AwayTeam

by Mark Alders

  Ely sighed. That was going to more difficult than he had hoped. Being on an away mission, one that could last for hours, wouldn't be the ideal situation to pour his heart out to someone. Private times on short missions were few and far between.

  On board the shuttle Phoenix, Ely headed straight for the cockpit. That's where everyone else would be anyway. In the thirty minutes between leaving the ready room and arriving at the shuttle bay, he returned to his cabin and packed a duffle bag. It was standard procedure for any away mission, even ones that were scheduled to be short.

  Inside his bag, he placed a spare uniform, plenty of underwear, and all the things he needed for personal use, brush, enzyme mouth paste, soap, a carry can of skin seal--not that he had hope of using it--and his own pillow. He always brought his own pillow no matter where he stayed. Helped him sleep, even on the most uncomfortable beds, which shuttles were renowned for.

  Coming into the cockpit, a rather large room which also accommodated its own ready room and kitchenette, Ely once more couldn't help but stare at Emerson. He was standing near the window, his silhouette striking. Braden and Kale were present, too. All that was needed was the commander and the mission could begin.

  "You'll wear your eyes out, Ely," Kale said with a snicker.

  "Kale!" Ely shot him a glance that could have curdled a Callisto Cum Burst. He noted that Emerson didn't turn around from his study of the goings on around the shuttle bay. He just stood there. Watching. Silent.

  Braden said, "Is there a problem here that I might need to know about? This is the first away mission I've been entrusted with and I don't want anything to fuck it up, you all clear on that, ladies?" Braden had certainly changed his tune since earlier this morning when he was all over Carl. Then again, Ely understood military mentality. Being in command was a big responsibility. Work was work and rest was rest.

  Kale offered Braden a salute. "Nothing a good hard fuck between Ely and Emerson won't fix, Braden."

  "That's sir while you're under my command, Cadet Kale."

  "Yes, sir. Sorry, sir. But it's true, the only issue here is that Ely and Emerson need to swap spit and sink their dicks into each other's holes, nothing more."

  Braden roved his gaze over Ely and Emerson in turn. A slight nod as he did so. Ely then knew he understood why he had turned down his offer of a threesome. "If this affects the mission in any way I'll report you both to Commander Okinawa. Clear?"

  Without seeing him do so, Emerson had turned his attention to the group. His face as hard as stone, his stare intent. Ely swallowed hard. All this banter had probably made life more difficult. But what could he do? Kale was Kale.

  Ely, Emerson and Kale said in unison, "Yes, sir."

  In that moment Commander Okinawa came into the cockpit.

  "Commander on deck," Braden snapped, standing to attention and saluting. All the others followed.

  "Ah, good, we're all here. At ease, cadets." Commander Okinawa placed a portable comm panel onto the shuttle's briefing table. The computer was larger than the tablets security used. "Cadet Kale, begin launch procedure. We've waited long enough and the captain is eager for some answers, as I'm sure we all are."

  "Yes, sir," Kale said, swivelling in the pilot's chair so that he was facing the controls. He began speaking into the comm with the tower. Seconds later, the unmistakable hum of engines filled the cockpit. Another second or two after that, the shuttle was accelerating out of the bay doors.

  "Clearing the Mandrake now, sir," Kale said, not looking away from his study.

  The energy field did indeed surround the starship. Before them was an electric blue shimmer, not solid so as to obscure the blackness of space beyond, but solid enough to be seen with the naked eye. Ely gasped.

  Before the wonder before him could be taken in completely, a klaxon sounded, causing Kale to begin frantic movements across his control panel. "Sir, we're experiencing a lot of turbulence as we pass through the energy field."

  "Can you maintain integrity?" Commander Okinawa asked, coming over to where Kale was seated, studying the panel for himself.

  "I think so, sir."

  "Good. Continue with the mission as planned, Cadet Kale."

  The turbulence Kale spoke of shook the shuttle. Strangely, as they passed through the energy field and began coming out of it so they can begin their sensor sweep, the shaking got worse. Commander Okinawa's portable comm panel was shaken off the briefing table, as well as other various loose objects scattered about the cockpit.

  Again a klaxon sounded.

  Before Commander Okinawa could ask what the problem was, Kale said, "The difference in conditions between normal space and the area inside the energy field is too great. The shuttle can't cope with the stress on the hull, sir."

  "Then we abort," Commander Okinawa snapped.

  Kale punched more and more panels. Ely could hear the shuttle groan, like the metal it was made of was being stretched and sheared from the forces of the energy field. After what seemed an eternity, Kale said, "We can't go back…sir. The shuttle is getting swept away, like flotsam caught in a tidal current. We're going to be forced out of the energy field and ripped apart unless we can come up with something quick smart."

  "Are the engines on full power?" Commander Okinawa questioned, the look of concern drawn all over his face. Braden had come over to the pilot's seat, too.

  "Yes, sir. That's part of the problem. I need full power to stay within the energy field, but even that's not enough. We're falling away from the Mandrake and I don't think we'll have the power to catch up, let alone see the shuttle bay sometime soon."

  Commander Okinawa looked up from the readouts and red warning lights on the control panel in front of Kale. "This shouldn't be happening. The Mandrake isn't affected in that way by the energy field, so why are we having difficulty?"

  "I don't know, sir. We're dealing with forces I can't even begin to explain," Kale said. "But I do know that if we leave the energy field, we're going to be turned into space junk."

  Braden turned his attention to Emerson. "Do you have any suggestions, Cadet Emerson?" He then looked to Ely. "Or can you boost the shuttle's engine power, cadet Ely? Give us what we need to get back into the shuttle bay at the very least."

  Commander Okinawa patted Braden on his back. "Excellent, get the men working."

  "Hang on," Emerson said. "If the Mandrake is surrounded by an energy field and the shuttle is being forced out of that field, why can't we use that to our advantage?"

  "Explain, Cadet Emerson," Commander Okinawa said, but not with the authority of an order, more out of hope than anything else.

  "I don't think we're going to have time for much jabbering, Commander Okinawa, sir." Kale said, again a frantic pushing of panels punctuating his words. "I believe we'll have less than ten minutes or so before we're ripped apart."

  Emerson's face hardened even more than it already was. "Then I'll need to take cadet Ely to the shuttle's engine bay. I have an idea."

  Without hesitation, Commander Okinawa said, "Take whoever and whatever you need. Just get this sorted out so we can do what we're supposed to be doing, helping the Mandrake. Cadet Braden, hail the command deck, tell them of our predicament and inform them that we're working on a solution."

  "Yes, sir," Braden said with a salute, heading over to the communications panel, his face lit up blue with the glow of the communicator screen as it appeared, seconds later.

  Emerson nodded to Ely. "C'mon, cadet Ely. I'll need a whiz on the engines while I configure the computer into accepting the craziest thing that has ever been done in a shuttle."

  Ely followed Emerson out of the cockpit.

  Chapter Eight

  "So…um, you think I'm a whiz, do you?" Ely asked, a squeak in his voice that wouldn't go away no matter how much he cleared his throat. His fingers tingled, too. Was this nerves or something else?

  Emerson led him down to the engine compartment of the shuttle. Not that Ely needed to be shown where the place was,
he was an engineer, after all. But still, he didn't complain. At least Emerson had spoken to him.

  Ely thought too soon. The next words out of Emerson's mouth were filled with venom. "I only said that in front of the commander so he wouldn't suspect that I think you're a complete fuck head for leading me on. You only asked me out so you could get what you wanted, not caring about my feelings at all."

  A long moment of silence followed between them, the groan of the shuttle fighting against the energy field all that could be heard. Emerson climbed down the ladder that led to the engine compartment, not bothering to wait for Ely.

  When Ely was in the room with him, settling into his station at engineering status and control, he said, "Okay, I deserved that." His throat tightened even more. In fact, his whole body was now numb with both nerves and anxiety. His chances of ever getting back with Emerson sinking with each passing second. His thoughts darkened to cloud his mind.

  Emerson sat down at the station next to Ely, punching up a schematic of both the shuttle and the Mandrake. "Here we are in relation to the Mandrake. Kale was right, the shuttle is moving out of the energy field."

  Ely didn't reply, letting Emerson continue as he studied the information lit up before them. It was clear to him that the man had said what he needed to get a weight off his chest and was now concentrating on the matter at hand. Ely had no doubt that their relationship was over. He wanted to reach out and hold Emerson's hand that worked as quick as lightning across the logistics panel, but chose not to. He didn't fancy a slap in the face to match the verbal chastising he just received.

  "There seems to be a pattern to the energy," Ely said, his voice weak, his mind spent of all hope of salvaging what little shred of attraction Emerson may still have for him. Kale had lied. Emerson wasn't acting like a man who still had feelings for someone else. He was cold, his stare intent on his work and nothing else.

  "The sensors are working better for us and I can bring up a clearer picture of what's going on around the Mandrake." Emerson punched more panels, an even better image of the energy field could be seen. "Must be something to do with the fact that we're no longer a part of the main vessel, I think."

  Ely's vision misted and he had trouble forming words over his trembling lips. In that moment, when the hope had extinguished within him, he felt the greatest admiration, respect and attraction to Emerson. He had lost a true friend and a wonderful lover, all with one stupid sentence spoken without thought. Eventually, he managed, "It looks…like, like some sort…of wave around the…starship, to me."

  Before Emerson could reply, the comm panel lit up and Kale's voice boomed to fill the engine compartment. "Hey, guys, sorry to sound like a bit of a pain, but can you get on with whatever it is you're going to get on with. I don't know how much longer I can keep the shuttle within the energy field." His words were reinforced by a loud bang, one that sounded like a conduit or pipe had been ripped from its housing and fallen onto the steel grated floor.

  Emerson leaned over to look at the comm. "Give me two minutes, Kale."

  "Well, if I can't, then there will be no need to panic," Kale said. "I'll see you all in the afterlife. Kale out."

  The sound of the shuttle's metal sheering under duress filled the void once Kale's voice no longer registered.

  Emerson turned to Ely, his look still stern. "I'll need you to help me enhance the shields, reconfigure the inertial dampeners and adjust the engine fuel mix so that the shuttle's exhaust doesn't react with the Mandrake's once we're in position. Can you handle that?"

  Ely was taken aback. Emerson was not only a cold as ice toward him, his eyes didn't reflect that wonderful sparkle he had come to know and love. That sealed the deal for Ely. Emerson wasn't interested in him at all. The damage had been done and at this point in time, repairing such damage was out of the question.

  "I can do that," Ely said, clearing his throat and swallowing all the feelings he had for Emerson, burying them deep within him. He had a job to do and a relationship that had no hope of blossoming had to be the least of his concerns right now. At least he could go to Kale or Braden for some physical contact now that Emerson was out of the picture. He wiped his eyes with his sleeve. With a new found determination, and accepting the hand fate had dealt him, Ely added, "Just tell me what you're planning so I can understand what amount of reconfiguration is required."

  "I'm planning to surf the shuttle on the Mandrake's engine wake. That should keep us in position."

  "You're going to be doing what?"

  Emerson nodded toward the schematic in front of him. "You said it yourself, the energy field looks like waves around the starship. If we position the shuttle behind it, getting into the slipstream, so to speak, then our engines may be powerful enough to at least stop us from being destroyed."

  Ely's eyes widened. What Emerson had said was true. Getting into position behind the Mandrake would not only keep them from falling out of the energy field, it would help them keep up with the starship until the cause for all of this could be determined. They could then use the shuttle's sensors, made more useful by the fact that they weren't deep within the energy field, to help gain more information for the captain. "That's really quite brilliant."

  "I'm glad you think so," Emerson said, not looking at Ely. But for the first time since he had seen him after their first date, the man cracked a smile. "Now get a move on and do what you have to. We've got less than a minute."

  The next few moments were the tensest in all of Ely's life. He had never worked with so much urgency, so much determination to make sure the job was done and with as little time spent on it as possible. Having his life hang by a thread probably had something to do with it.

  Emerson also worked like a man possessed.

  "I've enhanced the forward shields and stabilised the inertial dampeners." Ely said, his fingers a blur across the control panel. "Can you ask Kale to get the shuttle into position? I won't be able to adjust the engine fuel mix to a less volatile one until I know the exact composition of the Mandrake's emissions."

  Emerson didn't delay. He punched the hail icon for the cockpit. "Kale, I need you to do exactly as I say and without any hesitation or questions. You'll just have to trust us, all right?"

  "I'm open to anything right about now," Kale replied.

  "Good. Set a course for the wake of the Mandrake's exhaust emissions," Emerson barked into the comm. Ely kept on working, fine tuning the shield harmonics and strengthening or relaxing the inertial dampeners as the shuttle came about and headed toward the rear of the starship. "I know it sounds crazy, but the only way we're going to keep up with the Mandrake and buy us some sensor time is to ride the wake."

  "No argument from me," Kale said.

  Within seconds the shuttle was in position, helped by the fact that the energy field was pushing it toward the back of the ship anyway. Ely just hoped that Kale was a good enough pilot to get into the exhaust wake before being shot out into space from the forces at play.

  The shuttle shuddered and more groans and weird noises could be heard. In fact, at one stage, Ely thought the engineering compartment would rattle to pieces. The seat he was upon was shaken from the bolts that secured it to the floor. Thankfully, Ely was quick to pull the chair back into position before his arse found the steel grating.

  The schematic of the shuttle in front of Ely was flashing red all over. The shields weren't strong enough for the onslaught of the Mandrake's exhaust. Ely had no choice but to divert all available power to the shields and patch energy into them as best he could. He even resorted to using the energy usually reserved for minor systems, such as door opening and auto latrine flushing, to assist in strengthening them.

  Thankfully, the shuttle was in position anyway, riding on the wake, just as Emerson had predicted it would. At least no excess engine expenditure would be needed to keep it there. They were basically getting a free ride. The trick now was making sure they survived in such a hostile environment.

  "This is going t
o be tricky," Ely said, more to himself than Emerson.

  After another tense moment or two, and plenty of sweat on the brow, the shield situation was under control. The shuttle was safe, for now.

  Ely sighed relief. He had done the best he could under the circumstances, but now wasn't the time to rest. Now he needed to work on the problem of the shuttle's exhaust mixing with the Mandrake's and possibly causing a reaction. Even though space was a vacuum, this close to the exhaust was like being in an atmosphere. What with all that energy surrounding them, and volatile emission gasses, too, even the slightest upset could spark a reaction. Ely had to make sure the shuttle's emissions weren't going to exasperate an already difficult situation. Shuttles weren't meant to fly in exhaust, simple as that.

  "Perhaps if we only use the ion engines and stand down the main reactor, that might solve two problems in one go." Emerson leaned over to Ely to catch a better view of his holo-screen. Ely couldn't help but notice that the man came so close he could feel his breath against his cheek. His stomach churned with butterflies. Had he got it all wrong again? Did Emerson have feelings for him, after all? Before he could contemplate such a thing any further, Emerson continued, "Our emissions will be benign and we can use the reactor power to boost the shield even more, seeing as it won't be needed for propulsion."

  Ely shook his head, clearing his thoughts and concentrating on the matter at hand. They didn't have much time, the shuttle's exhaust could already be reacting. "I just hope the ion engines will be enough to keep us in place."

  "The suction from the Mandrake in the position we're in should be enough. Just make the transition nice and slow. We may have to make a sort of compromise between ion and reactor power to get the best effect."

  Ely nodded his head. "I agree." He turned to look at Emerson, not realising the man was still close. His lips brushed Emerson's cheek. In that instant, Ely's heart skipped a beat and he pulled his head away as quick as he could, his cheeks blushed hot with embarrassment. "I'm…I'm sorry."