by Musser, Dale
Suddenly, men and women were running out of the MIZBAGONA to another smaller craft that that appeared to be something other than a military ship – something more like a very small personal yacht. Within seconds it lifted into the air and took off, hugging the treetops as it fled.
Seconds later more men fled from the MIZBAGONA to look for refuge and, finding none, took off running into the jungle. They didn’t make it very far, as my men picked them off one by one. Within a few minutes the base appeared empty of people, with the exception of the few wounded and dead laying here or there. All the buildings were in flames, as were three transports and two patrol ships.
I got another buzz on my communicator and answered, “Tibby here.”
“This is Captain Stonbersa. We spotted four ships that left your location. They all seem to be heading to the same location in the far north of the planet. Ships are also escaping from other bases we’ve hit and they’re heading to that same location. Do you want us to pursue and eradicate them?”
“No, just mark where they land for now. You can also tell the patrol ship that brought my team here that it’s safe to land at the base with the new reactor core. We need to move quickly and get the MIZBAGONA out of here.”
“Right, Tibby. He should be there in less than three minutes.”
By now most of my team had returned to the rendezvous point. “I need five of you to come with me. The rest of you take up positions where you have broad visibility; and if any Brotherhood men approach the MIZBAGONA, shoot to kill.”
I led the five men into the MIZBAGONA. Amber emergency beacons lit up the main corridors and spaces within the ship, but everything else appeared to be nonfunctional. We managed to find our way to the bridge. The door was standing open and inside I could see a figure sitting slumped in the captain’s chair. It was Felenna; she was badly wounded. Blood covered her left shoulder and arm but she was still conscious.
“Felenna, are you okay?! Medic!” Almost immediately one of my men appeared and quickly began assessing Felenna’s injuries.
“Nasty shot,” he said, “but it will heal. We need to get her back to the NEW ORLEANS and into the infirmary.”
Felenna looked at me and said somewhat weakly, “Sorry, Tibby, but I don’t think I’ll be captaining the MIZBAGONA out of here after all.”
“Nonsense,” I said. “You can still talk and give commands. My men can do the flying. You’re not getting out of this for a little flesh wound. What happened anyway?”
“Everything went as planned until the EMP device went off. The chief engineer must have deduced that I was the one who planted the device, since I was the last one to come aboard and I’m not a part of the ship’s regular crew. While everyone else fled the ship when the explosions started erupting across the compound, he came looking for me. I thought everyone was gone, so I came out of hiding to find that he had lingered behind. He spotted me just as I stepped into view. He shouted and called me a traitor, and then he shot me before I could take cover. He managed to hit me in the arm. I had a flat gun in my other hand and got a shot off as I fell that struck him in the head. He’s dead, back there in one of the corridors.”
Just then one of my men came into the bridge with a status report. “Our patrol ship just arrived with the spare reactor core. They’re bringing it in right now and we should be ready to fly in 20 minutes. The patrol ship is going to cloak and scout around until we’re airborne; then he’ll escort us back to the NEW ORLEANS. By the way, there’s a guy in a Brotherhood captain’s uniform lying dead back there in the corridor…looks like a head wound… but other than that the ship’s clear.”
I chuckled, “Okay, carry on. Good work.”
By then the medic was finished patching up Felenna and she was looking better, though still quite shaken.
“How are you feeling now?” I asked.
“Better,” she said. “The medic sprayed something on the wound and it doesn’t hurt as much, but I’m still trembling. I’ve never killed anyone before.”
“It’s never fun or pleasant,” I said. “Listen, what I said a minute ago about you giving orders to fly this ship back – If you’re not able to do so, I understand. You’ve done plenty already, just helping us capture this ship.”
“No, no, it’s alright; and if you’re still willing to let me, I would be deeply honored to command the ship on its return to the NEW ORLEANS.”
“Good, then that’s settled.”
While we talked, some of my security troops came in to take up stations at various positions on the bridge. They had all been briefed on the ship’s operations and had familiarized themselves with their respective equipment and consoles using the RUNANA as a training model.
With a series of whirls and pings the lights and instruments suddenly came to life and a message came over the com link. “Reactor is operational, we’re ready to go.”
I turned to Felenna and said, “Well, Captain, the ship is yours to command. Take us home.”
Immediately upon our return to the NEW ORLEANS I went to see Kala once more. Nothing had changed, but I needed to see that for myself. My time with her was cut short as we were still in the middle of a hostile situation and there were many details for me to address. I needed to meet with the assault teams and get reconnaissance reports. I needed to meet with Stonbersa and A’Lappe. I needed to do a million things if I wanted to see this all brought to an end and see Kala out of this stasis. Sitting there with her, as much as I wanted to stay, was not going to get her out of there. Taking action would.
The rest of the day was jammed with meetings and decisions. After the day’s triumphs everyone on the NEW ORLEANS was in a celebratory mood. The operation was a success, though we did have a few injured troopers and two damaged patrol ships that suffered some mild damage from glancing blows as they collided while cloaked. Fortunately, everyone was expected to recover fully and nothing on the patrol ships was too seriously damaged; both ships were still operational. We weren’t able to get both of the captured corvettes into the hangar on the NEW ORLEANS; so the RUNANA took up an orbit position near the NEW ORLEANS and the MIZBAGONA was brought inside to be looked over and fitted with a cloaking device.
A’Lappe was like a small child with a new toy as he crawled about the MIZBAGONA, examining every mechanism and support system.
“These really aren’t bad ships,” he said. “They’re remarkably well built, except for the lack of redundancy. They’re armed with just about everything you can think of. Not much good for anything else than fighting; but a real war platform, nonetheless, for a planet or mercenary who needs affordable performance. I’m surprised the Brotherhood didn’t start using these ships sooner.”
“I don’t think they’ve had them more than a few months,” I said. “They seemed to be ramping up drug production on the surface; and I think the drugs have been their main source of revenue, at least for these big purchases. I’m sure the arms merchant that sold them to the Brotherhood operates on a cash-only basis; so they’ve likely developed a pay-as-they-go agreement for their orders and transactions. Their drug operations on Alle Bamma are so new that they wouldn’t have had time to bring very many of these ships into service. I don’t suppose there’s any way you can make a smaller energy source for the RMFF that will fit into the RUNANA and the MIZBAGONA?”
“I’m afraid not, Tibby, not unless you can obtain some more solbidyum and convince the Federation to let you have it.”
“I wouldn’t even want to ask,” I said. “Since you mention it, though, I have been thinking about the solbidyum. When I first arrived in the Federation territories, Captain Maxette explained solbidyum as a rare element produced in the collapse of a black hole. I know from what he told me that this event occurred on the outer edge of the galaxy; and it has me thinking. If it happened once, it most likely has happened in more than one place. There must be other black holes out there that collapsed for one reason or another. If so, there must be a way to detect them. Do you think you can do
that?”
“Hmmm, that’s an interesting thought. These anomalies would most likely not be in a galaxy itself, but in between galaxies. The black hole that produced the solbidyum was most likely a competing black hole or possibly a small one that was caught up in the spiral arms of our galaxy as the two objects passed one another. It would have to have been very small – that is, it would have absorbed relatively little matter, at least not enough to sustain itself.
“But you’re right; if there was one, there must be another someplace. It could take centuries to find it; and even then there’s no guarantee that the collapse would have also produced solbidyum.”
“Well, play around with the idea, A’Lappe. If you come up with a good theory as to where to find another or how to detect one, I would be willing to fund an investigative expedition.
“I do have one other question that has been bugging me. My understanding of a black hole is that it compresses material tighter together by way of gravity, causing the incredibly dense singularity. According to my understanding, a grain of solbidyum should be so dense and heavy that we would be unable to lift it; yet in reality, the whole lot of it isn’t at all heavy, not to mention a single grain.”
“I can understand your confusion,” said A’Lappe. “It was nearly overlooked by the scientists that discovered it for that very reason. You’re right. Its weight should be astronomical but for one thing; solbidyum has an anti-gravity property to it – not enough to totally repel normal gravity as we find on worlds suitable for humanoids, but enough to make it very lightweight, so to speak, while still being very dense. It’s quite intriguing stuff actually.”
After leaving A’Lappe, I located Piesew and asked him to make arrangements for a staff dinner that evening to celebrate our victory and to make additional plans for resolution to the situation on Alle Bamma. I advised Piesew that I expected everyone to be in formal attire; and I gave him one other instruction that caused his eyes to widen a bit; but he said nothing and simply replied, “As you wish, sir.”
After I finished dressing for dinner I slipped off for a few minutes to be with Kala again. As with previous visits there were several crew members present in the room where she lay in stasis. I walked over to the stasis chamber, thinking it looked all too much like a casket for my liking.
“Only a few more hours Kala,” I thought. “Just a few more hours and well have the planet under control and we’ll get you the cure… and you’ll be alright again.” I placed my hand on the capsule over her heart for a moment and then turned and headed for the dining room.
The usual staff members were there that evening as we gathered in the dining room – Captain Stonbersa, A’Lappe, Kerabac and Marranalis. As we sat down, it was obvious that there was an extra setting at the table where Kala would normally be seated. “Gentlemen, we have a new staff member joining us this evening. I’m pleased to present Captain Felenna, the newly appointed captain of the recently acquired MIZBAGONA.”
As I made the announcement, Piesew opened a side door to the dining room, through which Felenna entered. Her injured arm was immobilized, but the sling did little to detract from the formal white uniform she was wearing. There was a brief look of shock on everyone’s faces, which then gave way to applause and congratulations.
After she was seated at the table, I continued, “I have a few other announcements to make. As of today Kerabac is advanced to the level of captain in my services. Likewise, Captain Stonbersa is advanced to commodore. In this role he oversees and commands my entire fleet of ships, now and in the future.
“Unfortunately, I cannot advance Marranalis, as his rank is still determined by the Federation military, since he didn’t formally resign after verbally announcing to the admiral in a recent meeting that he was doing so.” Everyone at the table laughed, except Felenna, who wasn’t present at the meeting to understand the joke.
“I’m sure some of you are wondering what I plan to do with the MIZBAGONA and the RUNANA, though I’ve mentioned bits of my idea to a couple of you. Once all signs of the Brotherhood have been removed from Alle Bamma, I want this planet and its natives protected, so the Brotherhood and any other group that might try to repeat what has happened here are prevented from reaching the surface or interfering with the planet in any way. We know now that Alle Bamma was the source of the drug God’s Sweat. No doubt the Brotherhood has already taken seeds or cuttings of the plants and has begun growing crops elsewhere; so this will not be the last we have seen of this drug scourge. There will be others who will want to manufacture and peddle God’s Sweat; and if they find out its source, you can be sure they will be coming here for it. It is my intention to maintain both the MIZBAGONA and the RUNANA on guard here, each equipped with a squadron of Mirage Fighters and several patrol ships, which is about all that they can carry. In addition, I plan to have two other ships stationed here. As to what those will be only time will tell.
“Ultimately, my hope is to develop a space station, complete with quarters and laboratories, which will house scientific teams focused on pharmaceutical research. These teams will have to seek approval from me to conduct such research. After we have removed the Brotherhood’s equipment and infrastructure and restored Alle Bamma to her natural state, no one will set foot on the planet without my approval.”
I noted some stunned looks at the last statement. “Yes, I said removed. Soon the NEW ORLEANS will head back to Megelleon, where I will hire a team to respond to Alle Bamma and stay only as long as it takes to perform a thorough reclamation of every Brotherhood field and encampment area. Hotyona, who is not here with us and has not yet been told, will be overseeing that operation. I hope to not ruffle too many feathers by circumventing Cantolla’s authority and appointing him to this temporary assignment.
“As far as the Brotherhood presence that is still here, I plan to make a final offer to them tomorrow regarding terms of surrender. If they refuse, we will move forward with a final cleanup assault. So far we’ve been lucky; we haven’t suffered any casualties or lost any ships in our operation thus far, though two ships were damaged slightly in a collision that occurred while cloaked. Let’s hope our luck continues.
“At this point, our best weapons are our cloaked ground forces, which are instrumental in preparing each site for aerial assault. Their stealth will allow us to enter each camp with little risk of confrontation, free the slaves from the holding cells and secure their safety before we commence any organized aggressive attacks. Our ships will stand at the ready and will attack any base that does not surrender tomorrow, but not until every last native is clear from the strike zone.
“Brotherhood ships coming from the raid on Plosaxen will be arriving in a few days, providing the admiral hasn’t destroyed them all by then. I don’t want any Brotherhood bases or ships still in action here if they do show up, so we’ll be moving quickly and decisively against each encampment.
“I cannot begin to express to you all how pleased I am with your performances. I’m proud of each of you individually and proud of what we stand for together. More than anything, I will be immensely happy when this is all over with so we can locate the ruguian eggs we need to get Kala out of stasis and cure her of the poison that threatens her life.
“And now I’m done with my little speech, so let’s eat.”
The food served by Piesew and his staff was impeccable, as always. Most of the conversation centered on the battle of the day. Felenna received most of the attention, since her role had involved the greatest danger. I was pleased to see the others opening up to her and welcoming her into the group. Shortly before we launched the mission to seize the MIZBAGONA, A’Lappe administered the computerized tests to Felenna that indicated her true feelings about the Brotherhood and the offer I had given her. At the time, A’Lappe simply told me that her test results showed she was loyal without a doubt and was clear to move forward with her crucial role in the operation. Now at dinner, while the captain and commodore talked with Felenna about the mission, A’La
ppe quietly told me that the tests had verified that she did indeed loathe her involvement with the Brotherhood and had wanted to get out ever since she discovered their true intents. A’Lappe also said that her tests indicated a high degree of skill and strong leadership abilities, which I believed would become evident in her new position as captain of the MIZBAGONA.
After dinner we continued our conversation while sipping some wine from the collection I acquired as part of my purchase of the Galetils estate. Toward the end of the evening I said, “I have one request before we adjourn for the evening. I would like very much for A’Lappe and Kerabac to sing us a song.”
The two of them looked at each other and A’Lappe said with a wicked grin, “On one condition; we sing a Bandarian drinking song and at the end of each verse everyone must drink a shot of Bandarian brandy!”
Kerabac laughed and the rest of us just looked at each other, unsure of what this meant.
Kerabac said, “Come on, don’t be chicken. Bandarian brandy won’t give you a hangover. This brandy is known for that particular benefit.
“I’m in!” said Marranalis slapping his hand on the table.
“Oh, what the hell,” said Stonbersa. “Let’s give it a go.”
“Okay,” I said. “Piesew, find us some Bandarian brandy, please.”
True to Kerabac’s claim, I didn’t have a hangover the next morning; but I also didn’t remember any of the singing, drinking, or even going to bed that night – though I did have a strange tune running through my head as I showered and dressed. I wondered if I had gone to see Kala before going to bed, but I honestly could not recall anything after my first sip of brandy.
When I arrived on the bridge, everyone from the night before was present and looking well rested. I was glad to see that, as I feared maybe one or two might have some measure of hangover in spite of Kerabac’s assurance that we wouldn’t.