“It’s a hologram,” Jason said in wonder.
“Are you sure?” Kellea asked. “I’ve never seen one so realistic.”
“Pretty sure,” Jason said. “And it appears to be accessing my ship’s computer. Ke’Elam, shut it down!” Ke’Elam moved to grab the device but the alien looked sharply at them and elicited a high-pitched shriek that seemed to pierce Jason’s skull with its intensity. He dropped to one knee, squeezing his eyes shut and putting his hands over his ears. He was vaguely aware of the others also falling to the deck around him, even the loud clang of a battlesynth. The agony lasted only a second longer before it stopped as suddenly as it started.
“I apologize for incapacitating you, Captain Jason Burke,” a deep voice said. “However, if the integration process is halted prematurely it can be quite difficult to reinitialize.” Jason cracked his eyes open and saw the alien was now standing in front of him. He stood up and shook his head to clear it, looking around to ensure the others were shaking off the effects as well.
“I see,” he said carefully. “So you know who I am?”
“I do now,” the alien said. “I have integrated with your vessel’s main computer in order to perform my function as efficiently as possible.”
“So you’re a hologram being projected from the Key’s transceiver?” Jason asked.
“Essentially, yes,” the alien answered. “The terminology is a bit crude, but you seem to have grasped the basic concepts. I am called Cas. I will be your guide.”
“Our guide?” Doc asked.
“Yes, Doctor Ma’Fredich,” Cas said, his mouth not moving as he did so. “I’ve been able to ascertain that you think the device I’m projecting from is a Key to allow you access to a construct you refer to as the Machine. It is not quite that simple. I am an interface provided with the Key that will guide you along the way.”
“Are you an accurate portrayal of the race we refer to as the Ancients?” Ke’Elam asked in a hushed voice.
“Unknown reference,” Cas said. “I am, however, a serviceable simulation of the species who built the Key. Does that answer your question?”
“It does.”
“I’d like to set some ground rules, if I may,” Jason said, trying to assert some control over the conversation. “I understand you’re performing your job as best you see fit, but I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t access any system on my ship without my permission. It would also be great if you wouldn’t incapacitate us again.”
“Parameters updated,” Cas said pleasantly.
“Thanks,” Jason said absently. “So I guess the first issue we need to tackle is the missing component. Is the piece we’re calling the encryption module somewhere on this ship?”
“Yes,” Cas said. “Would you like me to point it out to you?”
“Uh … yeah, that would be fantastic,” Jason said. Cas set off across the common area on his way to Engineering.
“Do we need to bring the transceiver with us?” Jason called after it.
“The range of my holographic emitter is fifty meters,” Cas said. “Within that range any matter between my projection and the emitter is immaterial.” They all hustled after the hologram as he walked into the starboard engineering bay and scared Kage and Twingo nearly to death.
“Who the hell is this?” Twingo demanded.
“I’ll explain later,” Jason said. “The short answer is that he’s the Key. He’s also going to point out where the encryption module is at.”
“Well, it isn’t in the main reactor, I know that much,” Twingo muttered.
“Incorrect,” Cas said, walking up to the smooth surface of the main reactor’s outer shell. He raised a hand and a beam of light projected outward from his palm onto a spot on the lower half of the reactor casing. The ultra-dense alloy seemed to become transparent and there, nestled within the metal of the reactor itself, was the oblong cylinder that was the encryption module.
“Unbelievable,” Twingo muttered. “It really was inside the reactor.”
“This explains why it was never found,” Jason said. “Someone went through an insane amount of trouble to hide it. It also means we can’t retrieve it without disabling our ship beyond repair … at least here on A’arcoon.”
“Incorrect as well, Captain,” Cas said. “The encryption module can remain within the alloy of your main reactor to perform its function. May I?” Cas was indicating he wanted to touch the machinery in Engineering. Jason nodded his assent, placing a restraining hand on Twingo’s shoulder. The hologram poked and prodded among the conduits and lines before turning back to them.
“This is actually quite ingenious,” he said. “The unit will be able to modulate the plasma flow from the reactor to your engines, essentially turning your ship into a large transmitter.”
“Why is that advantageous?” Jason asked. “Is the range on the Key’s antenna that short?”
“Not necessarily,” Cas said. “But this type of implementation would allow someone to control the Machine through the dimension you refer to as slip-space. The caveat to this is an identical receiver would need to be deployed on the Machine itself.”
“So someone wanted to turn the Phoenix into a mobile, armed remote for the Machine,” Twingo said.
“You’re assuming that someone knew what they were doing when they cast the reactor shell with the module inside it,” Jason said. “I’m more convinced that it was just a clever place to hide it.”
“Cas,” Doc said, “what exactly is the Machine?”
“It is a weapon capable of developing singularities anywhere within its sphere of influence,” Cas said.
“What is that sphere of influence?” Jason asked.
“Thirty-five thousand lightyears,” Cas answered.
“That’s the entire quadrant and then some,” Kellea said. “And if I understand what Cas is saying, the Machine could create black holes within planets, stars, or just toss one into a shipping lane. Am I correct?”
“You are correct, Captain Colleren,” Cas said dispassionately. “The weapon is capable of collapsing stars, engulfing planets, or destabilizing entire systems.”
“Well,” Jason said blandly, “at least we know why everyone wants to get their hands on it.”
“What do we do now?” Twingo asked.
“I know you’ve been up all day working and I’m sorry to do this to you … but I need the ship back together as soon as possible,” Jason said. “That includes repairs from the battle damage.”
“I’ll have engineering teams down here within the hour,” Kellea said, walking out of the bay and pulling her com unit out.
“I’ll do my best,” Twingo said with a sigh. Jason patted him on the shoulder and motioned for everyone to follow him out.
“I’m assuming that you can navigate us to the Machine’s current location,” Jason said to Cas.
“Of course,” Cas answered. “I can give you coordinates verbally or I can program your ship’s navigation system myself.”
“I’ll let you know,” Jason said. “In the meantime, would you be offended if we powered down your emitter until we’re ready to depart?”
“You courtesy is unnecessary, Captain,” Cas said. “I am a simulation of intelligence, I have no feelings of my own that need to be considered.”
“Captain,” Ke’Elam said hesitantly. “Would it be possible for Cas and I to utilize some unoccupied part of your ship? The study of the Ancients has been my entire life. A discussion with one of their creations is an opportunity I won’t likely get again.”
Jason weighted the security risks against the fact that they owed Ke’Elam a favor for coming down from his village and operating the device.
“Very well,” he finally said. “You may use the conference room up on the command deck. Lucky will be in there with you the entire time.”
“I cannot thank you enough, Captain,” Ke’Elam said with a low bow. Lucky led him, Cas, and the silent observer up to the command deck and into the conference r
oom, closing the door behind him.
“Engineering crews are on the way,” Kellea said, walking back into the common area. “They’re my best people. They can do all the grunt work while Twingo supervises.”
“Thank you,” Jason said simply. “For that and the parts you’ve been fabricating aboard the Defiant.”
“My pleasure,” she said. “It looks like you’re rolling up on the endgame. Once you have the Phoenix ready to fly and the location of the Machine, all you’ll have to do is fly out there and destroy it.”
“You can’t possibly believe it’s going to be that easy,” Jason said.
“No,” Kellea sighed. “It never is. I’ll let you get back to work. I’ll be aboard the Defiant if you need me. My Marines should be done sweeping the city by now and I’ll need to collect them before they start causing too much trouble.”
“They’ve worked out better than I would have ever expected,” Jason said.
“I’ll admit that I accepted their offer with trepidation given my limited experience with Crusher,” she said. “But after they settled into life aboard a starship they’ve been a pleasure to serve with, and surprising in many ways.”
“How so?”
“They integrated with the crew more fully than I would have expected for a group of warriors that lived isolated from other species,” she said. “Almost all of them participate in crew social functions, organized events, and a handful even perform with a music group.”
“I’m very happy to hear that,” Jason said. “I still feel some responsibility for their wellbeing. I’ll contact you with anything that changes down here.” The pair took advantage of the empty galley for a lingering goodbye kiss before going back to their respective duties.
****
“You’re certain about this?” Jason asked. “There’s no issue with the units of measure being off from a translation error?”
“No, Captain,” Cas replied. “This is where the Machine is in orbit over a gas giant.”
“What’s going on?” Twingo asked as he walked onto the bridge, interrupting Cas and Jason going over the navigation data.
“I have good news and bad news,” Jason said. “The good news is that we were at least flying in the right direction by coming out to A’arcoon. The bad news is that we’re still six weeks away from the Machine at high slip-space speeds.”
“You’re kidding,” Twingo said. “Six weeks? Even given the Phoenix’s speed advantage?”
“Yes.”
“That presents us with a significant problem,” Twingo said, sitting at the engineering station. “This ship isn’t designed for unaccompanied trips of that distance. We’re well out of our safe range of operation.”
“I understand that,” Jason said. “That’s why I called you up here. Do you think you can get her ready for the trip?”
Twingo snorted in disgust, but turned and began working on the problem anyway, bringing up tables and charts on his display.
“We’ll need extra fuel, of course,” he said. “But we’ll also need more consumables, more raw material for the fabricators, spares for things the fabricators can’t make … it really is a terrifying prospect, Captain. Why can’t we just take the Defiant out at least half of the way?”
“They’re hesitant to commit the ship for the same reasons,” Jason said. “Not to mention the expense of moving a battlecruiser all that distance for something that may not even be there anymore.”
“It is still there,” Cas volunteered.
“How can you be sure?” Jason asked.
“The energy that powers the Key comes from the Machine,” Cas said. “In a very general sort of way I can verify its position by the distance from it to that of the Key.”
“How does that work?” Twingo asked.
“Are you familiar with quantum entanglement?” Cas asked. Jason shook his head no and Twingo nodded his head yes. “The designers utilized this phenomenon to transmit power to the Key to ensure it was always active.”
“That’s been theorized but never proven,” Twingo said. “Fascinating.”
“It seems we can take it on faith that the Machine is still there,” Jason said. “Crisstof isn’t going to authorize Kellea to take her ship out that far. He’s offered to have one of the deep space exploration vessels he has in his fleet meet us out here, but the closest one is two months away.”
“That doesn’t do us any good,” Twingo said. “Those ships are slower than hell to begin with.”
“So we’re back to the original problem,” Jason said. “Can the Phoenix be equipped to make the journey?”
“Yes,” Twingo answered after a moment. “But it will not be a comfortable journey and I’ll need some more support from the Defiant to make it happen.”
“I’ll get on the com and get it for you,” Jason said.
“One more thing,” Twingo said as he walked off the bridge. “You’ll have to break it to Crusher that he’ll be stuck on the ship for over three months with nothing to do.”
Jason winced at the thought of not only telling his large friend the news, but the reality of being stuck on the ship with him for so long.
“Maybe we’ll luck out and there’ll be a habitable planet along the way,” Jason said to himself.
“There are no known habitable worlds for your species along the recommended course,” Cas said, still standing in the middle of the bridge.
“Shut down, Cas,” Jason said. “I’ll activate the Key again when I need you.” The hologram disappeared without a word leaving Jason alone on the bridge with nothing but his misgivings about the upcoming trip.
****
Jason tried to stay out of the way as the tech team from the Defiant, supervised by Twingo, finalized all the preparations to safely extend the Phoenix’s range enough to get them to the Machine and back.
“This is making me nervous just looking at it,” Kellea said from beside him. “Are you sure about this?”
“Nope,” Jason said. “But I don’t see any real alternative.”
“I’m sorry that Crisstof flat out refused to allow the Defiant to make the trip,” she said, still struggling with what Jason had told her about being the captain and the realities of someone else owning her ship.
“I agree with him,” Jason assured her. “The Defiant is a front line warship. It isn’t designed for much more range than this gunship has. Even though you carry more than enough fuel, you have a lot more crew going through a lot more consumables … barring the use of one of your boss’s exploration vessels, this makes the most sense.”
“Why can’t you just wait for one of those?” she asked, beginning to ride on his nerves with all the second guessing.
“The ConFed is out there,” he said. “And they’re coming. They already know the location of the Machine, or at least Intel Service does. With the emergence of the Key, and what I’ve found out about what this ship could be capable of with minor work on the other end, we’ve got to beat them out there and destroy it.”
“The thought of that weapon in anybody’s hands gives me chills,” she admitted. “Who would build such a horrible thing?”
“Not only that, who would scatter the parts of the Key throughout our part of the galaxy?” Jason said. “All these relatively primitive species,” he shook his head. “It’s like letting a toddler play with a live grenade.”
“You know how I hate lingering departures,” she said suddenly. “Have a safe journey and please come back.” She hugged him fiercely, kissing him quickly on the lips before walking out of the hangar and heading to the shuttle that would take her back to her ship. She walked away fast enough that he didn’t have time to say anything, also ensuring she would be long gone before the Phoenix taxied out.
“Women troubles?” Crusher rumbled next to him.
“Always,” Jason said, deciding to try a new tactic and agree with him to head off any further abuse.
“Why do you think I’ve never taken a mate?” Crusher asked, leaving the doo
r wide open. Jason smiled widely at him. “I’m being serious,” he continued. “A warrior’s life is hard. The additional burden of caring for someone you’ll rarely see can be too much. Ours isn’t an easy path, but it has its own rewards.”
“Ours?” Jason asked, surprised. “I think that’s the first time you’ve ever acknowledged me as anything other than a liability.”
“I’ve given you a hard time as I would any untested trainee,” Crusher corrected. “But you killed a young, healthy Korkaran with your bare hands in single combat without the gimmicky armor or any sneaky tactics. You’re one of us now.” The genuine sentiment was such a rarity from Crusher that Jason just nodded his head, not trusting himself to speak.
“Captain Burke!” a familiar voice called out from the hangar entrance. He looked over and saw one of his close friends walking towards the ship. “Captain Mazer Reddix, Galvetic Marine Detachment Alpha reporting for duty, sir!” There were four hard-looking warriors arrayed out behind Mazer.
“You really want to come along on this crazy ride?” Jason asked him, a lopsided grin on his face.
“We wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, sir,” Mazer said. “We are on detached duty from the Defiant to the Phoenix for so long as we’re needed.”
“Crusher, see that our new crewmen have someplace to sleep,” Jason said.
“Yes, Captain,” Crusher said, forgoing the usual sarcastic comment. “Marines, grab your gear and follow me.”
“At once, Lord Archon,” Mazer said in the customary, albeit violent, Galvetic salute. Jason watched them go, shaking his head. Apparently Kellea felt he needed just a little bit more protecting and had sent a few of her Marines to reinforce Lucky and Crusher. They would be a great asset in a fight, but he had some doubts about them on such a long, dangerous flight. They wouldn’t even have the cargo bay to burn off energy in once Twingo was finished.
He stepped up on the ramp and looked over the preparations. Pallets of raw materials and consumables sat secured under cargo nets on the right side of the hold. Hissing cryogenic tanks loaded with precious liquid hydrogen sat on the left. The tanks were being topped off before they were piped into the manifold Twingo had fabricated that would allow them to supplement the gunship’s fuel load. In front of the cryo tanks were pallets loaded down with spares that the engineer deemed to be high priority that their own fabricators weren’t able to produce. Jason opened up a note in his personal file via his neural link reminding him to try and con Crisstof out of some new fabricators for his ship.
Omega Force 6: Secret of the Phoenix Page 21