by GARY DARBY
“I just hope we didn’t outsmart ourselves,” Sami contended. “It’s good to be smart, but not too smart; otherwise, we might not be as smart as we think we are in catching old smartypants there.”
Rosberg glanced around at the others and asked, “If any of you followed that, explain it to me later.”
He turned to Alena and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Thank you for providing that information on how to contact Peller. I doubt if your father knew how useful the information would be when he shared it with you.”
Alena’s eyebrows furrowed as she replied, “You’re welcome, sir. I have to admit, when my father told me, I was mentally numb at the time, and really didn’t put it all together.
She bit down hard on her lip. “To learn your father is a leader in the Gadions . . .”
Straightening, she said, “But now that I’ve had some time to think about it, perhaps at the time, he believed that somehow, someday, it just might come in handy to the Star Scouts.”
“Well,” Rosberg replied softly, “this may surprise you, but I will say that if our plan works, your father will be part of the reason that we save so many of our comrades. I hope that thought eases some of your sorrow.”
Smiling hesitantly, Alena replied quietly, “It does sir, very, very, much.”
Rosberg turned back to the group and a broad, pleased smile creased his face. “About now, Adiak Peller is building up a good sweat wondering how we hooked ourselves into his secure communications network.
“What’s more, his gut is starting to twist into a knot thinking about how much more of his organization is compromised. And the more he’s distracted, the better it is for us.”
Rosberg laughed as if he were thinking of how agonized Peller must be at that very moment. “It would be enough to throw anyone’s orbit out of whack. And the more he stays that way, the easier our job becomes.
“But enough gloating.” With a gesture at the assembled scouts, he said, “We’ve got work to do, and each of us has to play our part perfectly in order for us to get our scout mates off Sarpens Two.”
Turning to Captain Federov, he asked, “Is everything ready on your end, captain?”
“Just about, sir,” Federov answered. “We’re lining up the last of the corvettes on the second asteroid. Once that’s done, and we get the construction crews off the surface, we can start firing up our engines.”
“Good,” Rosberg answered. “And the sensors are still clear? No unwanted visitors snooping around?”
“So far, so good,” Federov replied.
Just then, over the team’s communicator came, “General Rosberg, Captain Federov, this is the Intrepid. The SlipSter just appeared; she off our starboard bow and inbound. ETA is ten minutes.”
“Perfect,” Rosberg replied, “their timing couldn’t have been better.”
He gestured toward Dason and Jadar. “You’re the spring on the trap. Once you give us the word that they’re aboard, we set everything in motion. Got it?”
“Yes, sir,” Dason and Jadar answered together.
Rosberg slapped at his communicator. “Shar, what’s happening on your end?”
“The Faction is doing what we thought they would, general,” Shar answered.
“They’re moving their ships into concealed positions in the inner asteroid ring and powering down their electronic signature. In about an hour, it’ll look as though Sarpens is completely free and clear of all ships.”
“You heard?” Rosberg asked Dason and Jadar. They both gave curt nods. He then asked the Scoutmaster, “Everything set on your end?”
“We’re set here,” Tarracas replied to Rosberg before he gestured toward the cube of Kolomite and spoke to Jadar and Dason, “Remember, timing is everything if we want to catch our weasel in the trap.”
“Understood, Scoutmaster,” Dason replied.
“Okay,” the general grunted at the two, “the chess pieces are beginning to line up. It’s time for you two knights to power up and head in-system.
“Remember, take it nice and easy, and don’t get too antsy, we don’t want the Faction to think that an actual Mongan vessel is inbound.”
He paused and then said, “I wish I were the one staying here, instead of the two of you to face the devil, but we know that won’t work. It has to be you.”
Taking a breath, his eyes softened. “Last night I dictated into the Intrepid’s log, a full accounting of what happened on Veni, and what’s happened since.
“Once we’re underway, my report will go to Henrik Utlander, the former General Assembly president. I added a personal note asking him to make sure that when this is all over, that it gets to the ‘proper authorities,’ whoever those will be when the dust settles.”
He gave them both a little smile. “My report states that as the commanding general of Star Scout Command, I entirely absolve the brothers Marrel of any wrongdoing in the theft of Kolomite, and I exonerate and dismiss all charges of cowardice and desertion.
“I laid out all the facts that we now know and as for me, the facts speak to the truth and the truth is now a part of the official record for all to see and know.”
Jadar and Dason stood proud and tall as Jadar said huskily, “Thank you sir, from all the Marrels. I know I was stupid and wrong but this means the world to all of us.”
Rosber held out his strong hand for each of them to shake, saying, “That’s good enough for me. Just do us proud on this one and it will more than make up for whatever happened in the past.”
With that, he turned and made for the waiting Zephyr.
The Scoutmaster stepped forward and laid a hand on Dason’s and Jadar’s shoulders. “It has been my privilege to have served with many loyal and dedicated scouts, but none better than those found in the family Marrel.”
Facing Dason, his eyes were full of pride. “And none who have learned better what the Scout Oath means, or who have lived it more fully.”
After a quick scout handshake, he then turned and made for the Zephyr, leaving Dason with his scout team. One by one, they bade farewell until only Shanon remained.
Jadar leaned over and said, “I’ll see you on the bridge.”
Shanon came close, and to Dason it seemed as though he could see eternity in her lovely, apple-green eyes.
She reached out, grasped his torso vest, and pulled him close. “You just make sure you hit the right buttons, mister, or I’ll never speak to you again, got it?” she murmured in a husky voice.
“I’ll be seeing you,” he replied in the same husky voice, “count on it.”
“And I’ll be seeing you,” Shanon replied before she gave him a quick, tender kiss and whirled away to race to the Zephyr.
With a last wave, Dason turned and made his way to the Mongan cruiser’s bridge. Jadar greeted him with a crooked smile. “Quite a send-off, eh? For a second there, I almost felt like I was attending my own funeral.”
Dason smiled in return. “I know what you mean, but I sure hope we’re both wrong.”
Jadar came to stand beside Dason. “I know you wish that you were doing this with your father, but I want you to know how much I appreciate you never giving up on me.
“And I just want you to know that for me, standing here with you is a great, great, honor, Dason.”
“The honor is mine, Uncle Jadar,” Dason answered, reaching out to grasp the man’s outstretched hand. “The honor is mine.”
He placed his fingers on the navigational controls, took a deep breath, and asked, “You ready?”
“Ready, scout,” Jadar replied in a gruff voice. “Twist her tail, and let’s you and I go catch us some skunks.”
Chapter Sixteen
Star date: 2443.116
Alpha Epsilon Four
Peering at his newly minted fleet admiral, Alexi Rovinsky, Adiak Peller’s eyes narrowed as he studied the man. The Imperium Guard’s former head stood at rigid attention in front of his patron, outwardly calm, but Peller had no doubts that the man trembled deeply i
nside.
Who didn’t these days in front of their Supreme Leader knowing that their life could be over with a few mere words.
The chamber’s sharp lights not only brought out the glint from the five bright gold starbursts on Rovinsky’s shoulder boards, but they also caught the puffed-up expression of vain conceit on his visage.
“How many ships, admiral?” Peller demanded.
“Fifty-four here at Epsilon Four,” Rovinsky responded. “Plus an additional thirty-six inbound from other sectors. And with those that you brought from the Inner World interdiction screen, the fleet will total one-hundred forty total, including thirty dreadnought Marauders.”
“Your plan?” Peller questioned.
“Eight squadrons of fifteen ships, two Marauders to each squadron. Each group converging on Sarpens Two from eight different directions in synchronized formation. The remainder, of course, will safeguard your personal yacht.”
Nodding in apparent satisfaction, Peller then asked, “And your mission?”
“To capture the—”
“No, you idiot!” Peller roared.
Rovinsky stood immobile, not daring to speak nor move at Peller’s outburst. “Your mission,” Peller ground out, “is to protect me. That is your mission. Do you understand? Do you clearly understand?”
“Of course,” Rovinsky stammered, “what I meant to say was that—”
Peller held up a hand to stop the stuttering man and took in a deep breath to calm himself down. He pulled his robes back and paced the room.
“Position your squadrons,” he ordered, “in such a fashion that long-range sensors will not detect your ships. Once I make contact and ascertain the traitors’ exact location, I will send you an n-space message.
“At that point, you will order your fleet to attack. Remember and sear this into your mind, the fleet’s primary mission is my safety. Once I have what I came for, you may do with the rebels as you wish.”
“Do we have any idea of the size and scope of their forces?” Rovinsky asked.
Peller waved a dismissive hand and frowned in reply. “Minimal at best. Your fleet will be more than sufficient to take on and defeat what few ships they may be able to muster.”
He thrust a thin finger at Rovinsky. “You will personally assure that each of your ships has my personal transponder code and vessel profile.
“If even one of your ships mistakenly fires at me, I will have your head, admiral, and the head of that ship’s captain.”
His countenance took on the features of a hawk who circled its prey, waiting for the chance to strike. “Do I make myself clear?”
“Perfectly,” Rovinsky replied stiffly.
Peller again considered the man with narrowed eyes before he spoke in a smoother, less hostile voice. “If you carry out this operation successfully, there will be a suitable reward. Something along the lines of being the next governor of say, Vesta Four.
“Governor Wek, the previous governor has become, shall we say, indisposed and is no longer able to govern. What would you say to that?”
Rovinsky drew himself to his full stature and bowed from the hips. “Supreme Leader, rest assured, your orders will be carried out to the letter.”
“Good,” Peller replied. “Proceed, Admiral Rovinsky, and stand ready for my signal.”
He let his appearance slide into a hard stare. “And remember that I if even one of the ships of my personal flotilla fouls up, I will hold you personally responsible.”
Rovinsky did a full bow and hastened from the room. Peller waited until the door had slid shut before he strode over to the communicator console. In seconds, he had communications established and asked of the man on the screen, “Is everything ready?”
“Yes,” the man answered cautiously.
Seeing the man’s hesitation, Peller snapped, “What is it?”
“Too rushed,” the man sputtered, “there could be some interruptions in the—”
“Fix it!” Peller all but screamed. “We’re running out of time and I need for it to be ready.”
The man hung his head for a second before he answered in a gravelly voice, “It’ll be ready.”
“That’s the right answer,” Peller responded. “You have the coordinates?”
“Already loaded in the navigation console,” the man answered.
“Then be on your way,” Peller ordered. “The clock’s started. I’ll follow shortly and meet you at the pre-arranged spot.”
Peller ended the transmission and turned toward the vu-screen that showed the rebuilt Imperium fleet in orbit around Epsilon Four.
It was a diminished fleet, to be sure, due to some defections, and the damage done by the Mongan armada, but it would be more than enough to take care of his enemies at Sarpens Two.
Once he had destroyed the traitors, and once the nova device was set off, there would be nothing standing in his way to bring every Imperium world under his sole domination.
After all, that was his destiny.
Chapter Seventeen
Star date: 2443.115
Aboard the Mongan Ship, Nearing the Sarpens System
Entering the last of the inputs into the console, Dason turned his eyes to the forward convex vu-screen. The ebony swirls of n-space gave way to a glowing vista of stars with one tiny, but noticeable yellowish-white orb centered in the screen.
Motioning to Jadar, Dason nodded at the screen. “Sarpens dead ahead; you can let the general know we’re on-station.”
Jadar gave a thumbs up, opened the communicator, and spoke quietly, “This is Big Bait, we’re at the grid coordinates and standing by for rendezvous. Nothing showing on our sensors yet.”
“Understood,” Rosberg returned.
Dason turned to Jadar with a lop-sided grin. “Big Bait? Really? You’re beginning to sound like Sami.”
Jadar returned Dason’s smile. “Actually, Sami coined it. He initially suggested ‘Doomed Duo’ but I thought that was a wee bit melodramatic and over the top.”
“Doomed Duo,” Dason snorted. “Now, that has Sami written all over it.”
He checked his sensors again before asking, “How long do you think we’ll have to wait?”
Jadar gave Dason a little shrug. “I doubt very long. Peller’s probably got a hidden ship out there that’s already tracking us and sending their sensor info to his command ship. Or, perhaps, straight to him, though I doubt if he’d keep it just to himself.”
“Meaning, he never intended to come alone,” Dason observed.
Jadar leaned forward to study the panorama on the vu-screen. “Oh no,” he answered with a firm shake of the head.
“Definitely not Peller. He’s going to bring as many to the party as he can, but he has to use stealth so as to make it appear that he’s following instructions. He doesn’t want to scare us off, too much at stake.
“He knows we’ll have our own sensors working overtime doing long-range sweeps, so the main body of his forces will try and stay out of sensor range until the very last second.
“And if I were him, I’d have the whole system ringed, just waiting for his orders to move in for the kill.”
“A circle of death,” Dason breathed, “to cut us off from every possible escape route.”
“Uh huh,” Jadar muttered. “Or at least he thinks he’s cutting us off. But that’s where our little surprise comes into play.”
Dason leaned back in his chair. “In all honesty, I’d probably do exactly the same thing in his position. He really can’t afford to take any chances.”
“No, he can’t,” Jadar frowned in response. “And everything I’ve learned about Adiak Peller over the last few days tells me that he that he’s not entirely convinced that we’d give up several thousand kilograms of Kolomite just to get one family member back.”
Jadar turned frank eyes on Dason. “After all, he wouldn’t do it, not for his own father, mother, spouse, son, or daughter. The only thing that’s important to Adiak Peller is Adiak Peller.”
&
nbsp; At that, he turned and gave Dason a broad smile. “But what’s driving him nuts about now is that he knows that we’re going to try and pull something, he just doesn’t know what.
“We don’t have the ships, firepower, or personnel to match up against him, but he figures that we believe we have something up our sleeve, something potent enough that we’re willing to put our heads in the noose; the question is what?”
His smile turned even wider. “And he’s losing sleep and probably can’t eat just thinking about what it might be.”
“But he’ll come, right?” Dason asked.
“Oh, yes,” Jadar replied without hesitation, “Peller will certainly come. The lure of that Kolomite and of catching all three of us Marrels together is too great. Sami was right, for Adiak Peller, we’re the ‘big bait’ that he can’t resist.”
Jadar gave a little start and pointed at the sensor banks. “Speaking of taking the bait,” he whispered, “I think the barracuda has arrived.”
Dason quickly reviewed the incoming sensor data off the various screens. “One ship, coming to a dead stop, a hundred thousand kilometers out.”
He glanced over at Jadar. “And it’s a Class I Star Dreamer. I’d say the man likes to travel in ultra royal class.”
“You didn’t think he was going to show up riding in the belly of a clunky Maresek freighter, did you?” Jadar grunted.
“Okay,” Dason commented in a tight voice, “we’re stationary to each other. Time for me to greet our guest.”
He reached out, initiated the holographic transmission and bluntly said, “Peller, I believe you can see us.”
Peller’s image appeared over the console. “You’re in that Mongan ship?” he rasped incredulously. “I’m not—”
“Peller,” Dason replied, “does it matter what type of ship we’re in? I think what is important is that you get what you want, and we get what you want.”
He glanced at his sensor panel to confirm that the bay doors had unlocked. “Our hangar doors are open, and the bay is large enough to accommodate your yacht. Bring your ship inboard. Once you’re aboard, we’ll pressurize and do the exchange.”