The launching and cargo bays of the Avoni were a frenzy of activity as the mainatence crew salvaged material from the unfinished Mardok colonies. Outside the ship a number of engineers repaired the hull using they recovered. Back in the ship’s main launching bay Jesela checked over the systems one more time to ensure the Phase Raknas were in good shape.
“We’ve retrieved enough material to build the ship twice over,” ensign Kaela reported.
“Thanks Kaela,” Jesela said. “I’m glad the Mardok were advanced enough to aid us, even if it wasn’t their intention.” She turned to address the engineers. “All of you have given everything for the last few days so I’m ordering all you to get some rest. We’ll be leaving this solar system in a few hours. After that I’ll join you in whatever entertainment you’re thinking of right now.”
“Thanks lieutenant,” each of the engineers said before leaving. Jesela stood alone and looked at the three damage mobile suits. The door opened before Brian entered.
“Is everything alright?” he asked.
“Yes, as you can see,” Jesela showed the mobile suits in perfect shape, “We’ve recovered a lot of useful materials from the colonies.”
“Good,” Brian said. “It won’t match the color Valis likes but at least it’s better than nothing.”
“You look terrible,” she remarked.
“I’ve been getting that a lot these days,” he turned and smiled, “I’ll rest as soon as we jump. I’ve ordered the crew to go on standby for one standard day.”
“There are some things about these mobile suits I need to run by you,” Jesela said. “Before this began I found a way to increase the output of the Raknas by another fifty percent, thus matching the Mjolnir. The question is to whether we pursue my theory or keep what we have.”
“Go for it,” he said. “What do we have to lose? I know Dreka wanted more testing but now’s not the time to hesitate. With what we’re facing we need to play every card we have.”
Jesela sighed with relief. “I’m glad you agreed. It saves me the trouble of pestering you until you break down.”
“You were planning to do that?”
“I could’ve asked the cook to not make pizza for a week,” Jesela said sarcastically. “But then the whole crew would be against me.”
“Speaking of which,” his stomach grumbled, “I don’t think I’ve eaten anything in the last few days.”
Jesela took his hand and led him to the cafeteria. “Then we’d better get some of that high fat, high protein fare into you right now.”
* * *
“Jump complete,” Baed reported.
Zae sighed in relief. “I’m exhausted.”
“Yeah, and we haven’t been able to look over the details of our new command positions.”
“Figured on doing that after a good night’s sleep,” Zae said. She stood up and stretched.
Celi entered the bridge. “I’ll be relieving you for the time being,” she said.
“Aren’t you supposed to rest as well?” Zae asked.
“We need at least one person on the bridge to keep an eye on things,” Celi said. “Don’t worry, Brian will take my place in twelve hours and then I get to rest for a day.” She sat in the captain’s chair. “It’s been awhile since I had to do this.”
“You remember how it all works?” Zae asked.
“Of course,” Celi answered. “One doesn’t get the rank of chief medical officer without knowing how to run a ship.”
“Before I leave there’s something you should keep an eye on,” Baed said. “The cloaked vessel shadowing us in the Mardok system is still following us.”
Celi called up the image on the monitor. “I see,” she said. She looked at the rough outline. “I know I’ve seen this shape before.”
“I feel the same way,” Zae said. “The shape’s oddly familiar but I can’t place it either.” She turned as Baed stood in the elevator. “Well, I’ll be on my way Celi. Take care of things for now.”
“I will,” Celi said before Baed and Zae left her alone on the bridge. “It’s been too long since I was up here doing this.”
After a moment of playing with the computer she stood up and went to the console in the back of the bridge. She called up the data on the disease infecting Brian. She started running through a number of scenarios using the bridge’s computer. I’m going to find a cure for him even if it drives me crazy. Celi thought to herself.
* * *
“We’ve successfully followed their ship,” Droid B reported.
“It appears their ship is using a light class drive,” Droid C said.
“Their main drive must have been damaged in battle,” the old Malcovin said. “It would also explain the lowered output for their shields and why their ship didn’t fire any pulse blasts during the last battle. How many spare drives do we have?”
“We have two heavy, three medium, and ten light,” Droid A reported. “But we only have enough particles to charge the two heavy drives and one medium drive.”
“That’s not counting our active drives?” the old Malcovin asked.
“That’s right sir,” Droid A said. “We currently have three drives active as well as fifty Q-Drives.”
“Are you planning to help them?” Droid C asked.
“If they’re caught in another battle anytime soon they won’t be able to come out alive,” the old Malcovin said. “If the person I think is onboard that ship then it’s too early in the game to let him die. I wasn’t planning on revealing myself until we reached the border of Confederation territory, but given the circumstances I’ll need to intervene soon.”
“It appears they have one functioning heavy class drive though sir,” Droid B said.
“They’re using it to keep those mobile weapons flying,” the old Malcovin explained. “If they want to live they need as many of their mobile suits working as possible.” The old Malcovin turned on his com system. “All engineering Droids, ready the Talons for launch.”
“Yes sir,” the droids responded.
“The good thing about this is we can try the new system you were talking about recently sir,” Droid A said. “Will you take one into combat?”
“No, I’m too old for that now,” the old Malcovin cawed, “And the remote system should more than suffice to keep the Greys on their toes.”
“Of course sir,” the three Droids answered.
* * *
Brian sat at the back of the dining hall in the corner. Jesela sat at the table with him. The cafeteria was filled with crew members enjoying their time off.
“The cook says we won’t have enough supplies to make this much longer,” Jesela before taking a bite of cheese pizza. “I have a theory on why this is so popular in the short time we’ve known about it.”
“What theory would this be?” Brian asked before sipping some water. His plate only had a few crumbs remaining on it.
“We Kalaidians have been so mindful of eating right for centuries that this food,” she pointed to the slice of pizza on her plate, “This food is completely opposite of our mindset. But we still won’t put meat on like you do.”
“That was the most frustrating thing I had to adjust to when I came onboard,” Brian said. “Your people have dozens of vegan and fruit based dishes but nothing like I was used to.”
“It would be the same if one of us was thrust into your culture,” Jesela said. “We’d be surrounded by piles of meat and dairy with nothing else it seems.”
“We have plenty of food for vegans on Earth,” Brian said. “But it’s not as common as it should be. Eating as much meat as we do is wasteful compared to eating the grains and vegetables.”
“That’s quite true for Kalaidians as well,” Jesela said. “We fished our oceans until there was almost nothing left. That was three hundred years ago.” She leaned forward. “But please, do tell me how you and Mira have been getting along. She hasn’t said a word of it for the last year.”
“Things are good,” Brian answer
ed. He noticed the fish bowl he was in while in the dining hall.
“You’re still having issues with the multiple relationships, aren’t you?” she asked before leaning back to relax. “Your people are bunch of prudes.”
“Not all, just many,” Brian answered. He laughed at the truth behind her comment. “For me it’s more like conditioning. I have to unlearn the mores and taboos part of me during my life on Earth. It’s getting easier to deal with, but still, I feel a little odd dealing with Seles and Mira the way I am.”
“Don’t forget the captain,” Jesela said with a grin. “We know about your late night visits with her have been common recently.”
Brian grinned as well. “About half of those times I actually learn something about running the ship.” Some of the girls nearby laughed at his comment. He waved it off. “I don’t mean to be flippant about it; I’m trying to keep a positive attitude.”
“We know commander,” one of the ensigns said.
“Yeah commander, we know you’re doing your best,” another ensign added.
“Thanks,” he said. Brian took his dirty plate to the depositing station while Jesela followed. He started back to his quarters as she continued following.
“It’s good to see the crew in high spirits after a battle,” Jesela said. Brian watched as she skipped around and danced as they made their way to his quarters.
“I’m glad as well,” he said. “Jesela, where do you get all that energy?”
“I’m naturally manic,” she answered. “When I’m not dancing I’m thinking, and when I’m dancing I’m still thinking. It drives Mira crazy some nights because I’ll do this without rest. It’s gotten worse since Daes started making mobile suits. Ever since then I’ve felt possessed to push it further along. I have a number of things I’d like to try as long as were out here.”
“I’d be glad to allow for it as long as energy isn’t a problem,” Brian said when they came to the door of his quarters.
“Who’s bunking with you?” Jesela asked before looking down the hall in both directions.
“Celi,” he answered.
“Is she in there now?”
“I don’t think so. She’s on bridge duty at the moment.”
“For how long?” she asked.
“Twelve hours.”
“Good,” she said before smiling. She pulled him down to her level and kissed him. “I’ve waited four years for a chance to finally do this.” She gazed into his eyes.
I have maybe six months to live, so why the not? Brian thought to himself. “Do you know how this works?”
“I’m a faster learner,” she said “Just open the damn door so we can get started.”
* * *
“We’ve determined the other ship has a hundred and twenty Kalaidians and one unknown life form,” Droid A reported. “Their ship has taken refuge in an asteroid.”
“Good, keep us at a safe distance for now,” the old Malcovin ordered. He looked over a number of scans of the Avoni. “It’s still a typical Kalaidian vessel, even updated from previous models.”
“What is it that makes it Kalaidian?” Droid C asked.
“All curves and comfort with no function,” the old Malcovin joked. “Its functions are better than older models but not up to specs with the mobile suits it carries. I wonder why it hasn’t been updated to their level.”
“Could it be cost or time?” Droid B asked.
“Both most likely,” the old Malcovin said. “I’ll make sure to help them update their shields and weapons systems. The Grey’s power is immense. The only reason I’ve lasted this long is because of the stealth cloaks and upgraded shields.”
“Our offensive power is nothing to brag about,” Droid A said.
“No, it doesn’t need to be with the Talons,” Droid B said.
“I wonder if any of the Maidens are onboard the ship with him?” the old Malcovin asked. “I’d really like to start construction on their mobile suits as soon as possible.”
“According to the data we’ve collected while in this part of the galaxy, the Greys will be ready to invade the Confederation in less than twenty years,” Droid C said.
“Let’s hope we can fix things before it gets that bad,” the old Malcovin said.
Chapter 15 - Winged Savior
Baed and Zae entered the bridge to find Brian hard at work. He looked up as they took their seats.
“How are you feeling today?” Zae asked.
“Better,” he said. “A good rest always clears the mind.”
“What are you working on?” Baed asked.
Brian sat back before looking over the plans on the computer. “Something Jesela mentioned yesterday. We were going to overhaul the Avoni when we docked on Dega Jul. But now that we’re not going to back there for a while we discussed starting now.”
“Our power consumption is the main problem,” Zae said. “If we could get a hold of more particles and a good heavy class drive we could give it a shot.”
“So you were keeping up on that,” Brian said.
“Both of us did,” Baed said. “If Valis has new systems installed we need to know how they work.”
“The question is whether we should take the second heavy drive and use it as the ship’s main system or to continue using the Mjolnir’s drive to power the ship,” Zae said. “Although the price we pay is the mobile suits will take longer to recharge.”
“I say we do it,” Brian said. “Without the Avoni the mobile suits won’t have a home to return to.”
“We should gain more distance from the Greys before doing this,” Baed added. “Otherwise, we’d be caught with our defenses down.”
“We’ll start in two weeks,” Brian said after calling up their map home on the monitor. “Seven or eight jumps and we’ll be much deeper within the galaxy. I doubt the Greys will come after us once we’re in there.”
“Then it’s agreed upon,” Zae said. As she turned to sit down the Avoni’s alert system came on. Zae checked immediately and detected a number of blips. “Brian, I’m picking up fifty small blips on the radar.”
“Fifty?” Baed asked. “I don’t know how I can fly us out of this.”
“That’s not what they want Baed,” Brian said as he looked at their formation. “They’re not playing around this time. This force has come to finish us off. Zae, are the long range scanners detecting any of the larger vessels?”
“I’m picking up two of them,” she answered. “One from each direction the enemy units are coming from.”
“How long do we have Zae?” he asked.
“Less than five minutes until the smaller attack vessels reach our position,” Zae reported. “The larger ships will take another hour to reach us.”
Brian turned on the com system. “This Lieutenant Commander Peterson speaking, our ship is currently detecting fifty enemy units that will reach us within five minutes. All pilots are to scramble and all gunnery personnel report to your stations. Baed, launch the anchors and begin to turn the asteroid so we’re facing only one of the enemy formations.”
“Yes commander,” she said before launching four of the Avoni’s anchors. They secured the ship to the asteroid’s body. She programmed the thrusters to move the asteroid as ordered.
“That cuts out enemies forces in half for the first wave,” Zae said. “What’s the plan?”
“We have to hold out until the ship’s drive is recharged for another gravity jump,” Brian said. “It’ll take another half an hour to do so. In the meantime our mobile suits will form a protective shell.”
“Playing it safe, huh?” Zae asked.
“We’ve lost enough pilots as it is,” he said. “At this rate we won’t make it a quarter of the way home.”
“Will you be launching as well?” Baed asked.
“Not right now,” he answered. “The Mjolnir is our reserve force for the moment. I trust Meldi and Myli to hold them off until we can escape.”
The thirty five remaining Phase Raknas flew from t
heir launching bays and took defensive positions in the space above the Avoni as well as on the ground of the asteroid.
“Meldi, Myli, use formation V-6,” Brian ordered.
“Yes commander,” both of the squad leaders answered.
The mobile suits created a stacked pyramid formation with the squad leaders at the top. Each put their shields to maximum.
“When the enemy gets close enough to fire upon I want you to counterattack with staggered pulse fire,” Brian ordered.
“Acknowledged,” Meldi said. She sent the plan to the other pilots.
The blips moved closer and started coming into view. The saucer shaped ships pelted the Avoni and its defenders with a barrage of pulse blasts. The Raknas outside and the Avoni returned fire using the staggered system. Though the mobile suits were holding out, one Rakna after another had its shields drain. Some of them started taking damage.
“All damaged mobile suits retreat for repairs,” Brian ordered.
A pair of Grey ships fell towards them in a suicidal trajectory. The mobile suits outside tried shooting them down, but they fell into the midst of the mobile suits. A number were knocked aside by the blast. They recovered a moment later and flew back to their positions.
“At this rate,” Zae said as another saucer fell towards them. The Raknas outside blasted it before it reached the Avoni. Zae checked her console.
“Where are the other twenty five?” Brian asked.
“I’m not picking them up,” Zae paused, “Wait…I’m picking up fifty unknowns.”
“They’re not Greys?” Baed asked.
“Not, their shape matches a mobile suit,” Zae reported. She put the image on the monitor. Above them a mass of Phase Talons tore through the remaining Grey ships with impunity. “They’re moving twice as fast as a standard Talon.”
“Their pilots can’t be mortal,” Baed said. “The G forces exerted on the body would kill a living pilot.”
“What if they were automated?” Brian suggested.
“That would work,” Zae said. “But the complexity of programming a vessel to fight like that is immense. Whoever it is they have my thanks. Despite all the damage to the ship and Raknas we didn’t suffer any casualties this time.”
Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair Page 9