by John Walker
“I’m recommending it,” Holland said. “Though I’m sure we’re too busy to keep him off his feet for long enough.”
“We’ll see.” Desmond looked at the marines. Their attendants stepped back. “If you’re done, you’re dismissed. Get some food and relax. You’re off duty until further notice.”
Both men stood and offered a salute. “Yes, sir.” They spoke in unison and departed. Thayne drank deeply from a bottle of water and the other man, Doctor Gil Vaedra, stared into space. He looked exhausted, with dark hair sticking up here and there. A sparse beard graced his cheeks and chin, his eyes sunken.
“Was their assessment accurate?” Vincent asked Cassie. “Did you guys have to get involved the way you did?”
Cassie nodded. “They were about to beat him. We stepped in and the shooting started after the brawl. We were in a running battle through the station back to the ship. Honestly, it’s a miracle we made it back with the minor injuries we had.”
Vincent didn’t seem convinced, but he didn’t push. Desmond pulled a chair up and turned to Thayne. “So, we’ve got the archaeologist and I’m pretty sure we’re on borrowed time here now. Whoever was after your friend might want him bad enough to attack us so we should figure out what we’re doing as soon as possible.”
“Of course.” Thayne offered him an ear piece then handed one to Vincent. They stuffed them into their right ears. “This will allow you to speak freely.” He turned to his friend. “Gil, this is Captain Desmond Bradford and Commander Vincent Bowman. They are from Earth.”
“Oh my …” The masculine voice in Desmond’s ear spoke at just a half second off from Gil’s odd, foreign speech. “I know that planet. The people there have advanced considerably. I trust they found a Trindisha?”
Thayne nodded. “Indeed, and put it to good use, wouldn’t you say?”
“Especially since they just saved my life. Thank you all … very much for what you’ve done. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it.”
“Think nothing of it,” Desmond replied. “We’re on a time crunch and we need your help. We’re looking for something and honestly, at this point I’d be happy to take you along. Are you in a position where you can leave this place?”
“Of course,” Gil said. “If I do not, they will surely kill me. I have everything I own with me. We can leave as soon as you’re ready. Anything you need, if I can provide it, I shall do so. We should simply get far away from here … or at least away from the station. In the event that Kalrawv Group decides to try to kill me on board your vessel.”
“We’ve got the area guarded …” Desmond sighed. “Vincent, pull the marines back aboard the ship and have Zach get clearance to leave. I want us out and moving toward an exit vector ASAP.”
“Yes, sir.” Vincent nodded and left the room. Desmond returned his attention to Gil.
“Thayne tells us you’re an expert on dead worlds … ancient civilizations.” Desmond leaned forward. “I don’t know if you’re aware, but the Tol’An are trying to pull together technology to fend off a plague. Something they believe wiped out several of these worlds. We’re investigating it to see how credible the threat is … to find out what’s motivating them to attack other planets.”
“They attacked Earth,” Thayne added. “And they kidnapped me. These people liberated me from them.”
“I see.” Gil frowned. “It does not surprise me to hear they have taken such extreme actions. They are far from subtle. Yet they may not be incorrect. I have seen evidence that suggest there may have been … some event that destroyed many worlds. My most recent studies discovered the potential in one such place.”
“What were you researching?” Thayne asked. “And why were they after you?”
“The Kalrawv Group is a business, a shady one at least. They funded my research … provided protection on the world I was excavating.” Gil cleared his throat. “The information I found involved an old power regulation formula, something which could easily revolutionize the reactors on many of our ships.”
“Except?” Thayne prompted.
“Well … it’s volatile,” Gil explained. “We would need to do extensive research to make it safe. But in its current state, it would make volatile and potent bombs. This is the information they hoped to sell. When they told me, I ran. Stole one of their shuttles and came back here to get transport out of the system.”
“Why’d you come here?” Cassie asked. “Obviously they came looking for you.”
“They were faster than I anticipated,” Gil replied. “A friend of mine had been here but I missed him by a short while. He was on a trading run to an outer system. It would’ve given me plenty of time to think of how to get out of my mess. As I frantically tried to find an alternative, they caught up with me … and luckily, so did you.”
“Lucky indeed.” Thayne nodded sagely.
“You know …” Gil held up a finger. “As I think of it, the world I was on may well help us with your problem. I uncovered the archives and the power formula was one of the first things I uncovered. Before I could delve deeper, they were talking about selling to wicked characters all over the galaxy … terrorists.”
“What are you saying?” Desmond asked.
“I’m certain that world was impacted by the threat you are investigating. Their archives may have some information relating to it. Something that could help us understand … maybe lead us to additional clues. I have the coordinates in my computer and we could be there in a few short hours. Obviously, since a small shuttle was able to jump here from there.”
Vincent’s voice broke over the com, “Attention all hands. Brace for departure. We are detaching from dock in ten seconds. All hands prepare for departure.”
Desmond rubbed his chin. “You said you needed protection on that world. From what?”
“The population,” Gil said. “They … have been altered by whatever event devastated their world. They are now clans of beasts, mutated humanoids with great strength and a desire for flesh. A Pahxin research crew visited there and declared the place forbidden when two of their members were devoured.”
Cassie’s eyes widened. “Devoured? Good God.”
Thayne nodded. “We tend to be cautious about such things. I’m sure the scientific council believed there were other places we could acquire similar information without the risk.”
“What kind of weapons did they have?” Desmond asked. “These … things that ate your people.”
“Oh, they’re sentient enough to use firearms,” Gil replied. “They present a credible threat, especially when our own weapons were not enough to kill them easily. The Kalrawv lost a few of their number as well, even after putting many bullets into our attackers. It should be said this will not be easy.”
“I’m gathering that.” Desmond frowned, turning away. When they left Earth, he had a feeling they’d be dealing with something requiring a military application. The automated defenses of their previous encounter made him err on the side of caution. If they planned for trouble and didn’t find it, so much the better.
“We have another problem,” Gil added. “The facility we’re after is considered sacred by those living there. We were likely attacked because they thought we were desecrating it. Furthermore, the environment isn’t the most pleasant. The weather can be … mercurial to say the least.”
“And the hits keep on coming,” Desmond muttered. “Okay, so if it’s going to take a few hours to get there, then I recommend we use our time wisely. First, Gil will give the coordinates to Salina and Zach so they can plot a course. It’ll take us a little time to get into position so we can give everyone a chance to clean up and relax.”
“Then?” Cassie asked.
“During the jump,” Desmond continued, “Gil will provide us with as much detail as he can about the planet. The marines going down there will need to know. I want escorts ready so we can provide some air support if needed. We need to determine who must go down there. If we can leave non-combatants on the ship, so much the b
etter.”
“Depending on the weather,” Gil said, “we should be able to provide support from orbit. I’ll need to see your scanning equipment.”
“It’s good,” Thayne replied. “Not optimized, but solid.”
“Excellent. Then we should be fine.” Gil sighed. “I would very much like the opportunity to clean up as you say.”
“Cassie, arrange to get him some quarters.” Desmond headed for the door and paused. “When you’re all done, connect up and we’ll meet in one of our briefing rooms. Time’s of the essence so let’s not dawdle. Especially if your friends might try to cause trouble out here before we leave the system.”
Chapter 5
Vincent leaned over Salina’s console, looking at the screen with her. They’d been in hyperspace for nearly an hour, but she had data to share from just before they left. A ship left Rilla Station and seemed to be on a pursuit course. Of course, they left before it could get too close so chances were just as good it was simply on its way to another destination.
Paranoia might pay off in this situation.
“I’m seeing their energy reading,” Vincent said. “It was definitely armed but they didn’t seem to be gearing up for combat.”
“They were still quite a ways off,” Salina replied. “Unfortunately, I’m not familiar with the signals they were sending back to the station or I might’ve been able to pick up their com traffic. I don’t even have the designation of their vessel.”
Vincent nodded. “I doubt they’re coming after us and even if they are, it was a pretty small ship. I’m pretty sure we can take it. Besides, you read the preliminary briefing. We don’t expect to find space craft where we’re going. Just … monsters basically.”
“That’s a lot better.” Salina smirked. “Ironic that we consider it fortunate to discover a species which eats sentient beings over a battle in orbit.”
“Since you put it that way, I guess I agree.” Vincent straightened up. “Nothing we can do about them now. Let’s just focus on the task at hand.” He returned to his seat. “Zach, get Deacon up here to relieve you. I want to make sure you have some down time before we arrive at this system.”
“Got it, sir.”
Cassie stepped out of the elevator and sat at her console, causing Vincent’s heart to beat a little faster. He fought an urge to greet her and focused on the reports coming in from the various parts of the ship. His interest in the agent may not have been professional strictly speaking but he couldn’t deny a sense of connection.
Not the time for this, Commander. Vincent drew a deep breath and started reading. Engineering stated they were working with Thayne and Gil to boost their scanning capabilities. Simulations showed an increase of efficiency by more than forty percent. That might be enough to get through the atmospheric anomalies they expected.
The fewer people they sent to the surface the better. Marine power armor would be enough to deal with the monsters … probably … but unarmored individuals wouldn’t have a lot of chance. The Pahxin researchers must’ve gone down without adequate protection. Vincent wished they had some better data on the creatures they’d be facing.
Gil didn’t bother to scan them. He was in the middle of grabbing data from the archives and when he found the formula, he figured he was done. Based on the description of what he discovered, it had the potential to revolutionize his culture’s energy demands. Planets and colonies could benefit from it, providing they solved the unstable problems.
Applying other theories to their own probably would work. We’ve been doing it with the Orb for years.
Vincent considered the groups they were contending with. The Tol’An were considered radicals and terrorists by the Pahxin. They genuinely wanted to cause trouble and rule according to their moral standards. If they were ever able to acquire the technology they were after, they very well might be able to.
Then there was the Kalrawv Group, which seemed to be a greedy corporation willing to make money through selling … well … anything. They probably had enough sanity to be reasoned with for the most part but if they retained the services of thugs and criminals to perform their operations, they’d be volatile to say the least.
How many more crazy factions are there out here we should be worried about?
“Commander,” Cassie called out. He cleared his throat and turned slowly to acknowledge her, not wanting to seem overeager. “I’m going to reboot the tertiary internal scanners if you don’t mind. They’re acting a little odd. I’ve logged a request with Engineering to have a look.”
“Go ahead,” Vincent replied. “Thanks for letting me know.”
Vincent knew a great deal about the Gnosis. He’d studied the ship extensively when he received his assignment, but he was shocked at how much better Cassie knew the vessel than he or even Desmond did. She had worked closely with some of the original designers during the early days of building the systems but he didn’t know how much until she came aboard.
While he doubted she could fix things as efficiently as the engineers, she definitely knew how to find problems and get them highlighted for swift turnaround.
Desmond came on the bridge and took his seat. “I finished speaking with Thayne and Gil. We’re not exactly flying blind here but once we arrive, we’ll be playing it by ear. I’d really like some intel before we go into these situations.”
“Understandable,” Vincent replied. “But they are scientists, not tacticians. I’m not entirely surprised that they weren’t ready with a solid briefing of what to expect.”
Desmond nodded. “Doesn’t make it any less annoying. I mean, Gil described the mutants. They’re big, muscular and can use weapons. He suggested they must be capable of rational thought because they haven’t destroyed themselves, but their standard tactic involved raging out before charging their opponents.”
“I’m sure that’ll make them easier to shoot,” Vincent replied. “Let’s hope our weapons pack a heavier punch than the Pahxin variety.”
“Indeed.” Desmond leaned forward. “You should get some downtime before we arrive. I think this is going to be a real pain and you’ll probably be busy as hell.”
“I asked Zach to get deacon to relieve him as well.” Vincent stood. “I’ll talk to you when we emerge.”
He headed for the elevator, pausing to get a side look at Cassie. She stared at her screen intently, brows furrowed and lips set in a frown. He let out a sigh and left, wondering if they might ever have a chance to talk about what he hoped she noticed as well. Can’t get my hopes up. Considering what we’re doing out here … I’m not sure we have the time.
***
The Gnosis emerged from hyperspace nearly an hour and a half out from their destination. Desmond gave Salina a chance to get her scan in without asking for it, forcing himself to be patient. Meanwhile, he checked the reports and felt some relief that none of the ship’s systems rebooted this time.
Engineering called this out and stated they were cautiously optimistic about a fix they put into place.
“Captain,” Salina began, “I’ve scanned the planet. The weather patterns are erratic, especially over one of the continents with the highest density of ruins. I’d have called it a densely populated area some time ago. After that, we’ve got strange energy readings all over the place. Our destination seems to have a moderately stable meteorological situation by comparison.”
“Anything else?”
“There are still functioning power grids but one near our facility doesn’t match.” Salina paused. “Sir, I think it might be a downed space craft.” She hesitated again. “Yes, I’m certain now. A ship has crashed here and there are small vessels flying coverage around it. They’re the only non-organics in the air.”
Desmond nodded. “Vincent, prep our fighters and have them ready to go when we get there. That downed ship might need help but if they’re hostile, I don’t want to make any assumptions. I find it somewhat coincidental they’re right next to our destination.”
“Pro
bably Vaedra’s buddies,” Vincent muttered as he contacted the pilots.
Desmond agreed. He reached out to Thayne and Gil and asked them to look at the scan data from Salina. They were down in one of the tech rooms, allowing them to have access so they could help. Once they arrived at the planet and sent people down, their guests would be instrumental in finding what they were after.
Providing it’s even down there.
“Pilots will be ready in an hour,” Vincent announced. “Since we’re still seventy minutes out.”
“Good.” Desmond leaned forward, peering at the view screen. With full magnification, they could see the planet but from the quiet of space, it didn’t appear particularly volatile. Mostly brown with specs of blue, the clouds ranged from white to green. Other than the odd colors, it seemed tranquil.
Only the scans told the true story. Desmond looked over the details from Salina and his brows lifted involuntarily. Volatile weather meant hurricanes, feet of rain and devastating lightning storms. Tunnels under the ground providing living space for the various inhabitants. Apparently, things could only venture out for short periods of time before a storm drove them home.
Animals still thrived there though they seemed to have evolved to do so. There wasn’t a lot of data about them but the avians were gigantic, about half the size of a fighter, and carrion eaters. Desmond figured there must be a lot of dead to keep them fed. Anything getting caught out in one of those flash storms likely wouldn’t make it.
Then he noticed the radiation. Several continents suffered from dramatic radiation poisoning spread over miles upon miles. Speculation suggested detonation of weapons or the destruction of above ground power facilities. It stood to reason that these people used whatever formula Doctor Vaedra discovered and perhaps they didn’t bother to work out the volatility problem.
They’d be there soon, and several men would be risking their lives to gather data in the facility. Desmond would’ve preferred to gather what they could from orbit and moved on. Considering their original purpose, he probably would’ve made a case to avoid exploring this world.