by Chris Burton
“Best not to. We don’t know what we are up against. I think we should slow to impulse drive and enter the system slowly and unannounced.”
“There may be no comm traffic, but there are sure as hell going to be people listening. We could launch a probe ahead of us to see if it picks anything up visibly. That way we will have some idea as to what we are driving into.”
“Okay, yes. I’ll see to it. Do you want to take over your shift while I set the probe up?”
Jake agreed, and assumed his position in the pilot’s chair to begin his shift at the helm. He looked on apprehensively. He knew this would not be as straightforward as planned.
Chapter Fifty-Two
The First Kryl
Jonathan Hoskins could not believe what just happened. He had carried out his orders proactively, and had tried to persuade Winterburn to leave the danger zone. He never had any intention of taking his ship into the blue wormhole, travelling tens of thousands of light years, and yet here he was.
The Halo 7 travelled eighty four thousand light years in less than ten minutes. She was pulled into the blue wormhole, spinning out of control. As the vortex subsided and the stabilizers took hold, she came out of the wormhole on the other side, the Kryl Galaxy. There was damage and some minor injuries. The Stellar drive and the main shield system were offline and the medical center was inundated with injuries. All in all they were lucky. No one had died and the ship’s critical systems were all returning to a live status.
It was difficult to take it all in. Just as he had on the other side of the blue wormhole, Winterburn sent out a message. The content was much the same but the ending was different; Winterburn did not tell them about those who followed him into the vortex being the Kryl’s new food source.
So, the Betanica Sect was right all along. The Kryl did exist and their suggestion that demon-like creatures would extend from their galaxy into Earth’s looked to be a realistic proposition.
So where was Winterburn? Hoskins ordered a tracker be maintained on the AUSWAS ship, It was an easy task to reconfigure the tracker to determine their whereabouts. Hoskins knew he must first speak to Winterburn to negotiate. He must get the single Earth ship back through the wormhole before the Kryl mounted their first attack. The first issue was to pinpoint and record the precise point in this galaxy where the blue wormhole stood. This was critical, as already the makeshift Alpha fleet drifted further into deep space. He stood on the bridge, with both hands clasped behind his back. He had just received confirmation that the Stellar drive and the defense shields were back on line.
Over eight hundred fifty private ships had followed the AUSWAS ship and the Halo 7 into the blue wormhole, and they all stood and waited. They were not sure what to expect. Hoskins broke the silence by opening a short range frequency hailer comm link.
“To all Earth vessels. This is the Commander of the Alpha Fleet Cruiser Halo 7.” He spoke calmly and tried to avoid sounding anxious. “We have been pulled through the blue wormhole, and arrived in what we presume is the Kryl galaxy. We have all heard the message from Winterburn and, understandably, are all anxious. My job is to get everyone back through the wormhole before we are threatened by the Kryl. We have already drifted some distance from the hole and need to get back to within close proximity of it A.S.A.P. I have set up an open comm link which will allow you to communicate your status to us directly. We will then begin to effect or assist in any repairs required to anyone’s vessels and bring together a more exact exit plan.”
Hoskins closed the link, pleased with his speech as he felt he had delivered the facts clearly and concisely without creating a sense of panic. He felt sure that many out there were in a situation completely beyond their comprehension and were probably scared out of their wits. He turned his attention back towards the tracker and Winterburn.
“Commander, we have a fix on the AUSWAS ship again. She is travelling away from us at one-quarter stellar velocity. There is a problem though, sir. We just picked up our first sighting of the Kryl. There is a large mass approaching from the grid, sector four. I can’t be sure at this stage whether it is one big ship or thousands of little ones.” The young Lieutenant look scared as he completed his report.
“Thank you Lieutenant. Good work. Number One, are there any other sizeable craft in this makeshift fleet?”
“Yes,” replied his first officer, “There is a small freighter and several large shuttles in the group. What did you have in mind?”
“Let’s discuss in my ready room.”
“Becket, you have the con. How long before the Kryl fleet reaches us?”
“About ninety minutes at current velocity, sir.”
“Thanks. Keep me updated.”
The commander and his first officer entered the ready room, and Hoskins set about explaining his dilemma.
“We have to get Winterburn and bring him back with us, and yet somehow we need to be here to shepherd these ships back through the wormhole. I want you to seize command of the freighter and take a third of the crew with you, including jump ships and infantry. I want you to seek out and capture Winterburn and bring him back to us. We will then all depart together. I need this done with a minimum of force and within twenty-four hours.”
* * * *
Commander Jacques knew he had entered new territory, not just because he was tens of thousands of light years from home. It was his first command, and he and his crew were in a makeshift Alpha ship, they had a new enemy, they were in a new galaxy, and were about to pull off an assault on an enemy craft. They would extract Winterburn, destroy the vessel, and then return to the blue wormhole, joining the vast majority of the his stranded compatriots before re-entering the wormhole and praying they would exit the void back in their own galaxy. There were so many ifs and buts, yet as he reflected further, he realized his task was probably the lesser of two evils. Within the next hour the Halo 7 would engage the Kryl. They had no comprehension of whether the Alpha Battle Cruiser would have any impact on the Kryl fleet. Jacques wandered whether he would ever see his colleagues on the Halo 7 again.
His crew commandeered a small cargo freighter; the existing crew was quite happy to be evicted to the relative comfort of the Halo 7. The newly conscripted vessel set off immediately in pursuit. The ship’s NAVCOM locked onto the tracker pulse being emitted by the AUSWAS ship. They had already started to close, and Jacques and his crew felt the pangs of anxiety which always manifest moments before battle.
* * * *
Hoskins knew he asked a lot of his first officer. Certainly Jacques was more than competent, but the freighter was probably not, and it was already becoming clearer the new enemy might be technically superior to the Halo 7 and its flotilla. The Kryl fleet was within teutonic missile range, but he wanted to conserve his more powerful weapons. He was prepared to use any of his weapons to achieve his aim. Failure was not an option.
The Kryl fleet were upon them and yet neither fleet fired an opening salvo. There were about two hundred of them. The ships were small, less than ten meters in length and were shaped like a teardrop, bulbous at the rear graduating down to a sharp tip at the front, but with no other visible features. Each ship was translucent, but easily detectable as each ship glowed a luminous red on their underside, presumably their drive mechanism. It was unlike any ship design Hoskins had ever seen. This did not bode well.
These vessels were followed by ten larger ships, perhaps two hundred meters in length. They were the same shape, translucent and again outlined beneath by a red glow projecting into space. The Kryl fleet, with their ominous and almost menacing red glow, looked very sinister.
This, then, was their new enemy; but the biggest surprise was yet to come. Behind the glowing fleet their followed a monster: a gargantuan vessel, two to three kilometers in length. Its similarity to the other Kryl ships was obvious, and again the dominant red glow made the sky surrounding the ship glow almost crimson, so deep was its color.
They closed to within five hundred meters
and still neither side took the first shot. This all changed in an instant. From beneath each Kryl ship, a beam of red light burst through, instantly penetrating the shields of their new enemy. The small Earth ships’ inadequate shielding was shredded; the Kryl weapons caused devastation almost instantly.
Hoskins knew he must respond and ordered a full out attack, with bursts of plasma cannon, teutonic missiles and phased plasma weaponry. At first there seemed little success, with even the smaller Kryl vessels seemingly impenetrable. Eventually the smaller vessels weakened, and slowly Alpha’s fire-power began to penetrate the Kryl vessels’ shielding.
Buoyed by this success, Hoskins ordered a squadron of Rapier 6’s to be launched to carry on the assault on the smaller vessels. This did not last long. The Kryl turned their attention to the Halo 7, and their bigger more powerful weapons began to smash into the ship‘s shields. At first the shields held, but inevitably the mass onslaught began to penetrate the shields around the weaponry housings.
After just a few minutes, all resistance was over. The Kryl won a resounding victory and the battle ended. The makeshift Earth Fleet’s troubles were far from over. It was time for the Kryl to feed.
Chapter Fifty-Three
The Space Yacht
The type 75 Orion Space Yacht took two more days to reach the far side of the Tri-Star System and the locale of the wormholes. As they drew nearer, Jake and Steve watched in awe at the spectacular sight of three wormholes side by side and the pure brilliant blue emanating from the blue wormhole surrounding the sky in front of them. It did not take long for them to realize what had happened.
Two Rapiers pulled along either side of the space yacht, and their pilots gave them the signal to follow. They both knew better than to argue with two fully-deployed Rapiers. Jake pulled the yacht into their wake and having identified themselves with their Alpha call signs, they set course for the Alpha Fleet flagship, the Illustrious.
There was no sign of private vessels, and even stranger was the lack of any communication traffic. The whole area continued to be devoid of sound. The two Rapiers headed towards the Illustrious and her main hangar bay. She was huge. Neither of the trainee officers had ever been so close to a Type A ship of the line. There was no denying that she was a beautiful thing, if only in the eye of the beholder. You must believe to appreciate its sheer beauty.
* * * *
The hangar itself was vast. It was the size of a large sports stadium and housed hundreds of jump ships, shuttles, Eagles, and several larger support craft. This was only one of the hangars on the ship, albeit the largest one. They were guided towards a landing pad at the rear of the hangar, with the two jump ships putting down on either side of the Yacht.
Jake and Steve were led directly to a small debriefing room on the same deck by two security crew members and asked to wait for the duty security officer. Lieutenant O’Brien entered the room and offered them both coffees before asking them to sit.
“Gentlemen. Can you tell me what two Alpha trainees are doing in a space yacht in the middle of the Tri-Star system?”
Steve piped up first, answering in a typically nonchalant way.
“We are on vacation. What the hell is an entire fleet doing out here?”
“As if you didn’t know, Enson? I am sure you are here for the same show as everybody else. Can you tell me what your involvement with Winterburn is?”
It was Jake’s turn to reply.
“What do you know of Winterburn? Where is he? We’re here looking for him, but more specifically for someone who followed him out here. We are here legitimately and with the permission of our Academy.”
“What do you know of Winterburn?”
Jake then went on to detail his meeting with Winterburn, and Carla and her sister’s involvement with him. The Security officer said nothing and listened intently. He then stood and headed towards the door.
“Gentlemen. Your knowledge of Winterburn may be of interest to my superiors. Please wait here. I will arrange for your debriefing to continue shortly.”
The Security officer left the room. Jake and Steve drank their coffee and waited patiently. Steve started to get edgy.
“There is definitely something they are not telling us here. There is no sign of Winterburn; there is a huge Alpha presence and the blue wormhole is open. What are they waiting for?”
“Don’t forget what we are here for, Steve. We came to find Carla and bring her home.” This was the first time either spoke about her in the last two days. The subject became taboo, because every time Carla’s name came up, Steve accused Jake of having an affair with her. Jake continued to deny any wrongdoing but the constant lies made him uncomfortable. However, this was definitely not the right time to talk about his newfound relationship with Carla.
Steve could not understand why this became such an obsession with Jake, unless something was going on between them. Steve was about to react, but pulled back and simply said, “I have not forgotten Carla, and I know you haven’t. Your obsession continues. We have to assume she is with Winterburn, but where, I don’t know. I suppose it’s possible they may have gone through one of the wormholes.”
Lieutenant Commander Peters walked in.
“That’s astute of you, Mister Costello. Apologies for eavesdropping on your conversation. I needed to get a grasp of the real reason why you are here. I am the Fleet’s Chief Intelligence Officer. Your collective experiences and, in particular, Mister Carter, your personal knowledge of Professor Winterburn, is of significant interest to me. I am going to transfer you to some more hospitable surroundings and allow you to freshen up; then we can continue this conversation. Before I do, I am going to play a message we received from Professor Winterburn moments after his ship entered the blue wormhole.”
The intelligence officer played the message and Jake and Steve listened intensely. The message finished and they sat in silence. There was no disputing the severity of the situation. The wormhole must be closed, but Carla was probably in the Kryl’s galaxy and in great danger. Jake knew he could not just sit and watch this one out.
As promised, they were allowed to freshen up and eat a light meal before they were taken to separate interview rooms. They were subjected to two hours of intensive questioning by members of Commander Peters’ team. They answered the questions delivered as accurately as they could. Jake, in particular provided them with a detailed physical and character description of Winterburn and discussed the fixation he had created in his disciples. Steve affirmed Jake’s story by highlighting Carla’s strange behavior in recent months.
They were led into a small conference room, where Commander Peters thanked them for their useful input.
“We now move on to what we should do with you. Unfortunately, in the current climate, you cannot be allowed to return home at present, Your knowledge could compromise the situation at home, which remains delicate. We have to get some idea of our new enemy’s intentions. You are both Alpha personnel, and I understand from your PS files that you both have considerable jump ship experience. I am, for the time being, putting you in the hands of the Illustrious CAG, who will grant you a temporary commission and will, in all probability, draft you into his reserve jump ship team. As soon as we can return you to Earth, I will send word; but in the mean time, gentlemen, I thank you for your assistance.”
Jake and Steve were led back towards the main hangar and into the CAG’s ready room, which looked out upon and gave a clear view of the main deck.
“Come in and sit down, Ensons Carter and Costello. I have been briefed on your background and availability. I am pleased to say that I am only too grateful for additional pilots, albeit rookies. I am drafting you into my reserve fleet. As you have not yet graduated, you will understand I cannot make you front line combat-ready and, in any case, the jump ship variants are probably not yet familiar to you. Do either of you have any preference for Rapier or Sabres?”
Both Jake and Steve answered immediately. Unsurprisingly, Jake opted for Sabres
and Steve for Rapiers.
“Very well,” the CAG replied. “You are drafted in. Enson Costello, please report to the fore jump ship deck. Lieutenant Simmons will show you your barrack room and flight schedules. Enson Carter, you can follow me down to the main deck. The Sabre CAG is beginning a briefing shortly.”
Jake did not get a chance to wish his friend good luck, but gave Steve a nervous acknowledgement as he left the CAG’s ready room and headed for the Sabre Flight deck. As he exited the hangar administration block, in front of him stood a squadron of Sabre 4’s, and a crowd of pilots gathered round a makeshift briefing board. The Sabre CAG had just started to address his pilots. Jake stood at the back while the Sabre CAG was brought up to speed on his new addition.
“Ladies and Gentlemen. I am pleased to announce we have a new team member—a rookie and still a baby I am afraid. Enson Carter, please approach the briefing board.”
Jake moved towards the front of the crowd and the CAG continued. “You come highly recommended by the ship’s CAG.”
“Today you will be flying a Sabre 4, which I presume will be your first time. We are on a two hour patrol of the region and you will fly wing-man to Blue Leader, Lieutenant Hope.” He gestured towards a female pilot, who acknowledged him briefly before turning her attention back towards the CAG.
“Okay everyone: ‘We make hay while the sun shines’. While there is no action, you guys get to do some flying, so make the most of it. You all know this, but if things get bad, you could be drafted into the combat squadrons quickly, so please ensure your familiarity and, above all, your concentration levels remain at peak. You can make your way to your ships. Enson Carter, please follow me.”
Jake was led to the front of the squadron and a gleaming new Sabre 4. He could not believe his luck and, for a moment, he briefly lost sight of his overall predicament, of Carla and the Kryl. He climbed aboard the Sabre 4 and strapped himself in. He was joined by a technician, who made adjustments to his flight position, to accommodate Jake’s frame, and to his helmet so it matched his DNA and cortex frequencies. Thirty seconds later, Jake Carter–call sign Blue 7–launched into space. He picked out the Blue Leader and expertly tucked himself behind her wing.