Shroud of Eden (Panhelion Chronicles Book 1)

by Marlin Desault

  “Presuming we convince two of the three captains in the expeditionary fleet to join us,” Scott said, “we still have Prometheus, and Camus doesn’t know it. That, my friends, shifts the odds in our favor.” He went silent and raked his hand through his hair. “But the damn communications problem gives Camus the upper hand. If we can’t get close to the others, we can’t talk to them.”

  He rubbed his forehead, then bolted upright. “I have an idea. Poland, suppose you tell Camus you have Prometheus, that your Marines defeated the Niobians and liberated the weapon. When he learns you have Prometheus, he’ll no doubt have you rendezvous with the ships en route to Coma Berenices. When we get close to them, we link up by radio or laser signal and let them know our intentions. If we do persuade them to join us, Camus won’t have any inkling of what we’re up to.”

  Tanner broke out in a broad smile.

  Klaas and Ariela arrived on the combat deck to find Scott and Tanner huddled in conference.

  The normal compliment of crew, plus a few bystanders, crowded the deck as word spread through the ship that Prometheus would be test fired. The Marine guards stopped a few more of the ship’s compliment who tried to enter.

  Klaas made a note of the numbers and icons on the weapons display. “Prometheus diagnostics show green to go. Who wants to do the honors?”

  “Tanner’s still commander of this ship,” Scott insisted, and moved next to the firing station. He pointed to a bright spot on the display. “Poland, we’ve found a target, an asteroid a bit over five million kilometers away. It’s about the size of a Panhelion cruiser—a little more mass, but it’s approximately the same shape.”

  He shifted his body to face Tanner, now sitting at the fire control console. “At your pleasure, Captain. The honor is yours.”

  Half a kilometer away, off the starboard bow, Pegasus streamed images of the Aurora back to the consoles on the warship’s combat deck. All eyes concentrated on the view from Pegasus’ cameras. The display showed opposing panels under Aurora’s prow sliding back, and a turret supporting a shiny barrel with black rings descending out of the bay.

  On the ranging screen, Tanner placed the cross hairs and circle icon on a yellow blip. The display from Pegasus’ camera showed Aurora’s turret make a sharp partial-spin.

  Tanner tightened his grip on the trigger control. Aurora shuddered and her lighting flickered as the hadron engines labored. The aiming display lit up, and a purple dart leaped into view and disappeared in the distance. “First shot’s away.”

  Half a minute later, a flash of light bloomed as if a new star had flared into existence.

  “A hit! A direct hit, by God,” Blyds yelled.

  “All right, I’m convinced.” Tanner’s body visibly relaxed, and his face beamed. “Now we make our move.” He rose and handed Blyds an e-file. “Sent this ECCO message to Admiral... or I should say Regent Camus.”

  Beads of cold sweat formed on Scott’ furrowed brow. “God help us if we have to use this on our own people.”

  The mood on the deck went quiet.

  Earth

  ~~~

  In the office of the Regent and Supreme Commander, Schwartz puffed his chest out, delighted he was the first to bring his Regent the good news. “Sir, news from Aurora. She’s in possession of Prometheus, and has fired the first successful test shot.”

  “Tanner’s done it!” Camus grinned and drove his fist into his palm with delight. “Now we can dispose of the Khepri and secure our hold on Earth and the settlements.”

  “What orders shall I send to the Aurora?”

  Camus rubbed his hands briskly together. “Tell Tanner to join Plexaure and Targelion in the Coma Berenices Cluster. I want him to engage the Khepri as soon as he forms up with them. Any news on the refit of Vesper?”

  “She’s out of the Ganymede repair yards and has finished her space trials.”

  “Good, ahead of schedule. Order her to follow Targelion at flank speed to Coma Berenices. I want her to link up with Aurora and the other cruisers. Three first-line strike cruisers to support Aurora, and Prometheus to boot—that’ll give the Khepri something to think about. When this is over they’ll be quivering in their carapaces, afraid to move another meter away from their home planet.”

  Schwartz grinned. “Sir, congratulations. When our ships defeat the Khepri, and when the population of Earth and the settlements are firmly under your control, you’ll be the sovereign of the known universe.”

  “That is my destiny, Schwartz.”

  Niobian Orbit

  -

  Aurora

  ~~~

  In the wardroom, Tanner and Scott bantered over plans to depose the New Imperium.

  Tanner went silent when his implant sounded with the voice of his communications officer. “Captain, ECCO is decoding a message from Earth Central.”

  “What’s the precedence designator?”

  “Sir, it is priority.”

  “Put it in my urgent file.” Tanner retrieved his doc-projector and spun the input icons on the projected data entry space until he found the message. “Scott, it appears Camus is no longer using secret Defense Command ECCO.”

  “He’s the Regent now and doesn’t need to transmit in secret any longer.”

  He read the projected text. “I’ll be damned. Camus has taken the bait. He’s ordered us to join Plexaure and Targelion in the Coma Berenices Cluster.” He grabbed Scott’s arm. “Your plan is working. All we have to do when we reach the Coma Cluster is convince Captains Bauer and da Silva to join us in mutiny against Camus.”

  With a droll smirk, Scott corrected him. “Not a mutiny, that’d be a revolt by the crew. We’re asking these captains to disobey orders from their superiors. I believe that falls under the definition of barratry.”

  “I don’t care what you call it.” Tanner hesitated. “We better sharpen our arguments as to why they should join us in a rebellion against Camus.”

  “Poland, you worry too much. We hold the trump card, and we’ve plenty of time to work out our arguments. If we leave now, we won’t arrive in the Coma Cluster for another four months.”

  “Makes sense. Still, I think we’ll all rest easier when we know if the others are going to join us.”

  Scott gave a tactful nod. “Then we’d best get underway.”

  The two made the short trek to the combat deck.

  On the combat deck, Tanner settled himself in his commander’s pod. “All right,” he said to Blyds. “Let’s get out of here and help the expeditionary fleet finish off the Khepri so we can return home to settle with Camus.”

  Both Aurora and Pegasus broke out of Niobian orbit. The smaller ship, captained by Klaas, followed like a faithful squire off Aurora’s port quarter. The two homed on the opening in the time gradient.

  As Aurora prepared for departure, Ariela remained discreetly near Scott on the deck, as if he were her island of refuge in a sea of uncertainty.

  With a hint of melancholy in her voice, she gave Aurora’s navigator the course information.

  Scott cast her a look of sympathy. She was to leave Niobe for a distant shore and with no idea of when, or if, she would ever see her home again.

  The Niobian sun grew smaller until it was just another star among the many inside the gradient. Her eyes misted over, and her voice faltered. “In the low millimeter band, you’ll find a signal from a satellite placed on this side of the opening by our people decades ago. From there, you’ll have a precise start position for transit through the opening.”

  Tanner tapped his intercom implant. “Navigation, Ms. Ariela Lavendal will join you in a few minutes to help work out our heading and provide the time line for our exit.”

  Ariela left the deck with apparent reluctance, glancing over her shoulder at Niobe receding in the display.

  Three hours later, at Ariela’s instruction, Aurora’s comm center activated the beacon and the first waypoint of their course beckoned. In the main tridimensional, the image of the satellite’s lasers c
ast out spinning red and green lights against the velvet blackness of space, marking the first waypoint to the opening and the universe outside.

  Tanner radioed Pegasus. “Beacon off the port bow. Klaas, you’ll be the first to exit the opening. Start your egress, and we’ll see you on the other side in a time long past. Have a safe voyage.”

  “Thank you, Aurora, and luck to you.”

  From Aurora’s combat deck, they watched Pegasus fade from view as she entered the passage on her way to the universe they had left behind.

  Aurora broke free of the time tunnel. Tanner watched the image of the waiting Pegasus take shape in his display as his ship made her egress out of the opening, the date ninety-eight years in the past, plus the time he and his ship had spent inside the gradient.

  “Except for our fuel status, the ship’s fully operational and ready for our voyage to the Coma Cluster.” Tanner spoke in a nonchalant manner, as if he were reporting the weather.

  Scott frowned and did a doubletake. “What about our fuel status?”

  “The voyage here and our search for the opening drained our fuel to reserve levels,” Tanner confessed. “A refueling ship, the Beluga, has orders to wait for us outside the opening to replenish our consumables.”

  “And if Beluga isn’t there?”

  “In that case, my friend, we’re soon adrift with no means of propulsion,” Tanner replied with feigned humor in his voice, and after a moment added, “You worry too much.” He smiled broadly. “Camus won’t let us down. He needs Prometheus, and he knows we have it.”

  “Unless he’s somehow found out we’ve gone rogue.” Scott scowled and rubbed his forehead. “Then he’d leave us here floating and send his warships to disarm us.”

  “Unlikely, but we better hope that’s not the case. If the Beluga isn’t nearby to refuel us, we’re just a dense collection of highly organized molecules floating in space.”

  With the low fuel alarm beeping in the background, Tanner set the laser scanners to a broad field search pattern. “She’s not there.”

  He concentrated on the long-range scan display. “Comm, any update from ECCO Central on the Beluga?”

  “None, Captain,” came the reply.

  “Damn. Put out a call for Beluga over standard radio on all guard frequencies. Let’s hope she’s within electro-magnetic range.”

  Twenty-four hours later, a ring in his implant caught Tanner’s attention. “Captain, Beluga just responded. At her current distance it took her radio signals twelve hours to reach us.”

  “Damn. She’s at least thirteen billion kilometers away. What the hell happened?”

  “Sir, she reports delays leaving her base as the reason for her late arrival.”

  Tanner sprang into action. “Nav, put us on a new heading to intercept Beluga. Set our velocity to cover the most distance with least fuel consumption.” He glanced at Scott. “It’s going to play hell with our fuel reserves, but let’s pray we have enough to meet up with that whale.”

  “Tanner,” Scott said with concern in his voice, “order Pegasus to stay out of sight and out of sensor range. She can join us after you refuel. I don’t want Beluga’s captain to know she’s with us. If he sees her, he’ll report it and arouse Camus’ suspicions.”

  Tanner spoke into his implant microphone and turned his command pod toward Scott. “Done. Pegasus is departing now.”

  Twenty-plus hours later, an image of an over-sized guppy grew until the Beluga’s massive form filled the display space. Tanner ordered his ship to maneuver parallel, and the two ships formed up next to each other for the transfer of needed supplies.

  Tanner’s implant buzzed, and the comm officer’s voice responded, “Captain Tanner, Beluga’s skipper would like to shuttle over to parlay with you.”

  Tanner sidled up to Scott. “Damn, that’s all we need. If he sees you or anything suspicious, word will get back to Camus. You and Ariela better make yourself scarce. I don’t want him to get even a whiff of anything out of the ordinary.”

  “Does Camus know of your fuel status?”

  “He was aware that we’d run low on fuel when he ordered us to the anomaly, and ordered the Beluga to resupply us.”

  “Put on a good show for Beluga’s skipper.” Scott grinned and left the deck.

  Six hours later, Tanner slapped the Beluga’s skipper on the back and wished him well as he boarded his shuttle for the return trip to his ship.

  Tanner dialed up his logistics officer and spoke into his implant. “How’s the resupply going?”

  “Sir, we’ve topped off noble gases and fusion elements. Our fuel status reads full, and we’ve resupplied stores for crew and maintenance.”

  When the shuttle carrying Beluga’s captain disappeared from the display space, Scott sauntered through the combat deck portal and studied Tanner’s expression. “Did he hint that anything was wrong?”

  “I plied him with some of my best liqueur, and offered him some of that exotic fruit from Niobe. He left in a good mood and nary a word about anything out of the ordinary.”

  Scott did a quick mental calculation. “If we leave now, we can make the Coma Cluster in four months, about the same time as Plexaure and Targelion.

  Logistics Base Ganymede

  ~~~

  In graving dock 3B, workmen in environmental suits swarmed around the crippled Vesper as she lay suspended in the grapples supporting her against the gentle gravity of the Jovian moon. Overhead, the giant planet bathed the scene in reflected sunlight, giving the repair yard a surreal, faded gray appearance. Occasional flashes from the workers’ joining electrodes pulsed blinding flashes across the gap between the ship and the sides of the dock.

  On a gantry high above the ship, Captain Emeka Kamau and the yard chief stood in an enclosed cabin, watching workmen fit a hexagonal plate of nano-structured carbon into a gaping hole in the ship’s hull, while a separate crane swung a gashed and burned plate away from the dock.

  For the last five years, Emeka had served as captain of the Vesper. Her record had earned her the awards and ribbons on her uniform. Troubled over the battle that had nearly destroyed her ship, she vowed next time she commanded Vesper in combat she’d make up for the insult.

  She gripped the cabin railing and strained to get a better view of the activity below. Superimposed on the view of her ship, her coffee complexion and short black hair reflected back in the duroglass separating the pressurized cabin from Ganymede’s thin atmosphere. “That’s the last of the outer hull repairs, chief. How are you coming along on the ship’s internal systems?”

  His beefy arms folded across his chest, the burly yard chief scanned the scene before him. “We’ve completed repair on the interior hull damage and environmental systems. If our quality inspectors approve, your ship will be released for space trials the day after tomorrow.” He tilted his head and looked askance at Emeka. “You know, Captain, I’ve seen this type of damage once before. A few months ago, we repaired a light corvette, the Demos, if my memory serves me correctly. She had the same kind of burns on her hull.”

  At one-point-eight meters tall, and slender frame, Emeka’s height reflected her African origins. She glanced down at the chief and ignored the comment. “Chief, you and your men have performed admirably. You’re two days ahead of schedule. I’ll let Regent Camus know.”

  “Thanks for the compliment, Captain. I’ll pass it along.”

  He toyed a moment with his doc-projector. “In all honesty, we folk here in the outer settlements have an independent streak, and we aren’t particularly pleased with the New Imperium. We’ve no representation since the Senate is now Camus’ rubber stamp. Kind’a reminds me of the old days, of the tyranny that led to the settlement rebellions.”

  Emeka averted her gaze to the repair work in progress on her ship. “Not that I blame you, chief, but be careful. You don’t want to be accused of sedition, not the way things stand these days.”

  “What about you, Captain? Are you happy with the politics on Ear
th?”

  “I’m a military officer, Chief. I stay out of politics. Mixing politics with duty hinders my ability in battle.”

  The yard boss moved in front of Emeka and studied her eyes. “Surely you must have an opinion. After all, you’re a citizen as well as a military officer.”

  “Just between us, I do, but when I’m in uniform, I uphold my oath to follow the orders of my superiors.”

  “That may be, Captain, but the day may come when you’ll be called to a duty that conflicts with this new government.”

  Emeka lowered her head as if to distance herself from the conversation. “By the way, Chief, did I tell you we have our sailing orders? Vesper will soon be back in action.”

  “Captain, may I ask what happened out there?” The chief tipped his head and glowered at Emeka as if carefully weighing her reaction to his question. “The men are speculating about the damage to your ship. There are rumors... rumors you were in a firefight. Is it true?”

  “Yes, but off the record. Tell your men we collided with a small asteroid. We don’t want to alarm them.”

  “I’ll tell them, but your story won’t wash. These men are professionals. They know what collision damage looks like, and they know a ship doesn’t suffer burn damage like this from a collision.”

  He spoke the truth, but she had already revealed too much about how her ship came to be damaged. “Sorry, Chief, you have the official explanation. I’ll leave it to you to make it stick. I can tell you that as soon as our space trials are complete, we head to the Coma Berenices Cluster, and just between you and me, that’s where we suffered the damage.”