stood there with her hands on her hips.
“Would you really have destroyed that Centauri ship?”
“Would you have fired, if I had ordered it?” He flopped onto the lounge and met her gaze. His brown eyes reflected the seriousness of his own question.
It wasn’t the answer she wanted to hear. For a second it seemed to strike her – maybe he hadn’t been bluffing. Her face clouded with as much confusion as the Centauri’s had.
“And if they report you?”
“I’ll deal with that.”
The rest of the trip was quiet. The acquired crystals did the job of the original ones. Most of the systems were up and running with varying degrees of efficiency. Running water was restored, for which everyone was grateful. Light speed was achieved and maintained.
Heat in the engine room was unbearable. It was only possible to stop the engines blowing by using one at a time. When it neared critical, it was switched off and allowed to cool down. It meant an occasional period of drifting to ensure a safe temperature before restarting. No one seemed to mind that too much. It was the only time the engineers could get into the engine room without the use of heat protective clothing.
Some of the crew adapted to the constant heat more easily than others. Everyone pitched in to help everyone else. They would make it to Copernicus. It would be slow, but they would make it.
John was more than pleased. He was filled with pride. There were complaints; that was to be expected. But this had been a matter of survival. –and they had survived.
# # #
Back to top
About the Author
Jeannie Meekins writes adult fiction along with children’s fiction and non fiction. She has been published in Australia and the US, and many titles are available worldwide.
While targeted at children, her non fiction is popular with adults. Many titles have been picked up by schools and public libraries, as well as secondary and tertiary institutions. Popular topics include over 25 books on the Solar System and beyond, biographies of famous (and not so famous – but should be) figures who have changed our lives and our world, and wonders of the natural world.
Fiction is generally aimed at younger readers, with picture books, chapter books and junior novels.
Scroll down for a full list of Jeannie’s books.
To connect with Jeannie and find more information on her books, visit her writer page on Facebook: Jeannie Meekins Writer: https://www.facebook.com/jmeekins.writer/
Back to top
Storm Cloud ebooks
For readers 15 years to adult
By Any Other Name
Shoulder of the Giant
When the Dust Settled
Open House (short story collection)
A Fly in the Ointment (due for release early 2018)
Children’s books
Storm Cloud Publishing also has a wide range of children’s books suitable for pre-readers through to young teens. These include picture books, junior novels and series, and short story collections.
Picture books
Who’s Scared of the Dark? – for 18 months upwards
Grandpa’s Hat – for non or beginning readers
Meg Helps Out – for beginning readers
Rhyming stories
I Thought I’d Teach Myself to Shave – for readers 6 years upwards
– (Finalist in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards, 2016)
Scully the Cat – for readers 6 years upwards
Andrew and the Dragon – for readers 8 years upwards
Collections
Short Tales – a short story collection for readers 8-12 years
Short Tales 2 – a short story collection for readers 8-12 years
Short Tales 3 – a short story collection for readers 8-12 years
Christmas Tales – a short story collection for readers 8-12 years
Christmas Tales 2 – a short story collection for readers 8-12 years
Junior novels
The Great Tadpole Hunt – for readers 6 years upwards
Under the Bridge – for readers 8 years upwards
Girls Can’t Play – for readers 8 years upwards
Slimming Down Santa – for readers 8 year
s upwards
Junior Series
The Virtues of Drac (complete edition)
Into the Land of Clubs (The Virtues of Drac: Book One)
Through the Land of Diamonds (The Virtues of Drac: Book Two)
Fallen Virtues (The Virtues of Drac: Book Three)
For information and updates on Storm Cloud books, writers and illustrators, visit the Storm Cloud Publishing page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StormCloudPublishing/
Back to top
Other ebooks by Jeannie Meekins
Fiction:
A Ghost At Midnight
A Seat At The Theatre
A Head For Ned
The Ghost of the Penny Woodley
The Final Dive
Courtney Case and the Pobblebonk
Courtney Case and the Dinosaur
Courtney Case and the Missing Lemons
Courtney Case and the Missing A-man
Courtney Case and the Secret Admirer
Non Fiction
14 Fun Facts Series:
Space:
14 Fun Facts about Mercury
14 Fun Facts about Earth
14 Fun Facts about Mars
14 Fun Facts about Uranus
14 Fun Facts about Neptune
14 Fun Facts about the Sun
14 Fun Facts about the Moon
14 Fun Facts about Asteroids
14 Fun Facts about Comets
14 Fun Facts about Dwarf Planets
14 Fun Facts about Pluto
14 Fun Facts about the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud
14 Fun Facts about the Solar System
14 Fun Facts about the Space Shuttle
14 Fun Facts about Eclipses
14 Fun Facts about the Galilean Moons of Jupiter
14 Fun Facts about the Ring Moons of Jupiter
14 Fun Facts about the Rings of Saturn
14 Fun Facts about the Strange Moon Titan
14 Fun Facts about Stars
14 Fun Facts about Black Holes
14 Fun Facts about Nebulas
14 Fun Facts about Exoplanets
How Well Do You Know the Planets?
Nebulas: Strange Lights in our Galaxy
101 Fun Facts about the Solar System – a compilation of 7 books, plus bonus facts
101 Fun Facts about the Planets – with Caitlind Alexander
Places:
14 Fun Facts about the Great Wall of China
14 Fun Facts about the Grand Canyon
14 Fun Facts about Machu Picchu
14 Fun Facts about the Taj Mahal
14 Fun Facts about Yellowstone
14 Fun Facts about Yosemite
Rivers:
14 Fun Facts about Australia’s Murray River
14 Fun Facts about the Danube River
14 Fun Facts about the Everglades
14 Fun Facts about the Ganges
14 Fun Facts about the Hudson
14 Fun Facts about the Nile
14 Fun Facts about the River Thames
14 Fun Facts about the Rhine
14 Fun Facts about the Seine River
14 Fun Facts about the Yangtze
101 Facts about the World’s rivers – with Caitlind Alexander
Senses:
14 Fun Facts about Ears
14 Fun Facts about Eyes
14 Fun Facts about Noses
14 Fun Facts about the Pony Express
14 Fun Facts about Lightning
Strange But True:
The Bleeding Glacier of Antarctica
The Mysterious Lines at Nazca
Biographies:
St Francis of Assisi: The Patron Saint of Animals
St George: Dragon Slayer
St Patrick: Ireland’s Beloved Saint
St Valentine: The Man Who Became The Patron Saint of Love
Joan of Arc: The Girl Who Fought For France
Bloody Mary: Queen of England
Edmund Barton: Australia’s First Prime Minister
John Flynn: The Man Who Created Australia’s ‘Mantle of Safety’
Mary MacKillop: Australia’s First Saint
Thomas Edison: America’s Greatest Inventor
The Wright Brothers: America’s First Flyers
Paul Revere: American Patriot
Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride: The True Story of How it Happened
The Lives of Seven Saints – a compilation of 7 books with Melissa Cleeman
Benjamin Franklin: The First American
John Adams: The Forgotten Founding Father
Thomas Jefferson: Founding Father
James Garfield: The Professor President
Amelia Earhart: America’s Lost Flyer
Marie Curie: The Discoverer of Radium
Louis Pasteur and the Science of Germs
Back to top
When the Dust Settled Page 47