Stowaway (Redleg in Space Book 1)

by Z D Dean

  He began his portion of the brief with the zeal that only an excited scientist exhibited. The plant appeared to be similar to one that was native to his home world, Lassf. It seemed to have the same characteristics and chemical makeup. The Gornoo, Jorloss’s species, used the plant to cure a genetic birth defect that was fatal if left untreated. Due to the climate change caused by the development of the Gornoo home world, the plant had gone extinct almost two decades ago. Since the loss of the plant, the Gornoo population had begun to steadily decline and would become extinct itself within four generations, according to Jorloss’s calculations. The objective of the mission was to collect samples for Jorloss to test aboard the ship. Jorloss hypothesized that if the plants were similar enough, he could increase their toughness and reintroduce them back into the Lassf ecosystem. The briefing concluded when Jorloss finished his portion of it.

  Realizing that this mission was a standard security mission, Zade let his mind wander. He spent the duration of the briefing thinking about Samix and how she was doing. After the mission brief finished, Jorloss headed to his lab to collect the equipment he needed, Mur appeared to power down, and Zade headed to the captain’s quarters to check in on Samix. There was no response when he knocked on the door to her quarters, so he sent her a private interface message.

  Hey captain, just checking to see how you’re doing. Jorloss mentioned that you were under the weather.

  Zade knew that if there was anything between them, and if he wanted it to work, he would have to stay professional with Samix while they were on the job. He had the feeling that by the way Samix handled his post grappling stunt, she had some negative experiences with men. The last thing he wanted to do was undermine her authority while he was a part of her crew. As Zade waited for a response, he leaned against the bulkhead and cranked up his hearing mod hoping to hear movement in her quarters. Samix’s quarters must have had sound deadening; although Zade could hear Axis breathing in his lab, which was down one floor and on the other end of the ship, he couldn’t hear anything from the quarters behind him. After five minutes with no response, Zade shot her one last message and headed down to Jorloss’s lab to see if he had any specific needs for the mission.

  We’re disembarking in a couple of hours. It would be nice if the captain saw us off.

  After three high intensity deployments, Zade knew how to focus on the mission at hand. He had become a master at compartmentalizing and although his mind wanted to stay focused on Samix, he pushed the thoughts back so he could dedicate himself to the mission. Whether Samix was actually sick or just upset with him didn’t matter in the moment; he would deal with it after he got back to the ship. Now, he needed to prepare for his fourth planet fall.

  The forward stairwell put Zade right outside Jorloss’s lab. As he entered, he could see the amphibious scientist digging through different boxes, searching for a much-needed piece of equipment.

  “Hey, are you going to need one of the pack mules for your stuff?” Zade asked, earning him a hold on sign from the scientist who was buried head and shoulders in an equipment box.

  “No, unlike some of the more spoiled members of this crew, I can pull my own weight,” Jorloss replied as he stood, triumphantly holding that which he had been searching for.

  “You’ve been doing this longer than I have. Are you expecting any issues from the locals?”

  Jorloss placed the piece of equipment in a pack that he was loading on one of his worktables.

  “No, we should be in and out before they even figure out we were there.”

  “Well that’s reassuring. I’m heading to my lab to check the SSILF functionality and put my kit together. See you in the bay.”

  Remembering that Mur had already staged the SSILF in the cargo bay, Zade walked to the rear of the ship. As he entered the cargo bay, he could see four matte, black, heavily-armed SSILF lined up against the ramp. Zade walked up to the first and placed his hand on its shoulder. This caused the SSILF’s operations profile to populate in Zade’s interface. Zade scrolled through the data searching for the diagnostics and calibration program. After finding it and starting it, the SSILF’s profile condensed into Zade’s left eye and a visual of what the SSILF was seeing populated his right. The SSILF readout was the exact view the SSILF had overlaid with a status bar, location relative to Zade, and ammo counter. Zade watched as the SSILF completed the program, ensuring that the firing reticle was working and there were no other issues. Upon completion the readout disappeared from Zade’s field of view and the profile expanded.

  Satisfied that the SSILF was operating properly, Zade quickly skimmed through the rest of the profile. Because most of the profile was simply code, Zade almost closed it before realizing that everything was encrypted. Curious about the encryption, Zade located the protocol section and, like the rest of the file, saw that it was encrypted.

  Mur, these SSILF seem to be vastly more intricate than the others and all of their coding is encrypted, Zade said through his interface.

  Apologies, security officer. As an artificial intelligence I can create SSILF that are more complex than you can as a simple class two individual. I can unencrypt them if you’d like, but it wouldn’t be complete until after you disembarked.

  Well look at the big brain on you. No need for the jab at me or my species. Don’t worry about unencrypting them if they can operate like the others.

  They will operate flawlessly and successfully complete their mission.

  Well, thanks for fabricating these early. I like the paint job.

  Zade worked his way through the remaining three SSILF, running their diagnostics and calibration, and ensuring they functioned properly. After the fourth SSILF completed the diagnostics program, Zade put the team on standby and headed to his lab to prepare his kit. His standard kit still included basic field supplies and his railgun and sidearm, but learning from past missions, Zade added grenades. His kit now included two types of smoke grenades and two thermobaric grenades. The smoke grenades included a red signal grenade and a smokescreen grenade. The newly developed smokescreen grenade was meant to be thrown directly up, as it reached a height of 15 feet it would detonate, creating an impenetrable 50-foot circular cloud. With his thermal vision modification and implant, Zade would be able to navigate out of it, but any creature without such advantages would be blind.

  Zade was particularly proud of the thermobaric grenades. He designed them after seeing the effectiveness of his Excaliber rounds. Zade had to throw these grenades short. While in flight, the grenade would orient itself in the direction it was being thrown. Just before impact with the ground, the grenade would release nine sub-munitions that would land in a 30-foot circle around the target area. All munitions would then detonate, instantly raising both the pressure and temperature inside the circle to conditions similar to the core of a star. After detonation, the explosives were designed to continue burning at their initial temperature for an additional 30 seconds. The initial explosion would vaporize anything exposed to it, the follow-on burn would bake anything between ground level and bedrock. These grenades were the very essence of scorched earth policy. Although Zade had never physically tested them, computer simulations guaranteed that they were absolute in their lethality. Unable to shake his schooling as an artillery officer on earth, Zade designed the grenades with collateral damage considerations. Because the grenades were directional, the only effect it would have on bystanders outside the grenade radius would be a slight overpressure that had the potential to knock them down.

  On the mission, Zade was taking his improved standard kit and his newly created buzz saws. After having trouble cutting through some of the denser vegetation during his mission with Axis, Zade had developed a more modern take on the machete. The buzz saw looked like a brush saw, minus the blade, with a horizontal handle that had a six-foot-long cable coming out of the end of it. On the end of the cable opposite the handle was a metal ball. There were two posts on the handle. One was connected to the power source,
located in the handle. The other was connected to the tether. When powered on, the ball on the end of the tether would act as a ground. Current would be sent through the frame of the saw, arc across the gap, where the blade would traditionally be located, and then to the ground tether. Zade hoped that the high temperature arc could be used to cut through obstacles.

  With only minutes left until landing, after finishing his weapons function check, Zade put on his new kit, grabbed the buzz saws, and headed into the cargo bay. Jorloss had already made his way into the cargo bay and was sleeping on one of the storage containers located by the rear ramp. Zade brought the SSILF out of standby as he headed over towards Jorloss.

  “Do you have any means of self-defense?” he asked.

  “I appreciate your concern, but I am a scientist. By definition I am a noncombatant.”

  “Although I don’t agree with your sentiment, I could understand the argument if we were going into standard combat operations. But in case you didn’t notice, we are going up against wildlife, and they don’t care if you’re a scientist or not,” Zade retorted in a slightly angrier tone than he wanted.

  “Well than you and your robots better be sharp.”

  Zade reluctantly walked back to the SSILF and waited for the ramp to open. Jorloss’s attitude reminded him of a chaplain he had had to interact with on his second deployment. The bible thumping noncombatant felt the need to tag along on every patrol Zade led that deployment. The guy was a huge inconvenience; he packed way too much stuff, and managed to get in the way at every turn. During a particularly long firefight the noncombatant stood up and tried to talk the enemy machine gunner into submission. Zade got blood all over his truck driving his body back to base after the fight. From that point on, Zade held to a strict non-noncombatant policy.

  When the two-minute countdown clock displayed in his field of vision, Zade pulled up the external conditions of the ship. After ensuring that they would not be blinded by friction heat, Zade dropped the ramp. Still in flight, he walked to the edge of the ramp and began orienting himself to the terrain zipping past below him. With 30-seconds left on the clock, the ship had slowed enough for Zade to positively identify the objective and the landing zone.

  Just before the ship touched down Zade sent the SSILF out to establish a security perimeter. He followed close behind so he could complete a quick sweep of the area and establish near security. The landing zone, although bigger than the objective, was barely large enough to fit the ship. Foliage crowded the ship on either side, and the nose was pushed into the underbrush to accommodate the open cargo ramp. Zade had to step into the tree line to avoid being crushed by the descending ship.

  Concealed by the undergrowth Zade watched, amused, as the slightly agitated Jorloss searched for the security team. He stepped out of the underbrush, forced to cut his entertainment short, when Samix appeared in the cargo bay. He walked up the ramp, towards Samix, while he quickly confirmed that the security team didn’t have any issues.

  “Sorry I didn’t respond to your messages. I was sleeping. I was up for a long time after we talked in your room, and I just couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore,” she said as he approached.

  “No worries. You don’t have to explain yourself to me. You’re the captain.”

  “I know, but I want to. I mean…” She started but was quickly cut off.

  Let’s not do this now in front of the crew. Not sure where this is going, but you have a reputation to maintain as captain, and I would like to maintain some semblance of propriety. Either way this is neither the time nor the place. Zade sent a whispered message to Samix’s interface, stopping near the end of the ramp, and placing his hands on his belt.

  Thank you, she whispered before stopping and addressing Jorloss and Zade together.

  “Alright guys, this should be an easy one. Stay safe; Jorloss I need you back here. You’re the only medical officer aboard, and Zade, I want a rematch,” she said smiling.

  Mumbling to himself about how they were going to make it through the dense jungle, Jorloss grabbed his pack and headed to the foot of the ramp. He paced back and forth along the length of the ramp looking for someplace to enter. While Jorloss was preoccupied at the foot of the ramp, Samix quickly embraced Zade and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

  “Seriously, stay safe. Something feels wrong about this one. I will be monitoring everything from the command deck, if you need me,” she whispered before again stepping back.

  While absent mindedly fiddling with the straps of his assault pack, Zade gave Samix a smile than turned to join Jorloss at the foot of the ramp. Stepping forward to interrupt Jorloss’s pacing, Zade took off his pack and began unhooking the buzz saws attached to the back of it. After explaining how they worked, he handed one to Jorloss and fired his up for a demonstration. Walking away from the ship and toward the foliage, Zade took a swing at the vegetation in front of him. Expecting the resistance associated with using an actual machete, Zade’s swing was slightly overpowered. He cut through all of the vegetation in front of him and a small tree to his right. The tree, larger than a sapling but smaller than a telephone pole, fell with a clang on top of the ship.

  Abashed Zade quickly threw the tree off the ship and returned his attention to Jorloss. He was just waiting, face unreadable, for Zade to start the northward trek. Glancing over his shoulder one last time before entering the din of the jungle, Zade could see that Samix had already receded into the ship, presumably to the command deck. The first 50 feet of the march required extensive clearing, but the jungle thinned once they were away from the edge. In the heart of the jungle, the upper canopy blocked out almost all of the sunlight which prevented any undergrowth from springing up. The two members of the expedition party marched in an uncomfortable silence until Jorloss spoke up.

  “So, what’s going on between you and the captain?” he asked accusingly.

  “Nothing, and how are you going to take that tone with the guy protecting you from the things that go bump in the night?”

  “All I’m saying is that Samix and I have been friends my whole life and I’ve never seen the captain look at a guy the way she was looking at you earlier,” Jorloss said authoritatively. “Plus, I hooked into the cargo bay cameras as soon as I stepped out of the ship. I saw the little peck on the cheek. Whatever you did to get her attention, if you’re toying with her and hurt her, I’ll make sure you don’t make it to any more planets.”

  The bravado and sincerity in the threat kept Zade quiet for a few hundred meters. Zade took the time to think about what was driving him. The whole concept of compartmentalization was now shot, since everyone wanted to talk about his personal business. Was he driven by loneliness? Was he driven by adventure? Perhaps, but they did have a tremendous amount in common, and there was something extremely special about Samix. He felt connected to her in a way he hadn’t with anyone else before.

  “Look Kermit, I may be a godless, heathen bastard, but I’m truly interested in Samix. I truly care about her. No toying, no ulterior motives.”

  “Good enough for me. Who is Kermit?” Jorloss replied, his mood visibly improving.

  Both men disregarded noise discipline as they finished the movement to the objective, trading jokes and talking about the women of their respective species as they walked. As they neared the objective, the first thing that Zade noticed was the delicious, sweet smell in the air that seemed to be growing more pungent the closer they got to the patch of plants. Like the first 50 feet of the movement, the last 50 feet were exposed to sunlight from the clearing and required the use of the buzz saws to get through. Once they broke through, Jorloss set to work.

  Based on what Jorloss said during the briefing, Zade didn’t expect to be on the objective very long. Jorloss had to collect some soil samples and a couple of plants to take to his lab aboard the ship, where he would conduct further testing. With Jorloss on his hands and knees playing in the dirt, Zade conducted a quick patrol around the edge of the patch, looking for any signs
of danger. With no apparent threats present, he took up position near Jorloss and waited for him to complete his work.

  Zade a tingle on the back of his neck that caused him to check the SSILF feeds. Usually when his sixth sense tingled, it meant that a threat was near. As the far security perimeter, the SSILF should have eyes on a threat before Zade could positively identify anything. As he began looking through the SSILF feeds, he could see that the robots were on the move. While watching, he could see that the SSILF had teamed up and were now oriented in pairs to the north and south of the objective, but they were still moving. Never removing his attention from the feeds, he informed Jorloss about what was happening.

  Jorloss stood and began to watch the feeds as well, both men anxiously wondering what the SSILF were up to. The robots were moving through dense jungle, and as they continued an image of two men began to resolve. Wherever they were, they had clearly identified a threat, and based on the targeting reticles trained on both men, had identified them as a threat to the team. Zade tried to clean up the image and zoom in on the larger man. Zade’s heart sank as he cleared the feeds from his vision. He finally zoomed in far enough to recognize the vest he was wearing on the feeds; the SSILF were preparing to engage him and Jorloss.

  Zade shouted a warning and dove to the ground as the SSILF opened fire. Jorloss heard Zade’s warning, but not being a combat veteran didn’t take cover fast enough to avoid injury. On his way to the ground, a round ripped through his left elbow severing his arm. Luckily Jorloss had chosen a small recession to work in, so both men had a minute amount of cover. Surrounded and outgunned, Zade immediately threw up the smokescreen. The SSILF, like him, would be able to see through it, but he hoped it would confuse them enough to allow him an edge.