Jack felt a slight sense of panic begin to settle in his gut as the shields were struck again and again. He kept banking and weaving the ship feverishly, but there was nowhere to hide. His ship was surrounded, fighters closed in from all sides, and defense matrix clusters kept their sensors locked on him no matter where he moved, unleashing volley after volley of powerful plasma fire.
I can’t focus on avoiding these blasts and monitor my shields at the same time! he thought as he tried to find power he could divert to keep his quickly dwindling shields from completely disappearing. “Shanks, get on that engineering console!” said Jack, turning toward Shanks and pointing to the console in question. “Get me all the power you can to the shields!”
Shanks did not move. He seemed to be looking around at the bridge in curiosity with his third eye open.
“Shanks? Did you hear me? I need you on—”
The monk then abruptly turned and walked off the bridge, heading to the rear of the ship. Jack and Scallywag just watched him leave, wide-eyed. “Oy! Where’s he think he’s goin’???” Scallywag said indignantly.
Jack frowned, quickly turning his attention back to the flight controls. “We got bigger things to worry about at the moment,” he said as the ship was struck again, the whole bridge receiving a jolt.
“Can I please just randomly start killin’ stuff now?” Scallywag demanded.
“No! Just try to scare them off!”
“Look, lad – this is not the time ta be fightin’ with one hand behind our backs!” Scallywag urgently insisted. “It’s kill or be killed!”
“I’ll get us out of this!” Jack shot back. “We are not going to get killed!”
More blasts impacted from all around, some breaching the shields. Alarms flashed and blared as the viewscreen filled with the chaos of Imperial fighters flying in every direction like a swarm of angry killer bees. Jack struggled both to keep the ship under control and to get the shields back up.
“We might not get killed!” Jack amended.
Scallywag’s face was twisted into a scowl of fear and frustration. He glanced down at his console once more, his eyes growing wide. “Blast it!” he cried. “We got incoming three o’clock! They got the drop on us!”
Jack glanced at the sensor display before him, seeing a group of fightercraft in formation, coming right at them.
“We’re not gonna survive an attack from them!” warned Scallywag.
“Hang tight!” Jack yelled. “I’m taking us into hyperspace!”
“We won’t survive that either!” insisted Scallywag. “In fact, that would be worse!”
“There’s no other way to avoid these ships!” Jack said. “Now, hold on!”
A hyperspace window opened in front of them and the Earthship flew right through, the volley of plasma fire from the encroaching Imperial fighters just barely missing them. Once inside hyperspace, the sensor display in front of Jack lit up with multiple warnings as no less than five defense matrix clusters all locked onto the Earthship and turned their cannons on it.
“Not good!” squeaked Jack. He quickly opened another hyperspace window just as the defense clusters all fired, re-entering normal space before any of the blasts could find their mark. Suddenly, he was back in the middle of the fray, multiple Imperial fighters quickly banking away as they narrowly avoided colliding with the Earthship’s unexpected emergence from hyperspace.
“Those defense clusters barely missed us!” said Scallywag. “Let’s not do that again!”
“We’re doing that again!” cried Jack as two squads of fighters swooped in for an attack run. They charged straight for the Earthship, blasting away relentlessly. Jack opened a hyperspace window right in front of them and barreled through before the blasts could reach them.
Four fighter squads of hyperspace patrol ships were on the other side. They immediately turned to engage, more sensor-locks appearing from nearby defense clusters. Jack wasted no time in opening up another hyperspace window and escaping before any of the attackers had a chance to do serious damage.
Back in regular space, more Imperial fighters adjusted their courses to re-engage the fight, but Jack didn’t want to give them time to regroup. He opened another hyperspace window, then another, then another. Before he knew it, he was jumping his ship in and out of hyperspace, twisting and turning while plasma blasts streaked by from every direction, frantically banking and weaving the Earthship as he crisscrossed dimensions in a desperate dance to stay alive.
Cohaagen squinted at the holographic map being projected above the command table, curiously looking at the Earthship disappear and reappear at random locations within the fray. “What the…” he muttered. “Someone tell me what in the seven systems I’m looking at.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it before, sir,” replied one of the operational technicians. “The Earthman’s vessel is flying through multiple windows in and out of hyperspace.”
“Drones are unable to keep target lock, sir,” reported another technician. “All attempts to reacquire the Earthship are causing errors in their navigational systems. Their computers can’t respond quickly enough to the target’s continued re-emergence into normal space.”
“All manned vessels are having to break off for fear of the hyperspace windows closing on them, sir,” said yet another tech. “All squads reporting difficulty re-engaging the Earthship before it re-enters hyperspace.”
“And what is Starbase Sirius reporting?” asked Cohaagen.
“All defense matrix clusters are unable to get an effective sensor lock before target leaves hyperspace, sir. Hyperspace patrols are encountering the same issues as our ships. The Earthship is successfully evading all attacks.”
“That’s not all it’s doing,” Cohaagen said as he leaned over the command table to study the map. “Each time he goes into and comes out of hyperspace, he’s putting distance between him and our ships and getting closer to flying beyond our perimeter. If he keeps this up he’ll be able to leapfrog past our defenses until he has a clear path to make the jump to light speed.”
“The Earthman is keeping his flight pattern random, sir,” reported a tech. “Computers are unable to calculate his route. We do not know where to direct our ships in order to try and stop him.”
Cohaagen stood up straight, his face studious. “Clever,” he said. “We’ve never anticipated a scenario like this. The tactical genius it takes for one ship to outfly four full wings of our fighters and every defense matrix and hyperspace patrol at our disposal is nothing short of masterful. If one thing can be said about our target… it’s that he most certainly knows what he is doing.”
“What the blazes are ya doin’???” shrieked Scallywag.
“I have no idea!!!” cried Jack as he frantically banked and weaved the ship. Everywhere he turned there was something shooting at them, and he had to constantly open hyperspace windows to escape it.
“If ya keep this up, ya’ll blow the blasted Brane Accelerator!” screamed Scallywag. “Then we’ll really be browned!”
“And if I don’t keep this up, we’re going to get shot to pieces!” screamed back Jack. “You got any better ideas???”
“NO!” yelled Scallywag.
“OKAY THEN!”
“FINE!”
Observing from an out-of-the-way place off to the side of the bridge, Dan glanced over at Grohm, the large Rognok stoically sitting next to him. “Pardon me, sir,” he said. “You’re much more familiar with these types of situations than I. Is this manner of contentious exchange between the crew normal?”
“Yes,” grunted Grohm.
“I see,” said Dan. “So I shouldn’t be worried that they both appear to be completely panicked and convinced they’re about to die?”
“No.”
“Just to clarify – ‘no’ I shouldn’t be worried, or ‘no’ I should be worried?”
“Yes.”
“I… see,” replied Dan, still unsure of the answer. “Is there anything we could be doing
to assist in this situation?”
“Stop talking.”
“Interesting. If that is what will assist us in surviving this endeavor, I shall do so right away,” Dan replied quickly before shutting up.
In the Entanglement Engine room, Professor Green and Heckubus had opened every panel on the engine they possibly could as they hurriedly checked through each system they could find. “Power flow, normal. Coolant levels, optimal. Quantum flux capacitors, operational…” checked off Heckubus as he continued combing through the engine’s systems.
“I’ve checked the sub-nuclear combustion drive, the electromagnetic modulator, and the negative mass conversion system!” said Green. “I can’t find any problems!”
“Well, check them again!” insisted Heckubus as the ship was rocked once more by plasma fire. “There must be something we’re missing!”
“You and I both poured over this engine for an entire month on the journey back to Omnicron and could not find a single issue with it,” said Green with a frown. “I’m afraid neither you nor I are up to this task, dear fellow.”
“I am far more up to this task than you, seeing as how I am not giving up!” Heckubus retorted. “My intricate and meticulous plans do not involve getting obliterated while fixing a blasted engine like some lowly repair-bot. Now use that second-rate brain of yours and think of a solution!”
Green’s lips trembled. “I fear the only thing I’m able to think about is how we’re all going to die.”
“Seriously?” sneered Heckubus. “I’m the optimist in this situation? That is what we’ve devolved to?”
“There is nothing wrong with the engine,” came Shanks voice. Heckubus and the Professor both turned to see the monk standing in the doorway as the ship jerked from another blast to its hull. “At least, not mechanically.”
“Then why isn’t it working?” asked Green.
“Because there is another aspect to it that is not working properly,” said Shanks as he approached the engine, his eyes studying it closely. “One which you and your robotic friend are not equipped to repair.”
“Yes, as much as I am a fan of cryptic musings, this is not the appropriate time for them!” said Heckubus. “If the Professor and I cannot fix the engine, at least tell us that you can.”
“I can try.”
“Then, by all means,” said Heckubus, gesturing toward it. “It’s not like there’s any rush.”
Shanks took a deep breath and closed his eyes, while opening his third one. He gazed at the engine and saw a chaotic flow of energy raging inside it, like a frenzied beast trapped in a cage. He extended his hand toward the engine casing, stopping mere inches from touching it, able to feel the power of the energy contained within the machine.
Do not be afraid, he said in his mind. I am here to guide you.
Shanks extended his own energy, letting it flow from his Source, down his arm, through his hand, and into the engine. When his energy made contact with the swirling mass inside, it was as though Shanks fell into the engine itself, his vision blurring. Suddenly, he was on the ship’s bridge. Jack was in the pilot’s seat, and the Professor, Heckubus, Grohm, Scallywag, and Anna were all there with him. Then, there was a flash of light on the viewscreen as a massive explosion, unlike anything Shanks had ever seen before, occurred.
“Great Observer…” Green said breathlessly.
“Holy kitten,” said Scallywag.
“Oh… crap,” said Grohm.
The entire bridge started to shake as the shockwave from the blast raced toward them. Alarms blared as Jack gazed intensely at the ship’s readouts.
“COME ON!!!!!” Jack screamed.
The bridge began to fill with light as the Entanglement Engine started to engage just as the shockwave caught up with the ship. The vessel rocked to the side, turning chaotically as the crest of the shockwave hit it. Suddenly, the setting around Shanks disappeared, violently ripped apart into a cavalcade of images flashing all around him in a tumultuous collage. Images of a blue and green planet. Images of people, animals, and beautiful landscapes. Images of civilizations rising and falling. Images of art, literature, culture – a vast and dizzying array of different visual wonders cascading all around him. There were so many things to see, Shanks could barely make sense of them all. But he did notice the image of a woman, which reoccurred frequently, mixed in among the others.
So much information. So much knowledge, he thought. Did the impact from that shockwave knock you out of Equilibrium? Have you been unable to find your Source? Have you lost your center?
Shanks continued to notice the visage of the woman that kept appearing in the avalanche of images around him, her face and figure fuzzy but clear enough to be recognizable.
Is she who you are struggling to find within the chaos? he asked. Who is she? What is she to you?
On Megabase Cygnus, Starkeeper Cohaagen gazed at the large holographic projection above the command table in the central control room, watching the Earthship maneuver in and out of hyperspace. He rubbed his beard thoughtfully as he studied the battlefield, taking note of all the units in play.
“Open a hyperspace window and network our computers with that of Starbase Sirius,” he ordered. “Share our sensor data so we can keep track of them across dimensions. Once that is done, have the computer analyze the Earthman’s trajectory and predict where he’ll enter and emerge from. Then, manually aim the defense matrices for those projections.”
“Manually aim them, sir?” asked the technician, surprised at the unusual request.
“The targeting computers aren’t going to be able to react quickly enough. We need to be shooting where he’s going to be, not where he currently is!”
“But… manual control will not be nearly as accurate, sir.”
“If he keeps this up, he’s going to be outside our hyperspace defense radius soon,” replied Cohaagen. “I’ll take a little less accuracy over letting a terrorist escape the most highly defended planet in the blasted galaxy! Now do it!”
The technicians all around rushed to carry out Cohaagen’s commands. Cohaagen smiled as he leaned against the table, staring at the small, holographic representation of the Earthship.
“You can run,” he said quietly, “but you can’t escape.”
Jack gritted his teeth, his heart pounding in his chest as he struggled to stay focused. He’d bought himself enough time to get the Earthship’s shields back up, and so far, the accidental strategy of jumping in and out of hyperspace was (just barely) working. He kept an eye on the system status indicator he’d called up on the holodisplay before him. It warned him that the Brane Accelerator responsible for opening the hyperspace windows was getting perilously close to failing from all the stress he was putting on it.
Come on, come on, just hold on a little bit longer! thought Jack desperately. We’re almost out of this! We just need to get a little further!
Suddenly, a direct hit from a defense cluster rocked the ship as soon as they’d entered hyperspace. Lights flashed and alarms blared on the bridge as more blasts streaked in, pounding the shields.
“Bloody squick!” Scallywag cursed. “Where’d those come from???”
“I’m not detecting any sensor locks!” cried Jack as he quickly flew out of hyperspace. “How’d they hit us???”
More plasma fire streaked in from squads of ships that had somehow grouped up in formation in front of them. Jack banked the ship to avoid the blasts, hopping back into hyperspace only to be met with another direct hit from a defense matrix. Some of the control consoles on the bridge sparked as the ship’s systems took a surge of damage. Jack desperately maneuvered away and flew back into normal space, only to be greeted by more fighters flying in formation.
“Oy, I think they’ve caught onta yer strategy, lad!” said Scallywag.
“How is that possible?” complained Jack. “I haven’t even caught on to my strategy yet!”
“We need ta stay out o’ hyperspace!” insisted Scallywag. “We can’t ta
ke any more hits from tha defense clusters!”
“But we’re so close to getting past them!”
“We’ll haveta make the rest o’ the way in normal space,” said Scallywag. “There’s only a few more groups of fighters close enough ta do us harm. We’ll have ta out run ‘em!”
Jack checked his sensor readout. He’d been able to distance himself from enough of the fighters to at least have a chance, but the ones that were still nearby looked to be trying to cut him off. “I think we can make it,” Jack said, more to assure himself than anything else. “I think we can make it past the perimeter…”
The Earthship jostled as some of the pursuing fighters blasted at it. Jack rolled the ship away and tried to fly evasively as the Imperial fighters continued their pursuit.
“I hope we can make it!” Jack squeaked, fear tightening its grip around his gut. “I hope we can make it past the perimeter!”
Cohaagen studied the holodisplay closely as the Earthship tried to avoid the blasts from the fighters. “Yes, good,” he said to himself. “He’s abandoned hyperspace and appears to be starting to panic…” He looked at the position of the starfighters in the area. “Have fighter groups Red and Yellow spread out. Starburst formation. Start boxing in the Earthman. Tell groups Blue and Green to do the same. I want every possible angle covered.”
“Sir, if the groups spread out, the fighters will not be able to intercept the Earthship before it is able to exit the perimeter.”
“We’re well beyond being able to intercept it,” replied Cohaagen. “Now, I want to herd it.”
“Herd it, sir?”
“Yes,” Cohaagen said. “They may get out of range of our defense perimeter, but not out of range of our megalaser. Begin powering it up immediately. Be prepared to fire as soon as the Earthship is in its sights. And the moment it is…”
Cohaagen leaned over the command table and glared at the holographic image of the Earthship like he were looking directly down the scope of a hunting rifle.
Earthman Jack vs. The Secret Army (Earthman Jack Space Saga Book 2) Page 69