Dovit immediately spoke out. "Ugh. The gravity is set too high! Can it be turned down?"
I looked for a control that symbolized downward force and was rewards with a dial. After a quick adjustment, I settled on a level that I guessed was about 95 percent standard. It was within a percentage point or two of the gravity of Doomlight. Dovit sat comfortably back in his chair.
Joni pointed to the display in front of me. "Can you fly this thing?"
I nodded. "I believe I can. It will take a few minutes to determine which controls are required to taxi out of this hangar. If you wish to help, check the aft cabins and storage for supplies. We won't be going far if we can't feed ourselves. I won't be leaving orbit without rations for at least a few months."
Joni sighed as she smiled. "That's why I'm glad you are here, Knog. I would have taken her out and rocketed skyward, only figuring out that there were no supplies when I got hungry."
I replied, "If you can think of anything else we might need before lifting off, please speak up. Depending on the speed of this ship, it will take us probably a week to get back to where the portal opens, and from that point we might be waiting for months."
I turned to Dovit. "You said your ships show up about every four months?"
Dovit shook his head. "Every six. The next group won't be here for another four, if they come."
Joni began to get up to check the storage areas for supplies. "What is it?"
I replied, "If they were sending ships every six months, that is likely the same schedule we were on. That portal won't be open for another four or five months. If the comm on this ship is functional, we might be able to contact Garrett or Jack, but I wouldn't want to do that until we leave here. And I wouldn't want to leave here until we are headed towards the portal. If this ship flies, we will have a lot of work to do to prepare for space."
Joni returned to her seat. "That tells me there is no rush to check for supplies."
I replied, "I have a suggestion. Dovit, you and your men go with Joni. Search the hangars for supplies. As I said before, we will want enough to last us for several months. I'll take this craft out to see if it is travel-worthy. If it's not, there is no sense in us all getting killed while I attempt to learn how to fly it."
Dovit nodded. "I'm in agreement. The seven of us are the only chance we have of warning off our people to this place. We will search the hangars as you suggest."
Joni gave an unhappy look. "You aren't planning something special are you?"
I laughed. "No. But if I do, you should already know that you will be included. Take Raptor with you. If you find supplies, look for foods that he can digest as well."
Joni shook her head as she smiled. "What, him? He'll eat anything. All you have to do is drop it on the floor."
As the others returned to the hangar floor I began to look over the hundreds of dials, gauges and knobs before me. I had a sudden desire to have Go sitting by my side. He knew ships. For me, it would be a process of trial and error.
Chapter 15
I swooped into the hangar, hovering a meter above the floor. I had been gone for three hours, pushing the craft to its atmospheric limits, learning its controls. The time had passed as though it had only been minutes.
Joni emerged from a hallway inside the massive hangar. I touched down and switched the power off. The hatch opened.
I looked over my shoulder as Joni came into the cockpit with Raptor at her heels. "Any luck?"
Joni nodded. "Yeah. There's a storage area down that hall that is loaded with supplies. None of us read Doomlight, so we just started opening boxes. There is easily enough rations to last us for six months if this shuttle can hold it, which I believe it can. And I was able to find a pressure sealed crate that we could use for Raptor if needed."
Joni plopped down in the chair beside me with a frown on her normally smiling face.
I said, "What's wrong?"
Joni squirmed in her chair. "I'm thrilled to be alive, but I don't like how all this is going. They let us use those arm pads, they let us leave the building, and now we have a shuttle to run off in, including supplies. It's all too easy, and I think you know that too. If we are going to make it home, we will need to dump this ship. You know they probably have every tracking device possible crammed into this thing. I doubt if I could break wind in here without them analyzing it."
I placed my hand on her shoulder. "They are at least giving us the opportunity to run. We may not be able to run far, but we can at least run. We just need to figure out how to turn that to our advantage. If we can make contact with Garrett or Jack we can change ships."
Joni leaned back in the copilots chair, crossing her arms. If we meet up with Garrett, he won't be able to keep us all on Jess for more than a few days. The Jess is a one person ship, two max."
"Then we must find Jack as well," I said. "The ship performed perfectly. I took her up to near orbit. All the seals held, the oxygen and fuel levels are at their max. I believe this ship, with supplies, could sustain us for the months we need."
Joni held up her hands. "I say we pull up and get out of here then. I would rather stay on the run out there for six months than under the microscope here for that length of time."
I shook my head. "I believe that to be exactly what they want us to do. Instead, I would like to gather what intel I can about this planet. Where are all the people? Why is this city abandoned? If we were to return at some future date, what strength of force would we need to be victorious?"
Joni scowled. "Now you are starting to sound like my uncle. Instead of getting while the getting's good, you want to nose around. I think that nosing around may be why we are stuck here. I vote that we go as soon as possible."
I sat back, laying my left arm across my abdomen, propping my right elbow on that arm, and then my chin upon my right fist. "I would think that you of all people would feel it."
Joni returned a perplexed stare. "Feel what?"
"Feel an obligation to the remaining citizens of the Alliance. You put your life on the line for the Adicans. Do you not feel the same about all the others? Does your conscience not tell you to do the most you can for them?"
Joni offered a half scowl. "That is so unlike you."
I raised my almost non-existent eyebrows. "What is unlike me?"
Joni continued, "To lay a guilt trip on me like that! You usually have some sound reasoning that convinces me that you are right. I don't like you using a guilt method."
I nodded slowly. "I would apologize, but that is the sound reasoning I currently have. Things are not right with that which is happening, and I feel it's of utmost importance that we find out why. If I knew it was because of the reasons we suspect, I would be ready to leave as well. However, I am not convinced that reasoning is correct."
Joni half laughed. "Well, I would prefer that you just give me your gut feeling instead of a gut punch next time. I don't like it when people try to make me feel guilty."
I smiled as I turned back to the controls. "Duly noted."
I flipped the power on, sealed the hatch and brought the shuttlecraft to a hover.
Joni remarked, "What are you doing now?"
I replied, "I'm taking you for a brief spin. I would like to see the reaction we will get from Dovit. Will he be hurt? Outraged? Suspicious? Or calm? Those are four very different, and very telling reactions. If it's the first or second, he is either a highly trained agent, or he is who he says he is."
Joni offered a confused look. "And how is that any different from the other two?"
I smiled, "Hurt or outrage would be the reactions I would expect. If he is suspicious, he likely has another agenda in mind. And if he is calm, he is almost certainly a plant, although not a well trained one. I used to pride myself in having the ability to bring out emotions in those I was investigating. While this one test will be anything but definitive, it could easily sway my immediate feelings, which would in turn possibly sway my actions at some future point."
As w
e began to pull out of the hangar, Dovit and the others came running from the hallway.
"Did you see his face?" I asked.
Joni nodded. "He looked confused. I don't think that one was on your list."
I smiled. "That's a good sign, confusion. That says he is leaning towards a hurt or outraged reaction. An angry face would have led to suspicion or calm. I'll do a flyover of building D41 and then return to the hangar. That few minutes will give him time to reason out his response."
Joni returned a half smile. "I'll give you this. You sure do try to use every tool you have available. I wish I had that kind of patience."
I shook my head as I slowed the shuttle to make a turn. "That patience can be a blessing or a curse. Sometimes your immediate gut reaction is the best course of action. Delay can often be a costly proposition. Your ability to make snap decisions can be viewed as a tool as well. Here I am, with all this experience, and yet I often find making a rapid decision difficult. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. The wise are the ones who have figured out what they are."
Even with the inertial dampeners of the craft running, as we slowed Joni made the standard reaction of grasping for the arm of her chair. "Well, if it's any consolation, every snap decision I've seen you make has been spot-on correct. Whether you like it or not, I think snap decision making is in your toolbag. You just need a little self-confidence in that ability so you can pull it out more often."
As I turned back into the hangar, I smiled. "I will work on that confidence, Joni Salton. Thank you."
As the shuttle came to a halt, I gestured towards Dovit. "What reaction do you see?"
Joni replied, "I see a bit of hurt mixed in with some anger."
I nodded. "That's a good sign. Now we can build upon that reaction with an explanation. If that reaction turns to suspicion, that is a further good sign. If after hearing my excuse he is either calm or angry, my level of trust will return to where it was before."
"Is this something you took coursework in?"
I smiled. "Unfortunately no. It's something I have experimented with through the years while investigating. If you can instigate a true reaction from someone it can show you their state of mind. I coined my own term for it, Reactional Analytics."
Joni winked as the hatch began to open. "Let's see if there is anything to your theory."
Dovit came into the cockpit with a tepid scowl. "Why did you leave us? I had visions of you zooming off without us!"
I replied, "I must apologize. I was a little overexcited by your discovery of the supplies and by my discovery of this ship being space-worthy. We went out for a loop over the old building. There was still no sign of anyone around it."
Dovit sat. "For two years I have dreamed of leaving this planet to return home. As you pulled away, all I could think was that I would be going back to that building. I loathe that building. It has been my prison."
I powered down the ship. "Even though we have supplies, we have nowhere to go. We can't head for your worlds without the Grumar knowing where we are going, and we can't head for ours until it's time for our portal to open. Unless you have some other method of getting us permanently away from here, we have to wait."
Dovit nodded. "Agreed, but if it's all the same I would rather stay here than back at the building. I don't know if I can ever go back there."
I shook my head. "Unfortunately, that may be our best option. They bring us food and give us everything we need to keep going. If we do return there, you will be doing so with the knowledge that we have a way to leave."
Joni looked out the viewports of the shuttle. "So, what do we do now?"
I powered the shuttle on. "I say we go explore this planet. Anyone not in agreement with that?"
The others were silent as the shuttle began to hover. After a slow turn and a short taxi, I turned the shuttle skyward. As we flew up and over the city I could hear Dovit behind me as he began to get choked up.
I smiled. "Feels good to be free, doesn't it?"
I set the altitude to a thousand meters and the speed to a modest velocity. "Look out your windows for anything of interest. We'll do a slow sweep around the city perimeter and then head towards the next known city. I want to know if the other cities are active or if they have been abandoned like this one."
As we circled, the story remained the same. Every building, every street, empty and abandoned. I steered towards the open lands beyond the city.
Joni pointed down. "That looks like irrigated farmland down there, but it doesn't look active, kind of overgrown if you ask me."
Twenty minutes into the flight a single tractor could be seen cutting across a field. It was evident that the driver had not wanted to be seen. By the time I circled back for another look the tractor had disappeared into a barn. As we hovered just above the ground in front of the barn, the farmer hurriedly closed the doors.
Joni was the first to speak. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but he didn't look like a Doomlighter."
Dovit agreed. "No, he didn't. I have yet to see a being here with his shape and color."
I set the shuttle on the ground in front of the barn, powered down and popped the hatch. I stepped out onto the dusty earth. The temperature was slightly lower than in the city; the air remained dry.
I walked over to the barn and knocked. "Hello? We saw you from the air. We would like to talk. Can you come out?"
Joni shook her head. "He's not going to understand you. Who knows what language he speaks."
I held up my hand. "I realize that. I'm trying to speak in a calm voice. Something that he will not take as hostile."
I grabbed the large door and began to push it to the side. As the light from the sun filled the barn, I was left with an unexpected scene. The farmer, his spouse, and three offspring were standing in the middle, the farmer with a farming implement held firmly in his hands and aimed in our direction.
I raised both hands. "We aren't going to hurt you. We just want to ask a few questions."
The farmer replied in a language we couldn't understand as he gestured with the implement, his family huddling behind him for safety."
I pointed to my chest. "Knog."
I then gestured towards the others. "Joni. Dovit."
The farmer began to yell as another ship landed just behind us. A dozen Doomlight soldiers exited, passing us with their laser blasters raised. The commander of the squad barked commands at the farmer in his native tongue. The farmer, his wife and children were then herded past us and onto the other ship. It lifted off in a cloud of dust and was soon disappearing over the horizon.
Joni scowled. "Great. I think we just got them killed."
I replied, "We have no way of knowing the intentions of the Doomlighters. However, I would say that they did not want us talking to them. It also tells me that they are always only a few minutes away from us."
I took a minute to look over the farming equipment. It had been well maintained. The barn was no more remarkable than any other barn I had ever seen. The tools were different but recognizable as to their use. The tractor was slightly smaller than any I had come across. A large tank on the back held methane that was used as fuel for an internal combustion engine. Missing were the ion storage unit and the electric wheel motors.
Joni pointed towards the door. "If we want to find out about these people, we should check out their house. That should give us a better idea of who the natives really are. Maybe they share this planet with the Doomlighters."
As we walked out of the barn and into the sunlight, another ship zoomed overhead. A bright burst of laser energy shot down into the farmhouse, setting it afire. The structure was completely ablaze within seconds.
Joni walked towards the shuttle. "Come on. Let's get out of here while we can. They obviously don't want us nosing around here."
We lifted off in another cloud of dust as the farmhouse continued to burn. I turned the shuttle back towards the nearest known city and pushed the throttle forward. The ship didn't move. I turn
ed back towards where we had come from and the shuttle moved forward. After a quick stop I again turned in the other direction. The ship would not move.
Joni looked over the controls. "They're blocking us from that direction aren't they?"
I nodded. "It would seem so."
Two additional attempts were made before we turned back towards the landing fields. Any attempt at changing course was met with slowed or no progress.
Joni shook her head. "I guess we know where they want us to go. It's not much of an adventure if they're keeping a leash on us."
Dovit leaned forward. "Set the ship down here."
I complied. The shuttlecraft came to rest in a grain field.
Dovit rose from his chair, opened the hatch and stepped out onto the grassy ground. After a minute's worth of pacing, Dovit sat."
I looked out the hatchway at the general. "Come on, Dovit. Camping out here isn't going to further our cause."
Dovit replied, "I just need a few minutes to settle myself. Give me that and we can be on our way."
The shuttle again emptied. I walked with Joni as Raptor sniffed and poked his way through the half-meter high grass beside us.
Joni crossed her arms. "It looks like they are growing tired of our nosing around after less than a day."
I glanced up at the sun that was beginning its trek towards the horizon. "I had the same thought."
Raptor began to growl as his back stiffened. I turned in his direction just in time to see three of Dovit's officers walking in the grass fifty meters from our location. My eye caught the motion of a two meter long lizard darting at them from a group of stones. I ran towards the Moddles and yelled. The lizard struck while at a full run, knocking all three men to the ground. Before I could reach their location the lizard was on top of them, chomping and slashing away at the screaming men.
I dove and rolled out, taking the lizard by the throat as it ripped flesh from the officer we called Oleve. I pulled the raging reptile close as it ripped at my battle suit with its sharp claws. Once under my control, I pulled back my right arm, slamming my fist repeatedly into the attacking animal's skull until it caved. As the lizard fell silent I rolled over onto my back. Joni was standing next to me. Raptor sniffed over the dead reptile.
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