by Jay Toney
"I'm surprised he paid them. Usually, he says something like their freedom should be payment enough."
"He said that, but I insisted that he pay them. I threatened to pay the workers three times what he paid them if I wasn't satisfied with the amount he gave them."
"I can't wait to see it all of the treasure."
"You will have to. Most of the treasure is in the smuggling holds under the deck plates. What couldn't fit inside of them is in the starboard nacelle."
The door to our cabin opened. Tanya and Natasha rushed in and sealed the door behind them. "We are sorry to burst in. Doc and Jane are looking for us, and they are mad. We need someplace to hide out until they cool off."
"What did you two do this time?"
"Nothing. I think it may have something to do with busting you out of sickbay. They finally caught up with us."
"They will know you are here."
"No, they won't. Natty turned off her neurolink."
"I didn't know she could do that."
"We figured it out a few months ago. Jane and Kim think that Natty is malfunctioning, but they can't find anything wrong with her. Her diagnostics check out 100%."
"When did these supposed malfunctions start happening?"
"They are not malfunctions. She has just been acting more like a human since we returned from Invaldi. If anything, she is improving."
"How so? I'm not sure I understand."
"Her behavior seems more natural, human-like, and the way she responds to me goes way beyond Randolph's tinkering. She feels emotions, she is creative, and um, a lot more fun in bed. Don't let Jane disassemble her!"
"I won't."
"Attention: All bridge officers report to the bridge. Alliance vessels have come into sensor range. Wear of Alliance uniforms is mandatory. That means Tanya and my avatar too!"
There was no ducking out of this one for Natasha and Tanya. They had to report show up. Jewel, Amber, and I changed into our uniforms. The uniform I was given to wear had the lowest commissioned officer rank of sub-lieutenant.
When we got to the bridge, I sat at the helm controls. Natasha sat beside me at the navigation console, and Doc sat in the command chair. He was dressed and disguised as Captain Thornton.
"Sub Lieutenant, I'm glad you decided to grace us with your presence. After we finish with this fiasco, you and I need to talk, in my office." He looked towards Tanya and Natasha then said, "Your accomplices are also required to attend."
The good thing was that he didn't seem mad. The not so good thing was that he figured out that Tanya and Natasha were involved with my escape. I still hadn't thought of an explanation for how I got out of sickbay.
"Amber, has the Alliance, ship detected our presence?"
"Not yet, we are still running dark. The Alliance sensor officer would have to be looking very hard to detect us."
"Tanya, any comm signals?"
"No sir, they are remaining silent."
Suck up, I thought. I never heard Tanya call anyone sir or ma'am until today.
"Natasha, how long before we can enter hyperspace?"
"At our present speed, it will take another two hours. We are synched with the Valley Forge to jump together."
Our tactical screen showed that the Alliance ship changed course slightly to shadow our movements. They were watching us, possibly unsure of us. All their sensors showed was the Valley Forge towing the disabled destroyer, attached to its hull. They were still unaware of our presence. We were ready for them in case they challenged us.
We waited, watching the tactical screen for a change, any change. The warship continued to match our course and speed. Two hours passed. We could safely jump, except if we did, the Alliance ship would have our jump vector and could follow. On the other hand, if it jumped first, we could find ourselves at a tactical disadvantage when we entered the system behind them.
I couldn't help but scratch at the uniform I was wearing; it itched and the itching was driving me crazy.
"Sublieutenant quit fidgeting. You are an officer."
"I can't help it, it itches. The damn Alliance never could make a decent uniform."
"Captains? I've been able to identify the Alliance warship. It is a Targa class destroyer, the Avenger."
I heard of that class of warship but thought that I would never see one, and this ship was close to our home. The Targa class ships were hunters. They had heavy armor, more PDC, but fewer weapon turrets. Their primary weapon was missiles. Their missiles were equipped with antimatter warheads that made our missiles seem trivial in comparison.
"The ship is changing course, back towards the inner system, bearing 095° declination -1°."
"Natty signal the Valley Forge. We need to leave now before we look suspicious and the Avenger changes course for a closer look at us." Natasha signaled the Valley Forge; then we entered hyperspace.
I was hoping that Doc would forget wanting to see the three of us in sickbay, but I wasn't so lucky. "Nathaniel now is a good time for our talk. Tanya and Natasha, you two are needed too. Come with me."
Doc didn't yell or stomp his feet, that was a good sign. It meant he took the time to cool down and rationalize what he wanted to say. Our meeting would be a discussion, not an ass chewing. I hoped it didn't last long. I needed to get out of this itchy uniform.
"Be seated.
Not you two. Remain standing. I will deal with you and Natasha next."
I was mistaken; he was still mad.
"Raise your arms over your head and stretch."
I did as he said and winced in pain, but I did it.
"Your shoulder should have healed by now. I told you not to use it." He took a hypo off of his desk and injected its contents into my shoulder.
"What was that?"
"Another series of nanobots to finish mending your shoulder. I should make you wait while it heals naturally in a sling.
Tell me exactly how you got out of sickbay?"
I knew this was coming. I wasn't able to think of anything that my father would believe. I hated to do it, but there was no alternative; I had to tell the truth.
"It's not his fault. We let him out?"
"Tell me how you did it."
"It was simple; I just opened the door for him."
"You couldn't have. The door was locked with my security code. Only the captain's code could have overridden my lockout, and Nathaniel's code was temporarily suspended."
"That's not true. All bridge officers have override authority so, in case of an emergency, any of us can override any locked door. It is standard procedure."
"We will see about that." Doc activated his comp and started researching lockout override procedures. Natasha was much quicker than Doc. She used her neurolink to change the lockout protocols and put a lock on them that would prevent anyone from altering her new instructions. She made sure the procedures date predated the ship's christening.
"I'll see if I can get Kim or Jane to fix that. Tanya, I want you to escort Natasha to Kim for a complete diagnostic check. I suspect she may be malfunctioning."
"She is not malfunctioning, and she just had a diagnostic check. Her systems check out 100%."
"Is that true Natasha?"
"Yes, sir."
"You are not lying, are you?"
"No, sir. My programming prevents me from lying."
"I'll be keeping an eye on the two of you. Dismissed! Now get out of here, all of you."
After sickbay's door was closed, Tanya said, "Natty that was a close one. I wasn't sure we were going to be able t
o pull it off."
"We need to plan our missions better. I don't think Doc believes us. He will be looking for any mistake."
"We won't make any; the next time."
"I owe the two of you. I couldn't have lied my way out like the two of you just did."
San Paulos
Damn my uniform itched. It must have been made from a different material than the uniforms worn by my bridge officers. It looked and felt the same as the other Alliance uniforms, but the infernal itching didn't seem to aggravate anyone else. It went way beyond being irritating or annoying; I felt cursed.
The entire bridge crew was present for our exit from hyperspace.
Everyone was ready to play their part if another Alliance patrol challenged us. I scratched my chest, arms, and legs but stopped when Doc noticed me. I straightened my posture and announced, "Stand by to exit hyperspace on my mark, 3, 2, 1, now. I touched the control and entered the confirmation code to return our ship to normal space. Our velocity dampers extended to help slow the Persephone. I flipped the starship and throttled up the main engines to maximum power. When our delta-v matched the freighters, I cut power to the drives and flipped the ship again.
Nueva Zealand's sun showed brightly on our forward view. We were close to home with only one more short trip in hyperspace to go. The sun wasn't the only thing our sensors detected. Two red icons flashed on and off at the edge of our tactical screen's range.
"Captain, I got a match on the transponder codes. They belong to the Cruiser Saigon and the Destroyer Tempest. The Tempest is a Targa class destroyer," Tanya reported.
"Doc, What in the hell are these detestable uniforms made out of? The itching is unbearable."
"All Alliance military uniforms are made from plant fiber; they call it hemp. Take off your shirt."
Every place the shirt made contact with my skin was either red or covered by a red rash. "It is an allergic reaction, contact dermatitis. I'm afraid you will have to suffer with it until we can reenter hyperspace." Doc dug through his bag and selected a hypo. "This will help with the itching."
I could feel whatever Doc injected me with work its magic. The itching didn't stop, but it lessened to something more tolerable, and I felt a cold sensation spread throughout my body.
"You can put your shirt on now. No more wearing Alliance uniforms for you after today."
I had a reason to be grateful and another reason to hate uniforms, especially Alliance uniforms. I put the offensive shirt back on. It was either that or leave the bridge. If it weren't for the presence of the two Alliance warships, I would have done the latter.
"One of the ships just entered hyperspace. I can't tell which one until the energy distortions clear."
"It was the Saigon. I'm only receiving one transponder signal now," Tanya added.
The Saigon was larger than the destroyer, and an even match for us in battle, but less deadly and more lightly armored than the other warship. I would much rather fight the cruiser, given a choice.
"Captain, the Tempest is changing course, it is on an intercept course with us."
"Tanya, announce all hands to battle stations."
"Natasha, seal all bulkhead doors and hatches. Prepare to raise shields."
"Captain, the tempest is contacting the Valley Forge."
"Put them on screen." The Tempest was still unaware of our presence. Hopefully, we could keep it that way. The Valley Forge and the Jackal were positioned between us, keeping us hidden in their sensor shadow.
"What in the hell is that hulk you are towing?"
"It's the salvaged wreck of the Jackal. It is what's left of our escort from the Coria star system."
"It's hardly worth your efforts to tow the wreck back, especially with the cargo you are carrying. We could have reclaimed it later. What happened with the survivors?"
"They are still aboard. We needed all of the available space in our cargo holds. The cargo we are carrying is much more valuable than the grunts are."
"I would have left them behind, but I suppose we can still get some use out of them. The troops and officers that are still alive will serve to demonstrate the cost of failing the Alliance. A public hanging for their failure will help to keep our troops motivated."
"Yes, sir. My thoughts exactly."
"I assume the cargo is intact?"
"Yes, sir, and sir, the conscripts were able to mine and process nearly 5% more cargo than was estimated."
"Very good. Our sensors are picking up a sensor shadow. Are you being followed."
"It is our escort. With the cargo we are carrying, a replacement escort was assigned to us to ensure that we remain loyal, and to make sure that we reach the Avalon system with the cargo intact."
"Unidentified ship, identify yourself."
"Natty, respond with the Ajax's transponder signal.
Tanya, open our comm channel.
Doc, you're on."
"What in the hell do you think you are doing by blowing our cover! I'll have your hides!"
"You may look and sound like Captain Thornton, but you are not him. You have made several mistakes. He and I have known each for years. Captain Thornton doesn't hide in the shadows. His tactics are bold; he uses the fear of him to his advantage. More importantly, he is in the Lambada System having the Ajax refitted with new engines.
I don't know who you are, probably pirates. Power down your ship and prepare for boarding!"
"Captain, they are raising shields and powering weapons."
"Raise our shields now!
Amber go to active sensors. Get our ECM and PDC online."
I brought our engines to life, going to maximum power. I turned the Persephone starboard, beginning an evasive maneuver that would put some distance between the Valley Forge and us. Natasha targeted the destroyer and fired a full salvo from our missile tubes; our gunners fired their energy weapons.
The Tempest returned fire. Our shields were able to deflect or absorb the destroyers fire. Two of our missiles hit. The damage was minor due to the destroyers heavy armor. I turned to evade again. Natasha fired another salvo, so did the Tempest. Our PDC destroyed one of the missiles. An explosion rocked our ship from a near hit. Alarms sounded, and several warning lights flashed on. The damage would have to wait until after the battle. I rolled and turned the ship, facing the destroyer with our port side. Jane did her best to balance the Persephone's shields. Only one of our missiles hit, again just causing minor damage.
****
"Attention, all hands! Abandon ship! The life support systems have been shut down, and the ship is going to hard vacuum. Everyone has one minute to get off the ship," David announced.
The surviving crew members aboard the Jackal scrambled to reach the escape pods, and get away from the ship. After one minute, David entered the command override codes to start venting the destroyers atmosphere. The lowering air pressure hurried the evacuation. As soon as the destroyer was in a total vacuum, David sent his chief engineer to engineering. He didn't have anyone else that he could spare to use as a bodyguard; the lack of air should be enough to protect him.
Increasing the reactor power to critical levels would only take his chief engineer a few minutes. Keeping the damaged reactor under control wasn't easy. It needed constant monitoring and adjustments to the magnetic containment field. Letting the reactor go critical was easy, but David needed it to hold together for a few more minutes. "Chief when your done, hurry back to our ship. I'm finished on the bridge, and I am on my way back to the Valley Forge."
****
Two missiles got past our defenses. One missile detonated on our starboard side, close enough to ro
ck the ship violently with its shock wave. We weren't so lucky with the second. It struck our port nacelle, severely damaging my starship. A fire burned uncontrollably inside the port nacelle. The launch tubes were heavily damaged. The Persephone lost its primary source of power. Our shields collapsed and our weapons silenced. We still had auxiliary power, but the Persephone couldn't fight or defend us any longer. One more missile hit from the Tempest would finish us.
The Alliance captain maneuvered the Tempest close to the Persephone to gloat over the crippled cruiser and its crew. There was no need to waste money by using his antimatter missiles. Besides he could savor the experience by blasting the cruiser apart section by section. Then he would deal with the traitorous crew aboard the Valley Forge and bring its treasure home himself.
David carefully lined up his ship with the Tempest. He only had one shot at destroying the destroyer. His chief engineer warned him that the Jackal's reactor was unstable and could explode any minute. That was just what David wanted. He gave the freighter's engines more power. He was confident that the Tempest's crew would ignore his ship until after they were finished tormenting his new friends. The freighter's docking clamps released and David changed course, moving away from the destroyer.
The rest of the bridge crew and I watched the viewscreen helpless to do anything else. We were a stationary target for the Tempest's guns or missiles. No request was made for us to beg for surrender. The Alliance captain intended to kill us. He was just savoring the moment.
The crew of the Valley Forge watched the wreck of the Jackal close the distance with the Tempest and counted down the seconds to impact 10, 9, 8, 7. The Weapons Officer aboard the Tempest realized what was happening. It was too late to maneuver away from the hulk closing in on the Tempest. It was also too late to fire missiles. The gunners opened up, firing their particle beam cannons at the derelict destroyer; it was too late. 3,2,1, the Jackal collided amidships with the Tempest. The Jackal's reactor was already unstable and operating at critical power levels. The reactor lost magnetic containment and released its antimatter. The Jackal exploded, in a brief flash of light, destroying both the Jackal and the Tempest.