Slipspace: Harbinger

by P. C. Haring

  “Yes.”

  He knew where she was going with this, but it still brought little comfort. It failed to change the fact that if something went horribly, catastrophically wrong, that one or both of them would end up dead, and it would be on him.

  “So you made the correct decision for the correct reasons and…” She paused. “I remind you that I made the choice to sign on.”

  “Not what you said at the time,” he replied as her comment about manipulating her came back to mind.

  “I still could have said no, if I had wanted. But we both know that as soon as you told me you had received this command, that I was coming with you.”

  The truth of that statement did nothing to make him feel better. If anything, it only worsened his depression as she had inadvertently implied that if he truly wanted to keep her safe, he should never have accepted the command in the first place. But she was trying to tell them that no matter what happened, they were in this together. For better or worse, as the vows went.

  “I know,” he conceded again. “And then I pushed you into violating medical ethics with that damn stim. That was wrong of me, even though it did help.”

  He could barely look her in the eye and for some reason she was smiling. Why the hell would she smile about this? She had been pissed as hell at him when he asked.

  “I didn’t violate medical ethics.”

  “But you told me that administering it would be a violation...”

  “And it would have been…. “had I actually dosed you as you’d requested.”

  “But—” He frowned. “You did dose me...”

  “With saline solution, my dear. In other words, I gave you a placebo.”

  The tears flowed even more freely than they had just a moment ago, and Amado couldn’t help but laugh. He had read about the psychological effects of placebo medication. Pride for her quick thinking and professional judgment swelled, drowning out the shame that had consumed him for making the request.

  “See, babe,” Nira said, “I’ve got you. Whether asking me on board was selfish or not, whether it was for the right reasons or not, I’m here, and I’ve got you. You’re not alone in this Cody. We’re all here: me, Cassie, Aler, Melor, everyone. We’re a team, and you do not have to bear this burden by yourself.”

  She leaned down to him, her flexibility allowing her lips to meet his forehead. As they did, he let out a breath he had not known he had been holding and he could not hold back the emotion and for not the first time tonight, he wished he could melt into his wife and never come up for air.

  “Come on,” she said, her voice soft and comforting. “It’s late. Come to bed with me?”

  She shifted under him. At first he resisted, but when her hands started their gentle push, guiding him back to a seated position, he gave no argument. Instead he offered her his hand. She accepted and together they walked as one towards the bedroom.

  October 17, 2832

  08:00

  Mjöllnir – OpCom

  WITH THE BLANKET of silence that fell through the corridors, one might have thought the vessel had been abandoned. Save for the hum of the equipment, not a sound could be heard as the crew stood deathly still in anticipation of the news to be delivered. Despite the massive size of the ship, news and rumor traveled fast. In the four days since their arrival, many stories and explanations had been bandied about- experimental alliance weapons gone wrong, a shift in the magnetic fields of the Artez colony causing catastrophic environmental damage, and even a conspiratorial cover up by the Alliance. It was as if the crew silently begged for an explanation. By the looks on their sullen faces when the comm’s alert tone sounded, he only knew the half of it.

  Cody Amado held them blameless, given the magnitude of the situation- a quarter of a million men, women, and children across several frigates, an alliance slipstation, and a colony had died. The destruction of Artez was little secret to anyone, but the senior staff had been keeping investigation details as quiet as possible in a vain effort to curtail rumor. In hindsight, Amado had to wonder if that decision had been in error. The incident with the Verasai only complicated matters and the stories only grew wilder when word of that damned fleet spread. Captain Cody Amado pressed the button on the side of the headset and turned to meet the eyes of those in OpCom.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, if I may have a moment of your time.” He paused, allowing those in the rest of the ship to stop their work and listen. “Four days ago, this ship responded to a distress call from the Artez Colony and you are already aware the colony was destroyed and to date no survivors have been found. There have been questions as to the cause and I have personally heard more rumors and theories than I can count. While the senior staff has been hesitant to provide details, we now have confirmed facts that we are prepared to share. Be advised, what I am about to tell you remains classified and is not to be spread outside this ship.”

  He paused again, and stole a sip of his water. “Shortly after our arrival, we identified the vessel which we believed to be responsible for the destruction of Artez. This ship, which we have named “Leviathan,” has been the focus of our investigation and we have determined there is significant evidence to indicate the ship is, in fact, Ralgon in origin.”

  He let those words hang in the air, giving the crew time to process. To their credit, the OpCom staff took it in stride. There were the expected gasps, pained and terrified looks, and the heavy swallows, but they maintained order and continued listening to the Captain’s words.

  “Why the Ralgon have re-appeared, we cannot say. But this remains the only known Ralgon contact since the end of the war. The incident at Artez notwithstanding, we have no reason to suspect another invasion, but we are not taking any chances. An Alliance-wide condition three has been ordered and Fleet Admiral Charles Marr is rallying our fleets and battle groups. The Mjöllnir, however, will not be joining the fleet. Instead, we will be continuing the investigation. Our mission is not revenge. Our mission is reconnaissance. This ship has been tasked with gathering as much intelligence on the Leviathan as possible and relaying our findings to Central Command. We have also been given a secondary task of locating allies to assist in any potential defense.”

  He paused once again. “I know how frightened you all must be at this moment.” He neglected to add his own fear. “We all have lived through one war with the Ralgon, and none of us wish to see a second conflict erupt. However, we must face that possibility. But know that as we move forward, this ship and crew are in a unique position: one where we may prevent a new war and saving many millions of lives as we do. Hold to that knowledge and let it bring you comfort, hope, and focus in the days to come.”

  He paused one final time. “Your division chiefs will have your specific assignments. Carry on.”

  Amado closed the public-address channel and replaced the headset in the receptacle for sterilization. To his surprise, the OpCom crew did not hesitate too long before returning to their duties. He turned to his sister, “Commander, you have the deck. I’ll be in my office.”

  October 17, 2832

  12:30

  Mjöllnir – OpCom

  THE ACTIVITY on OpCom had grown over the past few hours as the ship continued pushing towards the coordinates provided by the Verasai; the edge of Remali-held territory. If she were being completely honest with herself, Cassie did not have a good feeling about this mission. Between the destruction the Leviathan had wrought already, its likely connections, and everything else that had gone on surrounding the massacre, she had reason to be worried. This worry was not assuaged by Aler’s very grim simulations.

  And now, as she took a look at the command holo projector only to find interference ahead of them, things seemed to be getting worse. Commander Amado pressed a finger to the ear piece of her headset. “Sensors.”

  She paused for a moment while the communications system routed her call to the OpCom sensor station.

  “Linder,” came the response.

  “Petty Offic
er,” Cassie turned from the central display. “I’m taking a look at the sensor returns; can you clear up the interference ahead of us?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” she responded. “I’m looking at that right now. I’m showing a phase variance in the slip-line at our present position. Scanning ahead, that variance widens and distorts our reading.”

  “Analysis of the variance?”

  Through the comm, she heard the clicking of a computer terminal. Less than a minute later, Linder was back to her.

  “Commander, I can’t say with complete assurance, but this looks very similar to the variance we leave behind in Slipspace when we cut ourselves out without the presence of a gate. I’d speculate it’s another ship dropping out in a similar manner.”

  “Could it be our Leviathan?”

  Cassie knew it was a shot in the dark, but at the same time, it might make sense. They had no way of knowing how fast that ship could travel through Slipspace, and if the Remali were aggressive in defending their territory, the likelihood of one of their ships returning after an encounter seemed minimal. No. Given the apparent connection between the Remali and the Ralgon Leviathan, it made more sense that they might have picked up the Leviathan’s trail.

  “Can’t rule it out. Be advised though that the degradation of the pattern would indicate the distortion was created several hours ago. If it is our Leviathan, then it’s likely the ship is long gone by now.”

  In an odd way, Cassie found that comforting. At least now she could reasonably expect not to be ambushed as soon as they returned to normal space.

  “Where is that distortion in relation to our planned exit coordinates?”

  There was a pause as Linder checked her data.

  “The two coordinates are relatively close, only an hour at sub-light,” Linder reported. “Our distortion is farther ahead than our pre-planned coordinates however.”

  Which meant the distortion was likely inside Remali territory and if they dropped out there, they would be in blatant violation of their territory. But they would be that much closer to an actual lead. If they followed their current course, and proceeded at sub-light, whatever evidence there was might be gone by the time they arrived.

  “All right, relay exit coordinates to the navigator and pilot. Instruct them to alter their course.”

  “Yes, ma’am. We should be another few minutes beyond our original ETA now.”

  “Understood. Please update the Captain.”

  As she closed the comm line, she watched as the vectors on the holo display changed, updating the new course. In all likely hood, she had just ordered the violation of the sovereign territory of another galactic power. Would Cody have made that decision? Should she have consulted with him first? Perhaps. But he seemed to enjoy living dangerously, and she suspected he would have done the same thing in her position. Besides, the likelihood of them dropping on top of another ship was minimal, she knew. They might not even be detected. And if they sat on the border, they might draw unwanted attention and be denied access.

  If they even knew where the damn border was. Perhaps they could play at a navigation error. But then, Cody’s words of caution came back to her. The Admiral, Central Command, and everyone at home were watching. If they screwed this up...

  She took a breath and crossed the deck to her seat. That was the funny thing about command, she realized. Even when you weren’t certain of your decision, you needed to appear as though you were. She only hoped her decision wouldn’t be the cause of another war.

  October 17, 2832

  14:00

  Mjöllnir – OpCom

  CAPTAIN AMADO STEPPED onto the deck. “Sitrep?”

  The situation report fell to Cassie. “Approaching exit coordinates, Captain. Transition event in one minute.”

  At that, an alert sounded throughout the ship as the officer of the watch announced the coming deceleration.

  A shuddering of the deck marked the exit of the ship from Slipspace. The rapid systems checklist followed next: no significant damage to the ship, slip drive spinning down, location unknown but chartable, no known buoys or gates within range of the ship, systems status all green.

  “Sensors,” Cassie said into her headset, “I want an analysis on the area. Find me everything. Navigation, lay in a search pattern. I want to cover the most area in the least amount of time. Pilot, execute that flight pattern as soon as it’s in place.”

  “Ma’am,” the sensor operator said through the open headset channel. Linder, he thought her name was. “I have a debris field not too far from here. Whatever it is, I think it might be the source of our transition event.”

  “Lay in vectors, all ahead full,” Cody ordered.

  “Approaching now, Captain. I’m picking up two distinct patterns. Both unknown in origin.”

  “All stop, roll a CAP onto the deck, but keep them on the ground. Run correlative analysis,” Cody ordered. “Full sensor sweeps of the debris field, I want to keep our distance.”

  Cassie sidled up to his side and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “What’re you worried about?”

  Cody leaned in to her to respond, “We have no idea what we’re looking at and I’m worried about looking like we caused this.”

  “Results coming in,” the Sensor officer reported. “One of our two signatures match ninety percent to the Leviathan, the other is eighty-seven percent correlated to the data we have on the Remali.”

  “Analysis of the debris?”

  “Inconclusive, Captain. We’re not picking up any known hull markings or design similarities to anything we’ve seen before.”

  “Interesting,” he muttered.

  If he didn’t know better, he might have assumed that the Ralgon and the Remali had engaged one another. But how that played into the relationship between the two, he could only speculate.

  “Right then. Broaden the sensor range, let’s see if there’s anything else out there.”

  The search ended before it began.

  “Contact, Captain,” the sensor officer exclaimed. “I’m showing one large and three smaller unidentified ships inbound. Targets closing in and moving to flank! I’m detecting active weapons signatures on all of them and each ship appears to pack enough firepower to threaten, to say nothing about the three of them together.”

  Amado turned to his display as the three identical vessels came into view. Below the holographic image, a set of data appeared, indicating the largest of the ships had nearly two and a half times the length of the Mjöllnir. Definitely a battleship. By comparison, the three escorts might have been destroyers. As they approached, they clearly were not looking to make friends. The images resolved, revealing the longer slender hull of the warship. The forward section led with an arrowhead-like design with the main lines of the ships continuing to wave and flow down the length of the vessel until they converged in a tapered aft section.

  “Sound General Quarters, set condition one throughout the vessel,” Amado ordered as the three vessels broke formation and widened their approach to cut off the Mjöllnir from three sides, leaving the debris field to finish the job and surround them.

  CHAPTER NINE

  October 17, 2832

  14:05

  Mjöllnir – OpCom

  CODY AMADO STEELED himself for what was to come. The pilot maneuvered the Mjöllnir, trying to escape the closing perimeter but at every motion the three incoming vessels countered and blocked. To his left, Cassie relayed instructions through her headset, denying Labonne her request to launch and engage. He took another look at the sensor returns. They were not Ralgon but he had a damn good idea who they might be.

  Wait for it.

  The crew answered the call to battle stations and the last of the readiness indicators behind Aler’s station flashed green. The ship was ready to fight at his command. Instead, he held. Had these vessels wished to attack, they would have done so by now. Their maneuvers had cut off the Mjöllnir’s evasive vectors, trapping her. There remained only one viable course
of action.

  Wait for it.

  Then, as if on cue, the communications officer reported, “Captain, incoming signal from the lead vessel. I’m routing it through the translation matrices right now.”

  Bingo.

  Amado adjusted his headset. “Put it through when ready,” he said as he indicated to Cassie, Aler, and Melor that they should monitor the conversation as well. A few seconds later, the audio in his ear came to life.

  “This is General Rashar of Remali Confederate Defense, to the unknown alien vessel. You are in violation of Remali Confederacy space and are suspected of attacking and destroying a civilian freighter convoy. Stand down your weapons, heave to, and prepare to be boarded. Any action taken contrary to these instructions will be interpreted as an act of war and responded to with force. Acknowledge.”

  Cody paused for a moment before reacting. Of all the ways first formal contact with the Remali could have gone, this, he decided, was one of the worst. He had hoped to cultivate Remali trust and leverage that into actionable intelligence. But if they suspected they had attacked their convoy, then things were going to be just that much harder.

  In his ear, General Rashar repeated the orders and requested a second acknowledgment, leaving him to wonder if they were trying to make sure their translation systems were working appropriately. The Verasai had provided them with only a rudimentary language database for the Remali, one that would do the basics, but not much else. If this General was allowing for the possibility of communication difficulties, he likely had a few precious minutes. He muted the comm and turned to his officers. “Opinions?”

  “Obviously, we have no idea what these Remali will do,” Cassie started, “but that battlecruiser alone would present a challenge, to say nothing about the escort ships.”

  “We could put up a fight, but...” Aler’s voice trailed off.