by Arlin Fehr
Victor looked up from his console, 'It's not a ship, but there's something artificial out there. About forty klicks away on the planets surface.'
'We'll investigate it later, right now we've got to get Dan back,' Sam said, 'Ise, what's your status, we've lost sight of you in the dust cloud.'
'The ship is upright, but Dan seems unable to break open the canopy. The weight must have jammed it,' came Ise's voice.
'Suggestions?' Sam asked.
'I don't think we're getting the Nimbus back Captain. She should just rip the canopy off.' John offered.
'You hear that Ise?'
'Loud and clear. I had the same thought.'
The dust was settling, and they could see Ise standing on the far side of the ship. She seemed to be giving Dan hand signs. After a minute of this, she got a grip on something out of sight, and with apparent effort, started to pull. Nothing seemed to happen, but then it cracked open slightly. She repositioned and got a grip on the edge of the canopy and pulled again. This time the canopy came clean off of the ship. She threw the canopy aside.
'I'm getting Dan now.'
John watched as she reached into the cockpit and got a hold of Dan. Dan wrapped his arms around her as she gingerly lifted him away from the jagged edges left by the torn off canopy.
She pulled him out and walked around the ship. She started towards the Kanto.
'I am returning to the ship. If you'd be so kind as to land this time, I'll bring Dan aboard.'
'John?'
'Aye Captain, landing the ship.'
John started his descent of a few meters, landing struts deploying from the bottom of the ship.
They watched the camera feed as Ise walked up the ramp and into the ship. She hit a button and the ramp started to close.
'Pilot recovered,' she said.
'John, take us up.'
'Yes Ma'am.' John grabbed his flight stick and activated the engines, the Kanto leapt from the surface like a grasshopper. Soon they were high above the planet again.
'Now then, what was that about the strange readings you saw Vick?'
***
Ise carried Daniel through the small hold that was the entrance to the ship and into a medical room. There was one table and myriad of equipment. She laid Daniel down on the bed and took off his helmet.
'Lenny?'
'Yes Advocate?'
'Run medical scans on Daniel Higgins.'
'Yes Advocate.'
Seemingly of their own accord, the equipment in the room came to life and began to move over Daniel's body like the legs of a spider. They folded out from the walls, long tendrils of white metal, each with a different piece of equipment on the end. A few of them hung back, in stand by mode, while the rest of the arms zig zagged over his body. His chest moved only slightly as he breathed, and he was obviously in pain.
'The ship?' Ise heard him whisper.
'The ship is fine Lieutenant. You did your job well. Now rest, we'll take care of you.'
He nodded the tiniest bit.
The arms danced for a little while longer before folding away from the bed and hanging at the ready.
'Scan is completed. Compound Fracture, Femur, left side. Cracked ribs, third and fourth ribs, left side, fourth rib, right side. Concussion detected. Internal bleeding detected. Recommend immediate medical evacuation.'
'Begin triage and stabilization procedures. Probability of stabilization?'
'Eighty-nine percent. Mobility will be greatly impaired until proper medical attention can be obtained. Possibility of further injury if left untreated.'
'Acknowledged. Begin treatment.'
'Yes Advocate.'
Ise watched as the arms moved into position again. One of them injected Daniel with an anaesthesia and the others got to work, holding him in position, applying spray-on bracing for the leg, and treating him as best as it could.
Ise turned and left the cramped room, and entered the bridge.
The others were having a conversation of some sort. They stopped when she entered. Sam looked at her and asked, 'How's Lt. Higgins?'
Ise bit her lip, 'He's not doing well. He's got a broken leg, broken ribs, internal bleeding, and a concussion. Lenny is working on him now. There's a high chance he'll be stable, but we'll need to get him some proper medical attention soon.'
Samantha looked thoughtful, 'We might have a bit of an interesting situation. Victor, why don't you tell Ise what you've found?'
Victor hit some keys on his console, and an image of the distinct three point scaffold array of a faster than light communication system, sitting on the surface of the the planet, came on display, 'I discovered the source of the strange readings from before. There seems to be a FTL signaller on the planets surface.'
'How does this help us?' Ise asked.
'There's more,' Victor hit another key. This time the image of a sensor array showed up, 'this is where the sensor ping that hit us and the Lobsters came from. Whatever is on this planet is currently active.'
'We are here looking for a Lobster base.' Ise pointed out.
'Yes, and that was my thought to, that maybe we had just so happened to find what we were looking for. But then I found this, about four kilometres away from the sensor array,' Victor hit a button and a new image came on screen. It was a building, a squat and narrow shack with double doors on the front and a sloping roof that seemed to vanish into the surface of the planetoid, 'And there's this,' he keyed another command and a circle of the dusty ground was clearly disturbed. A patch of metallic material was visible on the surface.
'The circle is probably entrance to some kind of hanger or something, and the building is probably an entrance. It looks a little too obvious to be a Lobster base though.'
'That is because it probably isn't. The Linkal aren't known to be this obvious. Plus, they don't have FTL signallers of their own. Whats more, as I ran a scan on the sensor array and the FTL signaller I realized something strange. I recognize them. The signaller is an obsolete model that hasn't been in use since my days in training twenty years ago, and the sensor array is only slightly more modern. The array should finish it, but throw in the signaller, and there's no chance this is a lobster base.'
Ise frowned.
'Lenny, confirm analysis?' Ise asked her Guardian over the uplink.
'Confirmed Advocate. The FTL signaller and sensor array are found in my databanks. Would you care for further information?'
'Yes.'
'The FTL signaller was originally used by U.P.N. logistics corps bulk freighters before being phased out by new designs allowing for greater bandwidth. The sensor array was part of an older model U.P.N. scout ship, much like the Kanto. The sensor is old, though not obsolete yet, many ships still use the same array within the fleet. However they are restricted to core sector patrol flotillas.'
'Theorize, how did these come to be here?'
'Insufficient data to construct theory. Suggest closer examination of FTL signaller. That type of signaller has serial numbers located on a plate beneath the control box at the base of the transmission towers.'
'Lenny agrees, the signaller and sensor array are both on record. He says if we examine the signaller we'll be able to find a serial number on it and he can use that to identify where it came from and why it's here.' Ise said.
Samantha nodded slowly, 'This still doesn't get Dan his medical attention.'
'Captain, if there are humans here, they've probably got medical supplies we could use.' Victor offered.
'I'd have to recommend against that Captain, if this isn't on any of our charts, and command dispatched us to check it out, I can't think of it as anything friendly. It'll either be Pirates or the Anti-A.I. League.'
Samantha sat back in her seat, 'Open a channel on all human military and civilian channels, short range only. Focus on the array.'
Victor nodded, 'Aye captain, channel open.'
'This is the U.P.N. Kanto calling unidentified human instillation. We are in need of medical ass
istance. We also offer a warning, a Linkal ship has been spotted in the area and is to be assumed as hostile,' Sam said, using the Lobsters official name, 'We have forced it to retreat for now, but this area will probably be swarming with Linkal ships before long. Please respond.'
The crew waited in silence. Nothing but static came over the channel.
'Cut the channel.' Sam said.
'Channel closed.'
'Ise, how's Lt. Higgins?' Sam asked.
'Lenny, status update on Lt. Higgins.'
'Yes Advocate. Lt. Higgin's stabilization procedure completed. Lt. Higgins condition is stable. Limited mobility will be possible in a hour, though not recommended. Further medical attention, though recommended, is not immediately necessary.'
'Thank you Lenny.'
'You are welcome Advocate.'
'Lt. Higgins is stable. He'll be able to move in a hour. Lenny says that he still needs further medical attention, but he's out of danger and stable for now. I wouldn't recommend getting him into any fights now.'
Samantha nodded again, 'There's still the matter of the lobster fighter somewhere out there. If we try to move away from the planet to make a jump, and it gets on our tail, we'll have a bad time of it. If he's still stuck on the surface, we can make sure he stays grounded. Victor, start scanning for it's crash sight. John, set a course in the last known direction of the fighter. Let's be quick people.'
'Yes Ma'am.' Victor said.
'Aye Aye skipper,' John said.
***
'I've got a bead on the crash sight. Bearing zero-one-six, approximately twenty kilometres distance. I've also got eyes on another entrance building. This one looks a bit bigger than the first one we saw,' Victor said.
'Any sign of power from the Lobster ship?' Samantha asked
'No ma'am. It looks dead.'
Ise looked at the display. The landing for the Lobster ship at least appeared to have been gentler than the hard landing suffered by the Nimbus. The alien craft was upright and there was only a very short trench etched in the surface behind it. It had apparently come in a lot slower and softer than Daniel's fighter.
'It doesn't look that bad. The pilot is probably still alive.' Ise commented.
'Scan for life signs Vick.' Sam ordered.
'Scanning... None detected in the ship. What should we do?'
'This could be a good chance to get a closer look at the active defence system they mounted on it, and if we can retrieve a spatial catapult drive off of it, I imagine naval intelligence would be very happy with us. Victor, I want you and Ise to suit up and go check it out. We'll keep you covered from the ship. If anyone unexpected pops up from the ship, we'll melt them with the Thercon.'
'Yes ma'am.' Victor said, getting up from his station.
Ise followed him out of the bridge and back into a back room. Ise grabbed a suit this time. She didn't know how long she'd be out from the ship, and it was an extra layer of protection. Military pressure suits had some rudimentary armour worked into them. While she was already quite formidable, thanks to her Advocate upgrades, she preferred to have a little extra protection.
The two strode to the ramp room as it was depressurized and the ramp slid open.
'Comms check,' Ise heard Vick say.
'Comms check positive.' she replied.
'Roger, comms check positive,' said Samantha from the bridge.
Victor grabbed a cable line dangling from the ceiling and used it to lower himself to the planets surface. Ise just jumped from the end of the ramp and landed in the soft dust of the surface, kicking up a cloud.
Victor gave his line a tug, and it retracted back into the ship. The ramp closed behind it, and the ship pulled up to a higher altitude.
As it pulled away, the area got very dark. Ise activated her suits lights and saw Victor do the same.
'Come on Victor. Let's go give it a look.'
Ise started to walk towards the crashed ship, Victor following a few steps behind.
As she got closer, the damage to the ship was obvious. A jagged hole had been ripped open on the top of the fighter, near the engines, from where Daniel's shot had exited.
Daniel really did a number on this thing, Ise thought to herself.
The fighter was quite a bit bigger than the Nimbus. It was a good twenty meters long, and at least ten high. It was resting on two rectangular engine nacelles on either side of it. The main body was the shape of an upside down 'T' with the cockpit on the vertical part, and the struts to the nacelle making up the horizontal part. There were missile racks slung under the struts. Behind the cockpit sat what looked like a silver dome.
'What's that behind the cockpit?' Ise asked.
'I'd guess that's the active defence system. It must be an energy projector of some kind. I don't know yet though. I'll need a closer look. Can you get me up there?'
'Not a problem, hold still.'
Ise grabbed Victor tightly around the waist with her arm and kicked off from the ground. The combination of her enhanced strength and the lower gravity caused her to fly upward and alight down on the nearest engine nacelle.
'Thanks.' Victor said, walking across the wing towards the silver dome.
'I'm going to check the cockpit.'
'Okay.'
Ise walked towards the cockpit and bent over the clear canopy. She peered inside and saw two seats, one was empty, the other had a body still strapped in. She could see that the back of the cockpit had exploded. Apparently the shot to the underbelly had penetrated deep into the ship.
One seat is empty... Why would he get out and close the cockpit again? Unless...
Ise stood up quickly and ran towards Victor. She grabbed him and pulled him off away from the dome, jumping off the end of the fighter in one great leap. She sailed away from it and hit the ground, tumbling away from the fighter when it erupted in a flash of light.
'What just happened down there?' Ise heard Sam say over the comms.
Ise stood up and helped Victor to his feet, 'The Lobster pilot rigged the ship to blow. I don't know what triggered it though.'
She saw Victor pull something off his belt and look at it, 'I've got a signal coming from the entrance building near by. The Lobster could have remote detonated it. He's probably over there now.'
'Well he's not going anywhere now,' Ise said.
'Get back to the ship.' Sam said.
'Yes Captain.'
The ship lowered down in front of them, the ramp way open. Ise and Victor walked towards it.
***
'Look, I picked up a communication signal of some kind coming from the entrance building. I've checked the signal type, and it's clearly a Linkal communication device. It's short range only, probably a hand held device. He must have watched us come down and waited to set it off, hoping to catch the two of us. When he saw Ise jump off, he probably set off the ship hoping to catch us in the blast.' Victor said emphatically.
'We're not here to chase down one pilot.' Ise said coolly.
'Aren't we? We came here looking for Linkal activity, and we've found that. There's a Linkal pilot who's gotten access to whatever facility is on this planet. If they're human, they'll be far more likely to help us than to help a lobster. We should land and have a look.' Victor said.
Samantha was listening intently. She thought for a moment and said, 'I think we should know a little more about what we're getting into before we do that. We should go check the FTL signaller for that serial number. If we know which ship it came from, it might give us an indication of who's down there. Have you been able to get any energy or life readings from the buildings yet Victor?'
Victor frowned, 'No ma'am. My sensors stop sensing anything after about twenty meters below the surface. I do see a passageway that goes down from the entrance buildings though. It's conceivable whatever is down there is shielded against our sensors. Whoever is down there took some effort not to be noticed.'
'All the more reason to assume they might be hostile.' Ise said.
; Victor turned around and keyed some buttons on his sensor console. A diagram showed up of the surface of the planet. It was very small, only about the size of Luna, Earth's moon. Victor overlaid a graphic showing what they'd detected on the surface thus far. The two entrance buildings, a FTL signaller, and a sensor array.
'Look at this, since we've been here, the only thing to show any activity is the sensor array. I haven't seen a whisper of coming from the communication array. It could be broken. Maybe they know we're here but can't say anything back.'
Samantha looked at the map, 'John, take us to the communication array.'
'Captain?' Ise asked.
'We're going to go have a look. If it is broken, we can fix it. If it isn't broken, we can still get the serial number off it and at least find out where it came from.'
Victor smiled, he hated leaving questions unanswered.
***
The ship sat floating behind them, above the surface of the planet. Jing and Victor had exited the ship and walked to the tower. Jing stood some distance back, examining the structure from afar, while Victor walked up to the base with a tablet computer and some other equipment in hand. Jing had a weapon in hand and kept an eye on the horizon.
'With any luck, I'll be able to just plug in.' Victor said over his suit comm.
'It is a twenty year old communication system Vick. I wouldn't hold your breath. Probably uses some outdated data port.' Jing commented.
'Never know, whoever left it here could have given it an upgrade.'
Victor knelt down next to a panel on the base. The base was shaped like a triangle, with the three towers come out of the base at each of the points. The towers themselves were also triangular in nature. Each of the towers was a different height, and had a slightly different set of equipment at their apex. The towers were the short range, medium range, and long range systems, the tallest being the long range, and the shortest being short range. Victor went towards a panel on the side of the base, while Jing walked around the the array, looking at the towers.
'Looks like it's in pretty good shape. All three towers are still intact, though the mid range tower looks a little neglected. I see at least one strut that's been hit by something,' Jing said. He moved closer to the short range tower, 'Actually, something hit both of these towers, but whoever was here took the time to repair the short range tower. They just left the mid range in it's sorry state though.'