by Jan Domagala
“At this moment sir I cannot say, there is not enough data for me to give an accurate explanation.”
Vance and Cooper looked at Jake and asked, “What do you think boss?”
“I think we need to get Kurt and Zara off that planet and fast,” Jake replied.
Cooper and Vance exchanged glances that said the shit was about to hit the fan.
“Artie contact Kurt, I don’t care how you do it just make contact. We have to know what is about to happen down there and let him know what the Alliance is about to do. Then I want all our weapons trained on that battle group. The second you get any indication they are about to fire those thermobaric missiles I want you to open fire on their missile ports,” Jake said. Then he turned to his team and said, “Yes you’re right, the shit is about to hit the fan.”
Cooper and Vance exchanged glances once more, but this time with a smile.
The Wildfire Team was going into battle it seemed.
III
Kurt stood in front of a bank of machines that he had no idea how they worked or what they did.
“Have you tried to access them via your NI?” Zara asked when she saw the frustration on his face.
Kurt gave a shrug of his shoulders to indicate he hadn’t. “Okay,” he said as he turned to face the largest machine in front of him. He glanced at Zara and said, “Stand back, I have no idea what’ll happen when I connect.”
“I’m staying right here just in case you need me,” she said giving him a reassuring smile.
Before he could access the equipment Kurt felt the telltale tingle of a call being routed to his NI.
“Artie is that you?” he asked, instinctively knowing who was trying to contact them.
“Yes sir, I have detected large amounts of geothermal energy building up in your vicinity,” replied the AI.
“No time to explain Artie but the energy is related to some kind of weapon. We think it was set by the people who built this city in an attempt to prevent any aggressive force taking control of the planet. It is going to power then fire a deadly EMP outward from somewhere down here, which will disable any craft in orbit. It was probably what stopped the battle all those years ago, not them coming to a decision to halt the battle, but the planet ending it for them. We need your help though, as we don’t know how to switch it off,” Kurt said blurting out as much information as he could. He hoped the AI would have the knowledge to help them prevent what was about to happen.
Artie said, “Would you allow me to access your NI sir, through that I may be able to access the computer controlling the device?”
“Go ahead,” agreed Kurt and he braced himself for the connection.
The AI made the connection and Kurt felt the presence in his mind. It was not invasive nor was it intruding, it was rather more like another facet to his personality.
“Is that it?” Kurt asked expecting something much more painful.
“I have made the connection sir and now I will attempt to access the city’s computer through your NI,” Artie told him. It was said so matter-of-factly that it could have been nothing more than ‘I’m going to make a drink’, it was that simple.
Zara stood looking into Kurt’s eyes the whole time he was conversing with the AI in orbit. She was looking for any sign of distress in his eyes or his facial expression at which time she would try to break the connection. She had no idea how, just that she should. So far everything seemed okay.
Kurt saw her watching him and he gave her a wink letting her know he was alright.
“What’s happening Artie? Talk to me,” Kurt said when there was a delay.
“It seems you were correct in your assumption sir. The weapon that is being powered up to fire was used to disable all the warring starships during the first battle. It was not, as was reported in the official log of that time, a consensus between the two warring factions that there was nothing to gain from further conflict. It seems the planet called a halt to the hostility itself, or rather the computer controlling the city,” Artie finally said.
“So they lied in the official report then about what happened?” Kurt said. He was not surprised, governments throughout history had lied to keep the truth about certain events from going public.
“I suppose they issued the story so that it would seem they both acted in the interests of their own people. It would be a better version of events than the truth that the planet was almost sentient and prevented anyone from taking victory there,” Artie suggested.
“A lie is still a lie,” Kurt said and the disgust was evident in his voice.
“Oh get off your high horse Mister,” Zara told him. She had been following the conversation the best she could after linking her NI to Kurt’s so she could better monitor his life signs should anything go wrong with the link with the AI and the computer.
Kurt snapped his head around to look at her, “Excuse me?” he asked, fire almost sparking from his eyes.
“You lied to General Sinclair about the success of the experiment, remember. You didn’t want the truth to get out either, so how is that any different?” she explained standing back a step, her hands on her hips looking him straight in the eye.
“It just is,” Kurt snapped at her before turning away. He knew she was right he just didn’t want to admit it.
“Why, because the Almighty Kurt Stryder can lie to people and that’s okay, but it’s wrong for us mere mortals to lie. Is that it? Are you better than the rest of us? Are you the only one capable of making the big decisions, or was it because it was something that would impact on you personally?”
“You know why I did what I did so stop pretending.”
“Me pretending? Yes I know why you kept your abilities to yourself, because you were afraid of what the General would do if he found out. Well he found out anyway and it didn’t turn out so bad did it?”
“What are you getting at?”
“That you have to trust people, trust that those in command actually know what they’re doing. Not just those in command though, those around you who care about you, who love you. Stop trying to shoulder the burden of others all the time. You have to allow others to make their own decisions and you have to trust them to make the right ones.”
“And if they don’t?”
“It’s their choice and they have to live with the consequences.”
“Sir, if I may interject here,” Artie said breaking in on the conversation.
Kurt tore his eyes away from Zara and said, “Go ahead Artie.”
“I have re-routed some of the command signals from the computer to the weapon but I cannot prevent it from firing,” the AI said.
Kurt and Zara looked at each other and both said, “Crap!”
IV
Jake was staring at the viewscreen intently. His focus was on the battle group and what they were about to do.
Missiles were fired from every ship in the small fleet, each ship firing a stream of missiles all aimed at the planet below.
“Artie!” shouted Jake as he saw the barrage let loose.
The AI fired the forward pulse cannons at the missile ports of the nearest ship but was too late and was out of position to be able to hit the other ships in the fleet. The pulsed plasma bolts struck the last seven missiles as they were being fired. The resulting explosions sent the ship into a spin, her missile ports damaged beyond repair.
The other ships stopped firing and two of them turned from their position in orbit, backing out of formation so they could face this new threat.
“I apologise sir, I could not target all the missile ports. I was out of position,” Artie replied.
“How many did we get?” Jake asked angry at failing to stop them all.
“Eleven sir,” the AI told him.
“How many are heading for the planet?” Torres asked, her voice breaking with the knowledge they had failed.
“Fifty-eight sir,” the AI informed them coldly. “They will detonate in the upper atmosphere in exactly three minutes four s
econds,” Artie said.
Cooper turned away from the viewscreen, unable to watch. “Holy fuck!” he shouted in anger.
“I’m afraid we have another problem sir, the battle group have detected us from the pulse cannon flares emanating from the gun ports as I fired and have sent two of their number to track us,” the AI informed them.
“What’s the status of Kurt and Zara?” Jake asked quickly running their options through his mind to formulate a plan.
“They are trapped below ground which, considering what is about to happen above ground, may be the safest place for them,” the AI said.
“How soon before those ships are within firing range?” Jake asked quickly.
“Two minutes sir,” the AI said.
“Is our stealth shield still active?”
“Yes sir,”
“Take us slowly away from here, keep our speed down and use minimal thrusters. I don’t want them to detect any engine signature from us. Move us over the top of the battle group and around to the other side, they won’t be expecting us to stick around. They’ll probably think we’ll make a run for it so they’ll be looking for us to open a hyperspace window and bolt through it.”
“That’s taking a big risk boss,” commented Cooper softly as he came to stand next to him.
“I know but I’m open to suggestions,” Jake replied looking at his friend, his brows knitted together.
“Not me boss, I’m just a grunt and that’s why you get the big money,” joked Cooper hoping to lighten the mood.
“What’s the status of that weapon down on the planet Artie?” Vance asked.
“It will fire in the next five minutes sir,” the AI replied.
Jake listened to what the AI had said and quickly correlated all the times in his head to get a better overview of what was happening. He held up his hand when he had it all straight in his mind. He said, “Right, those two ships will be within firing range in two minutes but we will have moved beyond that. The missiles will fire in less than three minutes and they’ll want to capitalise on that so I think they’ll send down whatever craft they have the moment the shockwave has passed, say thirty seconds to a full minute. What they don’t know is that the weapon on the planet will fire the EMP which will disable those ships and probably any in orbit in less than five minutes.”
Jake turned towards the viewscreen then said, “Artie what’s the effective range of that weapon?”
“There is no way of knowing that sir, but I would suspect it would have to be beyond the Battlefield relics,” Artie replied.
The rest of the Wildfire Team were looking at Jake wondering where all these questions and suppositions were heading. They looked at each other and it was Torres who first caught a glimpse of Jake’s reasoning. A smile crossed her face as she looked at him. He saw it and said, “We have to get beyond the Tartaran Battlefield before that EMP hits or we’ll be as helpless as all the rest of these ships.”
“And if they manage to send down any craft before it fires?” asked Cooper seeing the plan but also its pitfalls.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” Jake said.
“Don’t you mean if we come to it?” Vance asked.
They all exchanged glances that told Jake they knew what he planned. That it was a big risk was obvious, but it was the only hand they had so they had to play it.
“Artie, take us out of the Battlefield, all ahead full,” Jake said. He was about to play his cards and he held his breath hoping the other players didn’t have an ace to trump his hand.
27
I
Paradisia
General Tillic strode up to the room Tovaric had recently vacated. He burst inside sweeping the tactical team aside as he angrily looked around.
“Whose idea was it to go ahead and storm this room?” he shouted as he looked at each of the personnel in the room.
A tall soldier stepped forward, dressed the same as the rest in combat gear. He said, “Sir, we did a sweep of the room as soon as we were in position to ensure everyone was in place and ready to go on your command, but the sensors showed that the room was empty. I ordered the team to enter to see if we could determine where the suspect had gone.”
Tillic was about to reach for his concealed weapon as team commander came forward, believing that he had been incompetent, but hearing the man’s words stopped him. It seemed Tovaric was wilier than he had given him credit for.
“What did you learn?” Tillic asked, reining in his anger.
“We accessed the security feeds for the monitor the senator had in place and it showed him leaving through the window sir,” replied the tac-team commander.
Tillic turned toward Popov, his minder, and asked, “Where do you think he’s heading?”
Popov leaned in conspiratorially and whispered, “If he’s on the run he would head for the nearest vehicle. If he took a pool car from here we can track where he went, they all have ‘trackers’ installed.”
“Get on it immediately,” Tillic replied.
Turning to the tac-team commander he said, “Good work Commander, secure this room ready for Forensics, I doubt the Senator will return. Keep a contingent here on guard until we have Tovaric in custody and Forensics has completed their examination, the rest of you can resume your normal duties.”
He had failed this time to capture Tovaric but next time would be different. He turned and left the room followed by his minder, heading back to where they had parked the vehicle.
The senator’s treacherous act had placed them all in danger. If the Confederation acted upon the information he had passed on they could all see another war between the two super powers, which was something neither side wanted nor could afford. The Alliance certainly couldn’t afford another war as their resources were depleted to the bare minimum. Tillic had hoped this recent mission would yield the results that would re-energise the government and provide the funds needed to inflate their flagging economy. All his hopes though seemed to hinge now on the actions of one man.
This situation was spiralling out of control and he could see disaster on the horizon. One thing he was certain of though was that Tovaric would pay for what he had done.
II
Senator Tovaric arrived at the rundown hotel and parked his vehicle in the underground parking lot. He walked upstairs to the central lobby of the hotel.
Dressed as he was in his designer suit and overcoat he stuck out like a sore thumb. The normal denizens of the hotel looked at him as if he was an alien walking among them.
Tovaric strode through the lobby straight to the front desk where a grizzled individual sat dressed in a well-worn shirt that had seen better days. He was about to speak when a voice halted him.
“Nice undercover identity Tovaric. Could you be any more apparent?” Jared said from behind him.
The senator turned to see the tall mercenary casually leaning against the wall with his arms folded across his broad chest. He held out a hand when Tovaric was about to say something and simply waved for him to follow. He pushed himself off the wall and turned towards the door, glancing nonchalantly over one shoulder to ensure the man was following him.
As Tovaric caught up with him he placed a hand on his chest to stop him.
“What’s up?” Tovaric asked when he saw the calm expression of the mercenary change.
Jared saw several figures approaching from the side of the building. He didn’t know where they had come from but he knew their type. All dressed in dark suits, all with stern expressions, and decidedly large bulges that their jackets couldn’t quite hide.
“What vehicle did you come here in?” Jared asked glancing towards the senator angrily.
“A pool car, I couldn’t risk taking my own vehicle.”
“You fool, they followed you here,” Jared admonished him.
“How, no one knew where I was going, not even me until you gave me instructions?”
“Simple, the car has a tracker, they all do. It’s a security p
recaution,” Jared explained quickly.
“Who are they then?”
“Probably agents from the Internal Security Bureau sent to arrest you,” Jared said looking to see what reaction he would get from the senator.
“You can’t allow them to take me, I’ll pay double your normal fee,” Tovaric blurted out clearly afraid for his life. Jared knew that he was scared of the repercussions of whatever he had done and with good cause. The stories of the ISB making arrests and what happened next to those arrested were rife throughout the Alliance. Their reputation was based on fact, he was sure of it and if he ever wanted to get paid for this commission he would have to ensure that he did as instructed and got the senator to safety.
“Okay Senator, stay close to me. I’ll stay true to my promise, you just make sure you stay true to yours,” Jared told him.
Tovaric nodded quickly, his expression brightening slightly as he nervously glanced through the door to see the group of men approaching.
“Okay Mikal, we’ll be coming out a different exit,” Jared said quietly as he looked around the lobby for another way out.
“Copy that, I saw the ISB agents and knew you would. On my way round the back,” Mikal Danovic said. The two of them were in constant communication through a closed channel via their NIs.
Jared glanced at the senator and said, “Come on this way, let’s hope they haven’t blocked all exits or we may have a problem.”
Jared led him to the rear of the lobby passing by several dishevelled figures that obviously used the hotel as a flop house.
“Why did you choose this place?” asked Tovaric as he saw the curious glances they were getting.
“It’s out of the way and not the kind of place a senator would frequent, but I didn’t bank on you being followed. That was my mistake, your mistake was not telling me all the facts,” Jared replied, a little angry at how this job was turning out.
“Don’t get angry at the Senator Jared, you know these are the jobs you like the best,” Mikal said through the comm. link they shared. Only he heard the voice though so he didn’t reply, he knew his friend was right anyway. To say he liked these types of jobs would be wrong, but he did perform better under stress, the more stress the better he got. It had even been commented on his performance reviews when he was in the Black Knights, that he stood out as a tactical leader when under duress.