He still had a sense of hanging on by his fingernails, “Effective immediately, you are now the Captain of the Weasel. You have about twelve hours to familiarize yourself with those systems. I will be your co-pilot and Captain Helt will be your Chief Engineer. Get your gear and get over to the Weasel.”
Helt was grinning broadly, “And now, something has delivered a qualified pilot for a ship that hasn’t flown in fifteen years, of a type that hasn’t been built in sixty years, and a chief engineer that built the current systems. If I were you, I would start believing in something.” He held out an arm, “Come on, Captain Copeland, I think you’ll find the Weasel is a lot less complicated to handle than it used to be.”
Wills just stood there and watched the two of them leave. He had this overwhelming feeling that there had to be more to do; he had always thought that when this day arrived it would be wall-to-wall chaos. Instead, here he stood in a silent room with most assignments handed out and nothing to do but wait.
“Admiral?”
Wills turned back to Falmann, “Yes, what is it?”
“Sir, the Wexton-Hanna people have been notified and are getting their people in place. The Captain of the Streak says the ship will be ready to lift by nightfall. The Winslow and Pugnacious have acknowledged your orders and will be prepared to depart in six to eight hours.”
Falmann hesitated and looked nervous about something.
“Is there something else?”
He looked up at Wills, “Admiral, the Gregory Falls acknowledged receipt of your message but has not communicated beyond that. Sir, I know Stewart Weathers, the Captain; he can be . . . resistant . . . to things.”
Wills looked down at Falmann while he absorbed the meaning of the word “resistant,” “Get him on your com and let me have your chair.”
Falmann tapped a couple of displays and vacated his chair. Wills sat down just as the display went from the call activity indicator to the baby face of an Ensign wearing the cream and burgundy uniform of a Paradise Found Star Lines officer.
“Gregory Falls com station; how can I--“
Right about then, he noticed the two stars on the black ring collar of Wills white over-blouse.
“I . . . ahh . . . Governor, Admiral, what can I do for you, sir?”
Wills almost smiled at his discomfort, “Ensign, I have a need to talk to Captain Weathers; could you arrange that for me?”
Relief crossed the young man’s face, and he dropped back into his well-trained comfort zone of overly-polite glad-handing, “Why, yes, sir; I can do that for you. If you would please stand-by while I locate him. Please excuse the delay, sir.”
The boy’s face was replaced with the artistic rendering of Gregory Falls that served as the ship’s hold symbol.
I wonder what he would do if a real problem came his way? ran through his head while he waited--and waited.
After a couple of minutes, he looked up at Falmann, “Is it possible for a cruise-ship Captain to get lost on his own ship?”
Falmann had a resigned look that was a product of long experience at his job, “That kid is probably in a decontamination shower right now trying to wash off what Weathers fired at him.”
Another minute passed before the Ensign reappeared. It was obvious that the last few minutes had not been a happy experience for him; he even had some hairs out of place.
“Admiral . . . it is . . . that is . . . sir, if you could call back later, I’m sure that Captain Weathers would be available then.”
So, that’s how it’s going to be. Wills interlaced his fingers under his chin and projected his maximum mild demeanor, “About when were you planning on breaking orbit and heading for your next port?”
The hapless Ensign twitched and looked at something to the side of his screen, “We are scheduled to depart in five hours, sir.”
Wills continued in his mild, friendly mode, “Hmmm . . . five hours is more than enough time for the message I sent to the Kellogg to arrive and for them to return here. Tell me Ensign, have you ever seen a neutron beam cut a ship in half?”
The widening of the youngster’s eyes was pleasing to behold, as was his near whisper, “I’ve only seen neutron beams on vids.”
“Oh, don’t go and get all flustered, Ensign, I wouldn’t have the Kellogg cut the Gregory Falls in two, but I would have them carve up your AG ring.”
Wills started ticking off the planned process on his fingers, “Then I would have the ship boarded by armed Marines, the entire crew would be arrested, brought down to the surface, and thrown in prison; then I would see to it that Paradise Found Star Lines lost its docking privileges here at Archer and several of the nearer star systems, and I would make sure that all of your passengers knew that your Captain and the policies of the Paradise Found Star Lines were to blame for the extremity of their inconvenience.”
Wills had a standard set of fingers, so he was running out of them rather quickly as he ran through his list of probabilities; he cupped his hands on the desk and leaned a little closer to the pickup, “Given the competitive nature of the tourist and transport business, it is entirely possible that the loss of a ship, the severe penalties for violating a lawful order under the Statement of Procedures Regarding the Planet Forest and its Inhabitants by direction of the Terran Federation Colonization and Contact Commission, and the hideous publicity surrounding this incident would be enough to push Paradise Found out of business.
“Tell me Ensign, would you like a job as a lumber jack? Long hours, hard labor, and physical danger, but the fresh air is just wonderful down here. Why you could build your own cabin--”
The frozen Ensign jerked to life, “HangonsirI’llgettheCaptain.”
The hold symbol appeared, and Wills turned to Falmann, “He didn’t let me get to the part about all the pretty girls we have that are looking for handsome young men like him.”
Falmann looked thoughtful, “I don’t believe we have enough prison space for the entire crew of a cruise ship.”
“Eh . . . they don’t know that.”
His gaze shifted to the door that had just been pushed open. Lieutenant Easton Hayes, followed by Command Master Sergeant Stephanie Hayes, and Captain Essex Trillmann--the Marine detachment commander--marched to the desk in what Wills noticed was perfect cadence and step. He stood and returned the group salute, not quite believing what he was looking at.
“Lieutenant Hayes.”
“Sir!”
“It is ten a.m. in the middle of the week and you are wearing a formal dress uniform and white gloves.”
Lieutenant Hayes was nearly as tall as the Admiral with gray eyes and brown, wavy hair. His well-tailored uniform made clear the long workout sessions that he engaged in while alone on Forest patrol in the Santana.
“Don’t get me wrong, Lieutenant, I like seeing my people sharply dressed; it’s just that . . . this seems to be a bit over the top. Would you, please, tell me the reason?”
“Sir, I was attending a garden party and tea given by the Ladies Auxiliary of the Archer Founders Club.”
Wills knew his eyebrows had gone up. He shifted his gaze to Sergeant Hayes, “Really, Master Sergeant, you found him at a garden party? Was he actually drinking tea?”
Stephanie Hayes gave Wills a bemused look, “Yes, sir, we did, and yes, sir, he was.”
“Lieutenant Hayes.”
“Sir!”
“When this is all over, I would like to meet this lady friend of yours. I expect she will be very impressive.”
“Yes, sir, she is.”
“As for now, Lieutenant, I regret that your normal month on/month off duty schedule is disrupted, but the Santana is being prepped for liftoff, and I need you heading back there as soon as it is ready. You will return to Forest with two passengers, Doctors Jonathon Ames and Gladys Twisst. They are in charge of dealing with the Foresters; until I arrive, you are in command of all flight operations of all ships in the Forest system. You will land on the open field at the edge of their central town
as previously planned. Make sure you land at the edge of the field; the Streak will land there as will shuttles from the Winslow, Pugnacious, and Gregory Falls. The Weasel will land on the rocky area a kilometer south of you.”
It was Lieutenant Hayes’ turn to look surprised, “The Weasel, sir? I didn’t know it was ready. Who do we have that can fly it?”
“It was before your time, but Commander Copeland was first officer and pilot of the Weasel when it arrived, and, by some sort of stroke of mystical intervention, it seems we have caught rebuild operations during a lull in major--”
“WHO THE GOD-DAMNED HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE THREATENING TO DESTROY MY SHIP?”
Everyone jumped as Captain Weathers opened both ends of an airlock on Wills.
“Excuse me; I believe this is for me.”
Wills returned to the chair and smiled at the red-faced Captain, “No, no Captain Weathers, I wouldn’t destroy your ship, just carve off a couple of pieces.”
“YOU’RE INSANE, REYNOLDS.”
“Actually, Captain, you are the one that is refusing to accept reality. I am the Military System Commander under direct orders from the Terran Government. I have full authority to commandeer any and all resources within my jurisdiction. I need your ship, and if you refuse to cooperate, I will have an armed Marine squad placing breaching charges on your airlock in . . . ”
Wills turned and made an inquiring face at Captain Trillmann.”
The Captain caught his question, thought for a moment, “Twenty-five minutes, sir.”
“. . . twenty-five minutes.” He leaned closer to the pickup and dropped into ‘I’m your friend’ mode, “But let’s not look at this situation from a strictly negative point of view; sure, there are going to be inconveniences, and schedules are going to be disrupted for awhile, but think of the up-side. You have the opportunity to command a ship, one of only seven that participates in the rescue of part of the only known intelligent life form that humanity has ever found. Vids will be made of it, and ‘Captain Stewart Weathers’ will be known throughout human space. Why, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were immediately promoted to Commodore and given a sector command.
“Come on, this thing either comes out good for you or bad for you. I have people already working on taking care of your passengers, and, you have to admit, Archer isn’t a bad place to be stranded. In fact, there is a winery dedication in three days that I will not be able to attend now, but I can arrange for your passengers to be there and get properly toasted.”
Captain Weathers had calmed noticeably and gave the impression of thinking about it, “Alright, Admiral, you make a good, if heavy handed, case. I will begin transferring my passengers to the ground. Is there anything else I need to know?”
“Yes, Captain, remove any extra crew members that will not be needed. Retain enough people to show the Foresters what things are for, but they should be able to take care of themselves for the trip back here. Provisions are being assembled at the port that should be usable by the Foresters; load what you think you’ll need. The command ship for this operation is the Santana until I arrive in the Weasel. Contact Lieutenant Hayes on breakout for instructions.”
“How long will this operation take?”
“Yeah, I’m not sure of that. The last data dump from the Forest Monitor looked bad; there is a chance we may be too late right now. So, there will be at least one round trip for you that will take about eleven days. If we are not too late, we will be making as many round trips as possible. I’m sending a scout ship to Sandalwood and New Braxton in hopes of getting more ships. The pilot has been instructed to inform your company offices at both locations of your diversion.”
Weathers was calmer, but his jaw was still tight, “Thank you, Admiral, that helps. I hope you’re right about the glory of this thing; Paradise Found will probably take a medieval view of a Captain that goes wandering off with one of their ships.”
“They will see the benefits of your cooperation if I have to twist arms to do it.”
Weathers looked almost convinced, nodded, and cut the connection.
Wills turned the chair and stood up, “Lieutenant Hayes, you know the plan; get going ASAP.”
“Yes, sir.” Hayes saluted and left.
“Captain Trillmann.”
“Sir!”
“I am placing your detachment under the command of Erica Clacton to assist local authorities in handling the influx of our guests. Benais Salmond is building housing for the Foresters out at the T8 project location. I’m not sure how things will go so it might be a good idea to keep the Foresters out there and separate from the human population. Use your judgment about things and keep the peace.”
Wills watched Erica and the two Marines leave and felt that eerie sensation of needing to do something when there was nothing left to do. How can a life or death situation involving a half a million aliens come down to thumb twiddling?
He turned back to Falmann, who had reclaimed his chair, “Jerry, all I can say to you is keep doing your job, and keep things running smoothly.”
Falmann rocked back in his chair and looked up at Wills, “Don’t worry, we’ll do our jobs here; it’s you that has the tough job. I don’t know if I should envy you or be damned glad I’m not you. Have you ever considered the possibility that they may not believe you about the flares and may refuse to go?”
Wills thought about it and nodded, “That possibility exists; but their odd technology mix does include astronomical ability, and we have interpreted fragments of conversations that seem to indicate knowledge of the problem.”
Wills shrugged, “Bottom line is we have hope that it will work out reasonably well. It’s all we can do.”
Falmann just gave him a weak smile, “Rottsa ruck GI.”
Wills nodded, returned the smile, and headed for the door.
#
It was warmer now, but the floater-bike was parked in the shade of a tree, so he sat on it and made another call.
Nanci had a harried look when she answered, “Admiral, it’s getting nuts here; everyone is calling in a panic to see what they should do.”
“Put up a screening message and tell everyone that if they are needed they will be notified directly. Until then there should be minimal changes to everyday business. In fact, I have already done everything that seems possible to do at this time. What I want you to do now is send someone out to my home and pick up a travel kit for me; I’ll call Jessica and have her pack it.”
Nanci looked happier, “Will do, Admiral; anything else?”
“Yes, as of now, you are the Archer Entertainment Officer; there will be a bunch of stranded passengers and crew members from the ships in orbit. I want you to get together with Erica Clacton, and see that they have things to do and enjoy themselves here as much as possible. I was thinking that you might begin with that winery dedication on Marks Island; if you get them all well fried that could be a couple of days they won’t remember.”
“Do I get a pay raise?”
“No, Nanci, just a fancy title and longer hours.”
“Just what a girl wants in life. I’ll get someone out to your place right away.”
#
The next call was one he wasn’t looking forward to.
Jessica appeared on the screen; she did not look happy, “You’re going to Forest, aren’t you, Wills?”
He shrugged, “I’m in charge of this mess. I’m sending someone to pick up a travel kit. Pack a few work uniform changes and other things for a few weeks. I’m going to co-pilot the Weasel, and that thing will be a three week round trip even if things go well.”
Her eyebrows went up, “The Weasel?”
He shrugged again, “The major work is done, and Helt says it’s ready to go. I need everything I can get, and that’s the biggest thing available.”
An uneasy silence stretched out, “Love you, Jess.”
“Love you, Wills.”
He cut the connection and pointed the floater-bike toward the Weasel.
/>
#
It took fifteen minutes to work his way out to the back road that ran out to the point. Even zipping along the paved strip that headed straight for the Weasel seemed to take an unusually long time; sort of like heading toward a mountain range that never looked like it was getting any closer.
When he finally passed into the shadow of the huge ship, he slowed a bit and took notice of how the vegetation went from the normal healthy gray-green of the local stony soil adapted species to a stunted, unhealthy looking version and then to nothing. The Weasel had been sitting there so long that it had killed off the local plant growth by blocking the sunlight. He passed between two of the ship’s twenty-eight huge landing struts and headed for the nearest loading ramp.
Wills could have traded the floater-bike for a standard personnel floater or wheeled vehicle but he was glad he hadn’t now; the area under the ship was crowded with cargo trucks packed with provisions and a maze of personal transports of all descriptions. The floater-bike enabled him to thread his way right up next to the loading ramp.
He walked up the edge of the ramp while several cargo trucks worked their way up the center. He found one of Helt’s people checking each one as it arrived and directing the drivers to the correct deck, “Excuse me, can you tell me where I can find Captain Helt and Commander Copeland?”
The young woman pointed at the elevator set into the side of the massive central structural column of the ship, “Take the elevator to the main engineering deck. He said that he and the Commander would be starting there.”
Wills thanked her and went to the elevator she had indicated. It was one of ten large elevators that were built into the wall of the seventy meter diameter support core and system housing. The core ran from the strut platform to just below the bridge deck at the top of the ship.
The door opened automatically as he stepped in front of it and started to reach for the button. He entered and had to think for a moment. There were no really tall buildings on Archer as yet, but there were a number of elevators in the few two and three story buildings that they did have, and all of them were voice controlled; the Weasel’s elevators used a button panel. To confuse things a bit more, this panel had been the recipient of some hasty modifications. He knew that the bottom button marked SP meant Strut Platform--where he was at the moment--and the buttons marked C1 thru C10 were the ten cargo decks, but the passenger deck buttons only indicated P1 thru P14 instead of P1 thru P35. The button that should have been P18 now had a piece of tape next to it marked ME and the buttons from P15 to P17 and P19 thru P35 and the old ME button above those had metal strips covering them. The remaining CR1 to CR5 and BR for the crew decks and bridge were normal. Well, the tape said ME for Main Engineering so he pressed it.
Ariticle Six Page 3