This time the entire shape of the enemy ship was visible. Jess had been able to guess at its size before, but now he could see it clearly. It looked nothing like any ship he had seen or heard of. Chunks of the ship had been damaged or destroyed by the Wanderer’s onslaught, and the ship was tumbling slowly. Undamaged sections of the hull were black and organic looking, shining slickly in the light of fires burning in other parts of the ship.
Jess had no more time. Another ship would be launching its attack in seconds. Once again Jess fired off plasma and missiles, though this time he focused them all on the target area. Hitting two ships in a row would be a dead giveaway that the pattern had been discovered, and he wanted to be sure of a kill. Destroying the first ship might have put the second on guard.
Once again the timing was perfect. This time the enemy didn’t get a single shot off before being overwhelmed by plasma and laser fire. There was little left for the missiles which arrived immediately after, but they ensured nothing was left of the ship.
Jess studied the wreckage of the first ship even as he prepared to target the third. There was a slight gap before the pattern told him the final ship would be in position to fire.
The more he looked at the wreckage the stranger the ship seemed to Jess. He would admit to being far from an expert, but the Wanderer’s records showed no matches either. Something tumbled from one of the more intact sections, thrown free by the wrecked ship’s tumble.
The Wanderer’s sensors quickly identified it as a dead body. A human body. Jess had been starting to wonder if the wrecked ship had an alien origin, as he was pretty certain the Wanderer did. The body didn’t answer that question, but it did confirm the crew had been human.
A distress message started to emit from the wrecked ship. It was automated, and it was imperial. Whatever the ship’s origins, it had definitely been in imperial service when it attacked.
Jess tore his attention away, focusing on the final ship. He fired every plasma weapon he could bring to bear, and a salvo of missiles twice as large as those he’d used before. He spread the attack over a larger area too, hoping to catch the ship even if it changed course at the last moment. He fired the lasers at just the right time.
Plasma, lasers and missiles simply sailed through empty space. The final attacker wasn’t where it should have been. Jess stared in dismay then gritted his teeth.
Fine. So they’d figured out their pattern had been discovered. When they next fired on the Wanderer he’d take them down the hard way.
Chapter Forty-Two
The attack didn’t come. Seconds ticked away and became a minute. Then two.
“We did it!” Ali shouted finally, unable to contain herself anymore. “You did it Jess! Well done!”
“Damn it!” Jess shouted, stunning Ali. “They got away. That means they can go get reinforcements. Maybe more stealth ships, or just a large enough fleet that we can’t fight it off. We can get away but the freighters will struggle, and the Steady Light will definitely be caught or destroyed.”
“You didn’t find anything on the sensors,” Dash asked. “Even knowing where they’d be when they attacked?”
“No. Nothing.”
“Damn… I don’t see how we can stop them then. We don’t even know whether they’ll head in towards Daspal or out to the fleet. You said those ships were really fast too?”
“Yeah. Too damn fast. We couldn’t catch it. Not without making a jump.”
Gloomy silence fell as everyone realised that at least one ship full of prisoners couldn’t be saved, and possibly all three.
“Wait. Jess, that’s it!” Ali shouted. “We jump.”
“But we don’t know which way to jump,” Jess replied, unable to understand Ali’s excitement.
“That ship must have a mass, mustn't it? So searching for it is just like when we went searching for asteroids.”
“Of course! The Wanderer can scan for the ship from within jump space. We’ll be looking for its gravitational signature, not for any emissions.”
Jess threw the Wanderer into jump space even as he spoke. He updated the screens, showing everyone their starting position and the widening net of the Wanderer’s search. He added a slowly expanding glowing sphere.
“That’s as far as the ship can have got, assuming it can’t move any faster than when it chased us down.”
The sphere was still much larger than the area the Wanderer had covered, but that was rapidly changing. Jess knew that as the sphere grew the space the Wanderer had to cover grew far faster. There was a point in the future where even in jump space the area the Wanderer could search would lose ground to the sphere of possible locations.
Not for a long time though, and the Wanderer would cover every possible location for the fleeing ship long before then.
The next few minutes were tense. One unspoken thought hung over all of them. What if the ship was invisible even to this method of search? It was a thought that weighed more and more heavily on Jess. He countered it with the thought that if the ship was truly fleeing at top speed they wouldn’t expect to find it yet. That didn't stop the anxiety building with every second that passed.
*****
“Nothing,” Jess spat at last. They’d covered the entire sphere now without finding a hint of the ship they sought.
“Keep going,” Dash told him. “They might have tweaked a little more speed. Maybe quite a lot if they powered down those weapons.”
Jess nodded and did as Dash asked. The logic was sound, but deep down Jess felt sure they'd lost the final ship. He scowled as the search continued, blaming himself for not finding a way to destroy it.
“Jess,” Ali said softly.
“Yes?”
“Are you going to take that look off your face or do I need to give you a slap?”
She said it lightly, with a smile, but Jess knew from experience that the threat was real. It was her way of reminding him not to blame himself when he’d done his best and things didn’t work out, not to blame himself for not being perfect.
Jess found himself smiling back, the load lightening a little. Whatever else happened he would have saved all those in the Wanderer’s cargo hold. Still… if only he could find that last ship.
He glanced at Dash who looked slightly stunned. Sensing Jess’s gaze Dash smiled a rather bewildered smile.
“So much that I thought I knew has been proven wrong today, I’m feeling a little overwhelmed,” he explained. “From the Wanderer’s firepower and resilience to its ability to change direction in jump space. And that’s not to mention invisible ships.”
“It takes some getting used to,” Jess replied. “After a while it…” He stopped, heart skipping a beat. “We’ve got them!” he yelled.
A symbol flared to light on the display, showing the fleeing ships position. The Wanderer was already streaking away, it’s speed in jump space massively faster than that of the ship. Jess brought the ship around in a large arc.
“Now it’s their turn to face an attack from nowhere!” he said grimly.
Jess timed the moment precisely. The Wanderer dropped out into real space slightly ahead of the fleeing ship, and to the side of its path. He immediately unleashed every plasma weapon and a large salvo of missiles.
The enemy ship had no chance to react. It crashed straight into the massive assault, shields buckling and collapsing almost immediately. Then the structure of the ship was smashed apart and vaporised. Seconds later nothing remained.
Cheers rang out from the others. Jess joined in, grinning. After such a tense chase it had all been over in a handful of seconds. He needed to release the tension and shouting loudly certainly helped there.
Once the noise died down Dash turned to Jess.
“Jess, you need to examine the damaged ship. We have to know more about how they managed to make those ships invisible.”
Jess checked the sensors then grimaced.
“Damn. It’s gone. Let me check back… yes. It self destructed I think. There
was a huge explosion. Probably its engines being overloaded.”
Several emotions chased each other across Dash’s face, then he just shrugged.
“Can’t be helped,” he said. “Hell, not so long ago I’d have settled for us getting the Wanderer away safely. This is a damn site better than that. Well done Captain.”
He sketched a salute to Jess who shrugged, uncomfortable with the praise from someone who was so experienced in fighting.
“So it’s over?” Ali asked. “We’re safe?”
“No,” Jess replied. “Not by a long way. We need to get back to the Steady Light and get her moving, and persuade the other two ships to follow us — not that I think we’ll have much trouble there. Then we need to get clear of this system.
And we need to do all that before any more imperials turn up, whether it’s more stealth ships or just the really big guns. I don’t fancy tangling with those destroyers, let alone that battleship. No… we’re a long way from safe.”
Chapter Forty-Three
As soon as Jess brought the Wanderer out of jump space he made contact with the robot on the Steady Light. They needed the ship moving as soon as possible. At the same time Elizabeth contacted the other two freighters. Both had already figured out just how much trouble they were in. The Empire would definitely kill anyone who had seen the stealth ships in action. Both captains jumped at the chance to leave the system safely.
Jess quickly turned his attention to Sal. The wasp was still stable, with the activation pad held in place. Jess had the Wanderer begin the delicate task of examining the device and planning its removal. The ship offered the alternative of simply absorbing the device, breaking it down and removing it from Sal, but Jess rejected the idea. He couldn’t risk the explosives being activated somehow.
“Hey,” Ali said softly, her hand warm on his shoulder. “Don’t forget about yourself.”
Jess blinked in surprise. He had forgotten. The ship had stabilised him and his implants kept the pain away. He had the ship scan his injuries more thoroughly. The arm was a relatively simple wound to heal, but the hip would require some reconstruction.
“Thanks,” he said, smiling at Ali. “What would I do without you?”
“Fall apart probably!”
“True. My hip is badly mangled. Nothing the ship can’t fix, don’t worry, but I need to focus on getting everyone out of here first.”
“Can we do it?”
“The Wanderer, definitely. My worry is the two freighters and the Steady Light. We really need to get her systems running.”
“Send me over,” Elizabeth said, startling Jess.
“What? No! If there are more of those stealth ships, or if a normal empire fleet tracks us down, then you’ll…”
“Then I’ll suffer the same fate as the prisoners still locked up on board,” Elizabeth interrupted. “You aren’t the only one who wants to change things, to make a difference, where slaves are concerned. This is my chance. I can get those engines working a damn sight better than any robot can. And besides… I told you I wanted a new ship. It seems the Steady Light is in need of a new owner.”
The look in her eyes convinced Jess she was serious. And she was right — with her experience she could definitely get the ship running quicker than the robot.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Yes!”
“Use the shuttle then. Good luck.”
“Thanks, though if anything happens I expect the Wanderer to protect me.”
“Always.”
Elizabeth quickly hugged Ali and tousled Jess's hair. She bent to exchange a few words with Sal then locked eyes with Dash.
“Look after Sal,” she said fiercely.
“I will. I promise,” he replied.
Then she was on her way, and Jess was worrying about other problems. Sovon and the other two taken from the Steady Light were still unconscious. Jess had the Wanderer secure them, the floor stretching over and locking them down, and start to infiltrate medical probes into their bodies.
Hackett was still pinned down by the robot. He’d managed to tie a rough tourniquet, torn from his shirt, around his arm just above the severed wrist. Though pale from blood loss he was still conscious, and staring daggers at both Jess and Dash.
“What do you think we should do with him?” Jess asked Dash.
“He’s seen too much,” Dash replied. “He’s seen what this ship can do, he’s heard us talking. If he ever gets away then you’ll be hunted wherever you go by those he represents. The Empire will probably find out too and join the chase.”
“That doesn’t leave many choices. He looks like he might still bleed to death, but I won’t leave him there for that to happen — despite what he’s done.”
“Give me a gun. He’s my responsibility. We both know there’s no way I can hurt you or the others with a simple gun.”
Jess thought about it. Dash’s arguments made sense but…
“What do you think?” he asked Ali.
She turned to Dash. “Why you?”
“Because I’m the best person to do it. Because it’s what I do,” he replied.
“Because you’re a killer? A pirate?”
“No. Because I’m a soldier, even if I had almost forgotten that down the years. Because I’m a soldier who swore he would fight to protect the innocent, those who couldn’t protect themselves. And because he is the enemy. Him and everyone willing to cause such harm to others just to make some extra money.”
Ali stared at him for a few moments more then turned to Jess and simply nodded. Jess nodded in return.
“All right,” he said, having the Wanderer return one of the ordinary pistols it had absorbed earlier. He certainly wasn’t going to trust Dash with one of the shield piercing pistols.
Dash stood and walked to the gun, picking it up and checking it over. Then he walked over to Hackett. Jess expected the wounded man to be scared, to plead for his life, but he simply stared at Dash with hatred in his eyes.
“Fine, kill me,” he spat. “It won’t change the fact that you’re a coward who never had the courage to truly use his power. It won’t change the fact…”
Jess jumped as the crashing sound of a shot rang around the room. Dash hadn’t bothered letting Hackett finish, hadn’t given him the chance to say his bit. Jess realised that he also hadn’t given Hackett the chance to grow scared. He hadn’t dragged the moment out cruelly. It fit with the picture of Dash that Jess was starting to build. He was still wary of being manipulated though. Dash had already shown how adept he was at reading people.
Dash placed the gun on the floor, nodded his thanks to Jess then returned to Sal. Jess was pretty certain the look of concern on Dash’s face was genuine. He genuinely seemed concerned for Sal, and was still placing himself in danger by staying so close to her side.
No one spoke for several minutes. Jess was busy watching space around them for any sign of danger, watching over the delicate surgery to save Sal from the wasp, guiding the robot repairing the Steady Light until Elizabeth arrived on the shuttle and many other things. He sensed Ali hooked into the Wanderer, also watching space around them.
He was glad for the help. The stealth ships had been a nasty surprise. What if the Empire had something even deadlier out there? Something the size of a corvette or even a frigate that was also invisible. Such a ship might be able to destroy the Wanderer with a single barrage. They might all be dead before they even knew they were under attack.
“Something about those stealth ships keeps nagging at me,” Dash said, breaking the silence. “They didn’t look like imperial ships. Or like any ships I’ve ever seen.”
“They must have come from Daspal,” Ali replied. “We know the Empire uses it for advanced research.”
“That’s what I thought, but it still doesn’t make sense. Those ships looked nothing like the normal imperial designs.”
“Maybe it’s related to the stealth,” Jess said. “Whatever the technology is might define how the ship
is built.”
“Maybe it would partly, but the ships would still look imperial, or human built at least. Even if they set out to build ships that didn’t look imperial there are still certain ways of doing things that turn up on all ships. Things so basic that no one would think to change them. Those ships… they just looked so…”
Dash trailed off, seemingly unable, or unwilling, to finish the thought.
“Alien?” Jess prompted.
“Yeah. Sounds crazy but… well, you saw them. And it would explain the other thing that’s been worrying me. If the Empire can build ships like that then we’d know about it. Not specifically what they can do. Those ships would probably destroy anything they chose to attack. But we'd know that the Empire had something that was a game changer. Something that meant we were suddenly losing far more ships, or our secret operations were being discovered and closed down. None of that has happened.”
“Could it be because they’ve just started building them?” Jess asked.
“It could… but my gut says not, because of the way they look again. It would be an awful coincidence too, us stumbling on them as they’re first being built.”
“Elizabeth told us that tar pits were very rare. She said there were rumours that they’d been taken from alien ships, and that the Empire had no idea how to build them. Could it be the same with these ships.”
“I’ve been hearing those rumours for years, and dismissing them every time. Now I’m on a ship that has displayed some truly scary technology, and which features an intelligent creature that looks like a walking, furry coffee table with a neck. Yes, it does seem possible now. Maybe even likely. It certainly explains why we haven’t seen large numbers of those stealth ships, or the effects of large numbers anyway.”
“Could those have been the only three?” Ali asked.
Dash considered for a moment, then shook his head.
“No. If you only had three then you wouldn’t use them in any way that gave away their existence, or put them in danger. If they hadn’t fired on us we’d never have known they were there. They have more. Maybe tens, maybe hundreds. Not enough to make a difference throughout the Empire, but more than enough to make a big difference where they are used.”
Wanderer - Echoes of the Past Page 24