“One of the reactors—the temperature is climbing to extreme levels. I have shut off the damaged coolant line and am in the process of diverting coolant from the other reactor, which is under minimal load, until the repair of the line can be completed. Once it is cooled down I can shut it down temporarily,” the crewman explained, his voice cracking the whole time.
I examined the screen more closely and could see it did look like what he had just explained. “Carry on, and if there is anything that looks like it wants to go boom, you better let me know.”
“Go boom?” he asked.
“Bright ball of energy annihilating all of us and anything in the nearby vicinity.”
“I understand.”
“Dad, Captain Dakkon is launching two shuttles of his marines. He is going to accompany them and will see us in roughly a quarter cycle.”
“Sounds good. Sit tight until he arrives then join them. I will send an escort to bring all of you to the bridge.”
“There are still a couple of those squid hoppers hanging around in the hold. Can you do something about them?”
“I’m sure there is something I can do about it, or you can tell Captain Dakkon and they will handle it when they arrive. They might enjoy it.”
“You’re so thoughtful, Father, to leave them for somebody else.”
“Smart ass!”
“My Lord Reaper, both Khalnalax war ships have departed Kanlost and are en route to our location. This is not my doing, my lord. They were contacted by one of the previous captains when you began your attack.”
“Whoa! First, I’m not a lord or any form of royalty. And how many captains have there been since my shuttle landed?”
“I am the fourth, my. . .Reaper.”
“Well, you’re doing fine and you know how you know you’re doing fine? You’re still breathing. It’s simple, isn’t it? What’s your rank? I don’t care about fancy names, where are you positioned in the ranks?”
“I am the lowest of rank among the officers.”
“Excellent. Some of your crew look a lot older than you. Will they listen to your orders or are we going to have problems as soon as I leave the bridge?”
“We will have some issues, I am sure. I am cooperating with an enemy, and I’m sure there are those here on the bridge who realize they would be looked on favorably if they removed me from my position and tried to take our ship back.”
I worked my way around the bridge. Pausing to stare at random crewmen, I wanted them to be very nervous. “Have any of you ever encountered the Allond? I doubt it, but I’m not sure of your ages so I ask.” I addressed them all. “There are two squads of Allond marines seven to eight feet tall and twice as strong as any of you. They will be taking over this operation, and I will explain to them what your current captain has just told me. It will go very badly for any of you who do something stupid. Do you understand stupid? I see a lot of faces that look like they don’t comprehend,” I said, looking around the room.
“We understand, and we know that one day you will pay for what you have done,” a lone crewman explained with real conviction.
“I agree with you, and right now it’s only me all by my lonesome, so you have a few minutes to take your ship back before they get here. It’s six against one, you’re not caught off guard, and you look like a big guy for your species. You want to give it a try? Time is wasting.”
“You will just kill me with your weapons. I am unarmed and I am not stupid!”
“I give you my word that I will not use any of my weapons. I would disarm, but I don’t know any of you well enough to just hand my weapons to you. Now, wouldn’t that be stupid.”
Natalia interrupted my invitation. “Hey, the Allond just arrived. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
“Looks like you’re all too late. The reinforcements have arrived.”
“Kill him!” The female officer yelled from the floor where she sat bound. The angry crewman jumped up and charged. He moved fast. I waited for his first move, which was to jump on me—or try to, the amateur.
“The rest of you, help him take back what is ours! He is only one man!” she yelled to rally the rest. They began moving just as I caught the angry one by the throat and front of his uniform. I was guessing he weighed one seventy as I took a couple of steps back, absorbing his momentum. I began squeezing his throat and he grabbed my forearm with both hands. I decided to wait before I cut off his air. He was going to do something else out of desperation, I was sure. While the others stood, they didn’t move forward, and it looked like all the prodding in the world wasn’t going to make it happen either.
The female officer started berating her own people, calling them what I guessed were all sorts of rude names. My translator nanites were trying to keep up. The current captain took care of her and her mouth by kicking her in the side of the head. I looked over at him and smiled.
“She has treated the rest of us very poorly. I will take my chances with the Allond.”
“Good choice. Is this one worth saving? A little more pressure and I can kill him instead of putting him to sleep.”
“I would rather not make that decision. While I will cooperate with you if it spares the crew, I am not a traitor to order any of the Khalnalax people killed.”
“Fair enough.” I squeezed and the crewman went limp. I let him fall to the floor. “He is alive. Just tell him that if he comes at me again it won’t end the same way.”
There was laser fire in the corridor outside the bridge. “Captain, you need to go ship-wide with a message for everyone to stand down and open the door on my command,” I ordered, walking toward the door. “Now, open it.”
“Hello,” I said to the three crewmen standing behind cover. “You three are way too late and all you’re going to do is piss them off. Put your weapons down and stand against the wall. Also, be polite and do what they say.”
“Hey, what are you doing? It looked like it was going to be fun for a minute or two,” Natalia yelled from down the corridor.
“Come on, get over here and watch the bridge for me while I talk to my old friend.”
My daughter rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You’re disgusting. This is worse than the Allith slaughter at the naval outpost.”
“So does that mean no hug?” I asked.
“Hell no. Do you think there is someone who would actually hug you? Have you looked at yourself lately?”
“Captain, come here!” I ordered. “This is my daughter. I’m prettier and nicer than she is, but don’t think you can get anything past her. She will kill you and anyone else who looks at her wrong.”
“You’re an ass, and when Taz gets here she won’t hug you either if you still look like that.”
“How long till she arrives?” I asked, curious.
“She will be minutes behind Sash and our ship. She has had that frigate at full speed.”
“Ok then, I’d better find a place to rinse off, but maybe not until after she arrives,” I mused.
“That doesn’t sound good. Don’t start any shit with her,” Natalia reprimanded.
“Benjamin, you would do well to listen to your daughter,” Dakkon said as he waited patiently through our banter.
“What is a Taz?” the Khalnalax captain asked.
“He is referring to the Queen Tazleaha of the Cjittan Empire, which you and your people have so brazenly decided to invade,” Dakkon answered. “Do not worry, she will not be here long. The information will be of no use to your people.”
“I’m not even sure he thought of that yet, Dakkon. You see, he is a very new captain, only having recently being promoted from the lowest of the officers. That one over there on the floor, she is going to be a guest in your brig, as well as the unconscious fellow on the floor. Have your specialists find out what they know.”
“Specialists?” Dakkon inquired.
“It’s what we used to call the people who worked in military intelligence who extracted information from captives.”
“That sounds good. Natalia, find us a young tender fat Khalnalax to eat later, would you?” No one could see the smile on my face. Let them stew on that for a while.
“Yes, Father. I’m quite hungry myself.”
“Dakkon, I am going to release some of the crew and give them a shuttle. Try not to fire on them. I want them to escape and tell a tale of what happened here today.”
“As you wish, but I would not leave any alive if I were you.”
“Oh I know, that is the plan in the future, but right now I need them to talk. Let them tell their version of the story of the murdering, flesh-eating Reaper and his crew. Captain Dakkon, are you feared? Do your people or your enemies know who you are and fear you? Do you have a reputation?”
“I am respected by my crew and my people.”
“Of course you are. You are the brother of the emperor, you are the captain of a mighty starship.” I poked him in the chest. “But when a rival looks at you, what do they think?” I asked. “Do you even know?”
“I have no idea what they think, nor do I care,” he answered.
“Great, you can afford to never care. But I can’t. I am not going into battle with a naval fleet of warships and hundreds of thousands of soldiers at my command, so I need an edge. I want them to know me when they see me and run in fear of what the strange alien from a far-off world will do if he catches them. I want the fear to guide them into making rash decisions. Indecision and fear, my friend, will aid me and my privateers and help keep us alive. Otherwise we are nothing but a group of untrained miscreants, my people notwithstanding. One true warship and three pieces of shit, a dozen real soldiers and a few hundred criminals.”
“And how do you see yourself in all this, Reaper?” Dakkon said, oddly not using my real name.
“Oh, I’m a fucking criminal, my friend. I’m king of the criminal mountain around here. You know, it’s funny, Benjamin is the criminal for killing mostly useless fucks and traitors here and there, but Reaper, he can kill and kill and kill and it’s all in a day’s work. I’m doing my job, making the deep dark black a place where all you respectable people can feel. . . respected.”
“Your queen would approve. She as much as said she has turned you loose on her enemy, and they will know what war truly is when they face you.”
“She is many things, Dakkon, and I don’t doubt she loves me, but she will use me and mine until we are used up if it serves her purpose.”
“You are young, Benjamin. I have known her for many, many years and you are her one true love. She will use you, but it is no different than those two pistols you wear. If you have a deadlier weapon than your enemy does, why would you not use it? I will be expecting you and the others. Safe travels,” Dakkon said. He wanted to shake my hand or pat my shoulder, but he just pulled his arm back and smiled, boarding his shuttle.
“Everything ok up your way?” I asked Natalia.
“Everything is fine. The captain says to tell you the repairs are coming along and we should be patched up enough to travel safely within the hour.”
“No problem. I’ll stop on my way back and check on the coolant leak.”
“Oh hey, I contacted Taz and gave her the com codes for this ship, so expect a com soon from her.”
“Perfect. Did you talk to her or just pass codes on?”
“Passed them on, but I’m sure she already has them in hand if the captain of her ship knows anything at all about her.”
“I’m going to tour the ship. I want two of each, engineering, medical, bridge and weapons, to stay aboard along with our junior captain. Tell the captain I want experienced crew, then send the rest to the shuttle bay for departure after all the drives are online.”
“I will pass it on.”
“Thanks, and don’t turn your back on anyone.”
“It’s fine, Dad. I have two giant bodyguards who are giving them all the eye. I think they would rather get on that shuttle than try to be a hero.”
“Good. See you shortly.”
Chapter 14
“Captain Sash, the queen is requesting you,” Yahn, the helmsman, reported. He was tall, with a whip-like frame. Their ship was not of Cjittan make and the former owners were a small species. Though his knees were higher than the console, he still managed to work everything with precision.
“Send it to my quarters, Yahn, and that’s not my name.”
“Yes, Captain, but have you made that clear to him?”
“He will come around in time.”
“Forgive me, Captain, but until he does I prefer living.”
“He wouldn’t kill you over something as trivial as that. He wishes to call me Sash but I don’t think he required everyone to do the same.”
“He said. . .”
“Enough! The queen is waiting.” Sashet cut him off mid-sentence, tired of the conversation and the disruptions Reaper had caused.
Sash stepped into her quarters and sat down. With a touch of a button the queen’s visage appeared in the screen in front of her. “My queen, how can I be of service?”
“Captain Sashet, Benjamin has captured a Khalnalax vessel and I may need some of your people to perform as crew and transit to Xanlos for refit.”
“It is my understanding that there will be crew available in the form of prisoners to man the ship, unless Reaper has changed his mind and killed them all.” It is also going to be my ship, but it seems she doesn’t know that, Sashet thought.
“Will there be enough? What did he say?” Taz asked. Sashet felt the need to steer clear of answering too many questions.
“I’m sorry, I haven’t talked to him directly. Natalia gave me the information less than an hour ago.”
“I see; we are in range so I think I will contact him face to face with orders for the disposition of the ship.”
“Good luck with that,” Sashet mumbled.
“Excuse me?”
“Good luck with the ship, my queen. I understand it has taken some internal damage, but repairs are underway.”
Sashet changed position to hide the movement of her hands. She fired off a quick message to Natalia to pass on to Reaper with the addition of “you should hurry.”
“Captain Sashet, damage is expected. This is Benjamin we are talking about. I watched him decimate a small horde of Allith, kill the people who were responsible for killing his family, fly a shuttle into the bridge of a Trillond battleship with armed missiles in its cargo hold, and many other things I’ve heard from his people.”
“You know more than I, my queen.”
“Of course I do, and that brings me to this matter. I will need someone inside this group of privateers to give me information. Can I rely on you, Captain? I can make it worth the risk.”
“Do you not trust in him enough that you need a spy?” Sashet asked in wonder.
“You do not know him well enough yet, Captain. I trust him with my life, but not my empire.”
“The way I understand the arrangement, you do not need to openly support us; he has given you denial of the whole operation.”
“Still, I would feel better knowing I have an ally within the organization who might speak up when an idea is contrary to our ways. You still believe in our ways, don’t you Captain?”
“I have to respectfully decline. I hope you will give this venture some time to bear fruit, Tazleaha.” Sashet had dropped the title. “Already we have captured one ship and the Royal Navy is still gathering. I cannot support Reaper and his decisions if I have to think about your wrath and whether our decisions meet your approval.”
“Can I ask you not to repeat what we have discussed, and to think o
n my offer?”
“You can, but I promise nothing and I will ask you not to approach any of our people with the proposition. Have faith, Tazleaha, that your Benjamin will do everything he can to help free Cjittan of the Khalnalax.”
“I will not forget this, Captain Sashet!”
“Good, then you won’t have to repeat the lesson.” Sashet had served Queen Elea, Tazleaha’s mother, and there was a dark cloud that still hung over her head. Tazleaha had suspicions about her identity and she would have to be wary. She would serve Reaper and Binda, but not the queen.
****
“Doon, what did you see?” Joon asked. Her brother sat before her. They were dirty, tired and hungry and had not seen the sun in a week. Doon took his sister’s hand and cried. His tears made furrows through the dirt on his face. They were tired and the feeling of helplessness wouldn’t go away.
He got a brief look at their world in the waning light of dusk. For days they had felt the monstrous machine shake the earth and he feared the cave where they hid would come down on top of them at any time. Tonight he would search for food and a new place to spend the daylight hours hiding. Joon felt his emotions and could tell that he was at the end of it all. His emotions overtook him at least once a day since their world had been invaded, the people murdered or taken away. And now the planet itself was being raped and murdered by the Khalnalax. She would pray when Doon departed, as she did every day, for someone to avenge the planet and its people and to take them away to a beautiful new world.
Joon knew her brother wouldn’t answer her. She really didn’t need one; she could feel through the earth what was happening outside their little cave. “Doon, I’m coming with you. If you find us a new place, there is no reason to come back to the cave. We have nothing here.”
She felt him shake his head no. It was fast and frenzied; he was making a point.
“Doon, if something happens to you I will have to leave here sooner or later on my own. I would rather be with you, brother. No matter what happens to us, we have to stay together.” Joon waited but he didn’t move a muscle. “Stop thinking about it and let’s go.”
Chronicles of Benjamin Jamison 4: Empires at War (Part One) Page 22