Neptune's Massif

by Ben Winston

  “That these people have committed horrendous acts seems clear. But at this time and in this place, it is not, nor has it ever been, our purpose, nor is it our duty, to decide their guilt.” Ian pointed to the gallery full of intently listening leaders. “It is for those men and women, up there in the observation lounge, to decide how to handle these prisoners. It is our duty to keep and protect the prisoners until the time their leaders can decide how to handle them. Be proud knowing that you are good enough not to let these prisoners turn you into one of them and that you are deserving of the trust placed in you by the rest of our people. If we broke that trust, we would not only betray our people, but we would betray and dishonor those who have given their lives in service to us. I would rather die than allow that to happen.” Ian paused for a moment. “Now, operations, recall Bronze squadron and get them a ride down to the planet. Have them grab some of those civilian shuttles to help transfer the prisoners. If you need more, then recall another squadron. But don’t pull in any more than that. We have to assume 'Admiral' Tomiakin is still out there, and we don’t know if he has any more surprises for us.”

  Admiral Goya, who had been sitting beside Noren up on the balcony, stood and began clapping. Jenny followed suit and shortly the entire bridge was on its feet, along with all the observers in the gallery.

  Ian blushed slightly as he realized how what he said must have sounded. He turned, looked up at the gallery and saluted. When he broke the salute he allowed the applause to continue for a moment then held up his hands for quiet. When the applause died, he said, “Thank you, but we still have a job to do. Let’s get back to work folks.”

  Combat Theater 'Astra'

  Rebel Military Command Post

  Location Unknown

  New Talos System, Carnius Sector

  Far away, on another planet closer to the system’s primary, Ian’s speech was heard by the people monitoring communications for Tomiakin. Though not one of them said anything, Ian William’s words had touched them. It was becoming more and more clear to them they had been indeed lied to, but not by the High Council or High Command.

  “Admiral, all our forces have either been destroyed, have deserted, or are surrendering. What are your orders?” The lieutenant asked.

  “Radio silence, Lieutenant. Please inform the pilot to take off and proceed to the coordinates I gave him earlier. I’ll be in the hold.” As he spoke he drew a shiny, metallic card out of his breast pocket. “I want to be notified when we get there.”

  As the door closed behind him, Tomiakin’s small group of people looked at each other.

  A short ensign manning one of the operations terminals spoke first. “He’s insane, we can’t let him do this.”

  “How can we stop him? He didn’t allow any weapons to be brought on board,” Ensign Annis said.

  "I brought my side arm, Lieutenant. That's what I got when I went to the bathroom earlier. I wanted to make sure about this before I killed him. The problem is the pilot; he'll know what happened the moment I fire this," Lieutenant Commander Codius replied.

  “But does the pilot know what that mad man is doing? That's a fucking gravimetric bomb back there!" Lieutenant Joanus said.

  “I'm sure he does; that pilot is fanatically loyal to the Admiral. There is no way we could convince him the Admiral has lost it. Does anyone know how to fly one of these things?” Sr. Lieutenant Raso asked and looked at the Lt. Commander.

  Codius shook his head. "I'm not a flight officer, I never got my pilot's rating."

  “Why do we need to be able to fly? We can just call for help. We are talking about surrendering aren’t we?” Joanus asked.

  Codius answered him, “Because, if the Admiral doesn’t feel this ship take off soon, he’ll get suspicious. Once that happens, it’s good-bye solar system. Annis, go tell the pilot the Admiral has ordered us to fly to...” He paused to consult the map. “One-four-nine by zero-three-nine by two-two-one. Tell him to remain cloaked. If he asks why, tell him we have lost our comm satellites, and we need to get out there to be able to listen in. Joanus, call Admiral Williams and inform him of our situation; maybe he’ll have an answer.”

  Joanus did just that, as he was telling the young Admiral their situation, he felt the small shuttle lift off and head for space.

  "Thank you for calling and asking for help Lieutenant. That will certainly help you and your team, but we need to get you out of that mess first. Do you know if Tomiakin has armed that nightmare yet?" Ian asked.

  "I don't think so, Sir, we haven't gotten any gravimetric warnings yet. I think he's waiting for us to get to where he wanted us to go. Sir, if he gets that thing armed, you're going to have to destroy us aren't you?" the lieutenant asked.

  "Lieutenant, once that thing is armed, destroying you would most likely detonate it. Is there only the one pilot in the cockpit?" Ian asked.

  "Yes Sir, the Admiral said we wouldn't need anyone else," Joanus replied.

  "Joanus, one of you is going to have to kill the pilot then either kill or incapacitate Tomiakin. Leave a comm channel open to us, and we can bring you in under remote control. I'm willing to bet that pilot has the ability to detonate that bomb as well. If you can knock them both out without the other knowing it; that would be great, but you should probably do it soon," Ian replied.

  "Understood, Sir, we'll call you back as soon as we have it taken care of," Joanus asked.

  "Have what taken care of Lieutenant?" Tomiakin asked from the rear hatch. "Just who were you talking to?"

  Joanus was about to answer when Codius spun and cracked Tomiakin in the back of the head with his pistol. Admiral Tomiakin dropped to the floor like a bag of mud. However, that wasn't what caused the scanner and sensor techs to jump out of their chairs.

  "Gravimetric alert! The bomb just went active!" Annis cried.

  Chapter 12

  Combat Theater 'Astra'

  Shadow Fighter Bronze Five

  Pilot code name 'Houdini'

  New Talos System, Carnius Sector

  The after-battle patrol was a nice quiet blessing after the insanity of space fighter combat. Houdini and his 'rear-seater' co-pilot Shasta, along with their wing mates, were doing a sweep of the second planet when their alarms began going off.

  "Gravimetric event warning, Houdini! It's coming from a small shuttle that just lifted off from the planet," Shasta said, shutting down the alarms.

  "I see it, Shas! Lemme call it in," Houdini said and switch over to the command channel. "Dealer this is Wild Card zero-five nova priority!"

  "We know about it, Wild Card. We're just trying to figure out what to do about it," flight operations replied.

  Well duh! Houdini thought to himself. "We have a visual on the target carrying the ball. We're closing in," Houdini said.

  "Wild Card, do not engage target! Weapons fire could detonate the bomb. Assume escort positions, but do not engage!" Flight ordered.

  "Understood, we are assuming escort formation with the shuttle. Any idea how long we have left?" Houdini asked calmly.

  "We're working on it, stand-by, Houdini." A male voice said.

  "Shit that was Admiral Williams!" Shasta said.

  "Not really a big surprise, Shas, I would hope he's at least a little worried about this," Houdini replied. He changed over to the channel he shared with his wing mates. "Spider, you and spud jump back to the barn. Control just recalled all non-essential craft."

  "Uh huh, we heard it, but we ain't going, if you aren't. Nice try Houdini," came the reply.

  "Wild Card this is Guardian. We've gained control of the shuttle. In a minute, we're going to blow the hold and push that bastard out the back. You're going to have to grab it and drag it into hyperspace. That'll keep it from detonating until it drops back out. So, you'll take it in, accelerate to maximum and let it go. You are then to change course and come home. Do you understand?" Ian ordered.

  "With respect, Sir, you and I both know that isn't going to work. The second we drop that egg and i
t leaves our hyperspace field, it'll hit normal space and good bye sector. Just tell me how far away it needs to be," Houdini asked. "Also, if I eject my co-pilot, can you retrieve her?"

  "Don't you fucking dare! You need me to maintain a lock on that son of a bitch while we're in hyperspace dumb-ass, or your plan won't work, Shasta replied hotly. She engaged the tractor beam as the bomb was shot out the rear of the shuttle.

  “Houdini, this is Guardian. Theoretical minimum safe distance is 15 light years. Do you know what you’re doing Houdini?”

  “Yes sir, I think I know exactly what I’m doing. The warhead will detonate as soon as it reenters normal space. Do you have a preferred place you want this thing dropped?”

  After a long pause, Ian replied, “Yes Rick, we do. Stand by for navigation program upload. Good luck to you both and... thank you.” The last was said softly.

  “Rick?” Shasta said from the rear seat.

  “Yes, Ellie?”

  “We aren’t going to survive this are we?” the young woman asked.

  “No, probably not,” Rick replied.

  She was silent for a minute. “I love you, Rick.”

  “I love you too, Baby. We’ll get plenty of time to tell each other that over and over again. This trip will take us at least eight days. Stand by for hyperspace interface.”

  Combat Theater 'Astra'

  Raptor Damocles

  City of Elysium, Defense Control Center

  New Talos System, Carnius Sector

  Cindy was sitting on the steps of the defense control center enjoying the beautifully warm Talosian morning. She was beginning to think about sneaking up to the roof to do some sunbathing when she noticed a young girl of about nine or ten years slowly walking toward her.

  “Ma’am, can I talk to you?” The young girl asked, hesitantly.

  Considering what the little girl must have been going through over the last few weeks, Cindy thought this must border on the heroic. The little girl was cute, and to draw attention to herself like this would have been an invitation for very bad things.

  “Of course you can, sweetheart. What can I do for you?” Cindy replied.

  The little girl quickly finished her approach, making the guards behind Cindy nervous. Cindy held up her hand to indicate all was well to the guards, they may have only been Marines, but they treated Cindy and her team like some kind of royalty.

  “Ma’am, my grandmother is the person in charge of this place,” the girl indicated the building behind Cindy. “She hasn’t been home in over a week. Three days ago, some soldiers took my daddy and mommy away. They told us not to go anywhere or do anything until one of them returned. My older sister, Tams was beaten up really bad and is really sick and we don’t know what to do. Could you help me find my grandmother or my parents?”

  Cindy knew from the girl’s words that the girl’s sister had most likely been beaten and worse. “Yes I can, sweetheart, but if your sister is that sick, maybe we should try and help her first?”

  “Okay, but she’ll be mad at me for bringing you to our house. She told me to stay away from soldiers and to hide if I ever saw any. But you don’t look like the ones that came to our house, you look like a goddess, so you can’t be evil like those others,” the girl said.

  “Thank you, sweetheart. I think you’re very pretty too. May I ask what your name is and where you live?”

  “I’m Cami. We live out in Crystal Falls. I had to take the train to get here.”

  Cindy knew the Marine patrols hadn’t made it that far out yet, so it was still considered a hostile area. “Wow, that’s a long ways to go by yourself. My name is Cindy. How would you like to ride with me in my ship and you can show me where you live?”

  “You have a space ship?” The girl asked, wide eyed.

  “Yes I do; that one over there, on the grass.” Cindy pointed to the Damocles resting on the grass in the small park in front of the building.

  “Wow,” Cami said, her voice full of awe.

  Cindy put her hand to her ear to activate her comm with the rest of her team. “Jerry, Sasha, stay here and help the Marines. Shannon, Lissa and I are going to make a short trip out to Crystal Falls; I’ve received a request for assistance from a civilian. Lissa, please get the Damocles ready for a short flight. Shannon, could you ask Colonel Taris for the use of a medic? We have the autodoc on board, but that might not be enough. Tell him to wear his armor.”

  Cindy received confirmations from her team as she stood. She offered her hand to the little girl and said, “Shall we go?”

  Cami took the offered hand, excited now with the prospect to fly in a real-life spaceship.

  “Have you had anything to eat this morning, Cami? It’s a long trip from Crystal Falls, you must have left very early.”

  “No Ma’am; I haven't eaten. I had to leave before anyone else was up ‘cause they would have stopped me from going,” Cami replied.

  “Well, we can’t have that! Once we get aboard, I’ll get you some breakfast, Okay?” Cindy offered.

  Cami nodded, now that they were getting closer to the spaceship, it was a lot bigger than she first thought. “What are those?” She asked, pointing to a land rail.

  “Those are land rails. We use them when we need to go someplace on the ground very quickly and can’t use the Damocles.” Cindy indicated the ship. Movement caught her eye, and she turned to see Shannon and what Cindy guessed to be the medic, running for the Damocles from the security center. They were being followed by two burly Marines in full combat gear. Cindy felt the girl tighten her grip on Cindy’s hand as she too saw the running people. “It’s okay, Cami. No one will hurt you, I promise. Those men are the good guys, they won’t hurt you. How about we get that breakfast I told you about?”

  Cami still looked uncertain, but nodded in acceptance. Cindy led her into the ship and into the crew area. “If you sit there, I’ll get your food. Why don’t you tell me more about your family?”

  Cami did as Cindy asked, while Cindy got her a nice pancake breakfast from the replicator, Cami told her about her family.

  “Tams is seventeen and was thinking about joining the academy. She wanted to be a fighter pilot before the bad men came. Blane and Helon are six, Mommy always said they were going to make wonderful administrators one day. Just like Grammy Galla. Both of them are really smart for only being six and know lots of stuff about the family and history and things. I always thought that stuff was kinda dull, but I still had to learn it. Grammy said it was very important for us to know our family heritage.” She stopped there and began to literally shovel the food Cindy had gotten her into her mouth.

  Shannon had arrived and the four climbed aboard. Shannon introduced the C.D. (Combat Doctor) as Captain Sparks. Sparks was a female, and a very kind looking person. From the brief introduction it was hard to imagine this woman trying to operate on a fallen soldier while ignoring the enemy fire flying past her head.

  The other two men were Corporal Mlas who had skills as an engineer. Since Crystal Falls was not a ‘cleared’ area, and was known to be one of those suburbs without power, Mlas was assigned to the team. He was also from that area, so the residents might recognize him.

  The other man, Private Zion, was also from the area and knew most of the residents. These two would serve as guards for the team and as a liaison to the people of Crystal Falls.

  Zion sat down immediately across from Cami. “Little Cami? I remember you. The last time I saw you though, was when you were a baby no bigger than this,” he held his hands apart. “You’ve grown quite a bit. Gotten pretty too!” He winked at her. The girl blushed, but seemed to relax more at his words. Zion looked at Cindy, who was sitting next to Cami. “Major, it is very important that we find this girl's grandmother and mother. Dame Galla is the Matriarch of House Camilla. It was believed that her daughter, Sharoan, would be her successor.”

  “If she was a House Matriarch, wouldn't she have been at the conclave?” Cindy asked.

  "Not necessarily;
House Camilla was more involved in the civil defenses that it was politics. If I remember correctly, Dame Galla had very little time for the political aspect of her duties. House Camilla was strongly allied with Houses Rodan and Bellthoria. They generally spoke for the House in conclave," Zion replied.

  "So, if you're from this area, does that make you a member of their house?" Cindy asked trying to understand.

  Zion smiled but shook his head. "No Ma'am, although I was a member of House Rodan, geographical location is not a good indicator of political allegiance. When I joined the Corps, I surrendered my House affiliations.

  "However, Dame Galla or her daughter would go a long way to restoring the leadership of the city. We really need to try to locate them."

  “I think I better call Command; if nothing else, they can help in locating the girl’s parents.” Cindy turned to Cami, “Cami? This is my good friend, Shannon. Would it be okay if she stayed with you while I go make some calls? I think the Doctor might want to scan you to make sure you’re okay inside.”

  The girl paused her eating long enough to look at Shannon and Sparks closely. Finally, she nodded to Cindy and resumed her eating.

  Cindy got up and entered the cockpit. “How are we doing, Lissa?”

  “Just fine, Major. We are holding position over the Crystal Falls area; I am scanning for any weapons or unknown energy signatures. We should be able to land in a few minutes,” the Lissa replied.

  “Cool, thanks.” Cindy then touched her ear piece again, “Joker Three to Dealer, request ops assistance with a blurb mission.” A blurb mission was the term used to describe a mission that the Raptor team undertook on its own, such as a rescue or humanitarian mission.