by Frank Carey
“Communications! Get the Hippolyta on the horn. I want a one on one with either Capt. Hisakawa or her husband.
“Yes, Ma’am... Admiral, no reply from Hippolyta.”
“What? We were just talking with them!”
“Yes, Ma’am, but they are not responding to hails.”
“This is bad, very bad.”
“Could someone please explain what is happening?” Joshua asked.
Margarete explained what she found. His look went from neutral to anxious by the time she finished.
“Yes, Joshua, we have a traitor aboard the Hippolyta, and we're unable to warn them.”
“Admiral, Cmdr. Clyemne is asking to speak with you.”
“Put her on. Andie? Are you all right?”
“Yes, mother...I mean Admiral. We're fine. There seems to be a flaw with the Hippolyta's communication system, but Romy was able to fix it.”
“Andie, listen very carefully. All your lives depend on it.” She proceeded to tell Andromeda what Margarete told her.
“That's impossible,” Andromeda said. “Is Agent Callusa sure?”
“Andromeda? This is Margarete. I am absolutely sure or else I would not bring it to the admiral's attention.”
“I see. I shall take care of it then,” she said calmly. “I should go. Why don't you talk to Romy while I deal with this?” she said as she left the Sickbay.
“Be careful, Daughter,” Athena said as she heard the Sickbay door close behind Andromeda.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“Bay door opening,” Freya said from the Comm station.
They looked out the opening and, through the atmo containment field, they saw the rim of the Earth as they approached the re-entry point.
“Attention the ship,” Akira said. “We are exiting the bay and heading to position underneath Annihilator where we will hard-dock using the dorsal array. We are entering atmo while trying to maintain position between Annihilator's hull and shields, so the ride may get rough. Standby docking stations. Akira out.”
“John, get us out of here,” Fiona said. John pressed a button, activating the ventral thrusters and lifting the freighter off the deck. Once clear, he pushed a lever which retracted the landing gear. He then guided the ship toward the door.
“John, what about shields?” Fiona asked. The shields were the only thing keeping them from burning up during re-entry.
“Can't raise them, Ma’am. They'd interact with Annihilator's and make it impossible for us to maintain position. We'll have to depend on Annihilator's for protection. Exiting bay now.”
The freighter hung just outside the bay opening, but still inside the shields enveloping the war ship, the Hippolyta's attitude thrusters maintaining their relative position with small bursts to balance the changing gravity. With the precision of a skilled surgeon, John dropped the freighter along Annihilator's side until they were underneath the behemoth. John activated the main engines and proceeded to the attachment point aft of the bow.
“ETA to target altitude?” Akira asked.
“Eight minutes...mark!” Cora replied.
“We'll be in position in four minutes...mark!” John said as he made adjustments to their course.
The hatch opened and Andromeda walked in. “How's Romy doing?” Fiona asked while watching the ship's master chrono.
“He's fine,” she said. She walked over and took up position behind Freya. “He and I had a nice talk with our mother.”
Freya's body went tense. “Really? In all this you had a chance to talk with the admiral?”
“Yes, Captain,” Fiona replied. “I thought she should be able to talk with her family.”
“Oh.” Freya said as her hand slid over the touch screen on the comm panel.
“Thank you for that, Captain. It seems she had been trying to get through to us, but our comm was down.”
“What?” Liz said. Our comm is...” She stopped when Andromeda put her hand on Liz's shoulder and motioned for her to get up and step away from the comm.
“Luckily, Sheila and I were able to fix it with Romy's help. Now, according to my mother, Procis wasn't working alone. She had help from a member of the Olympian command, a woman who is sworn to protect the Republic with her very life.”
No one moved as Andromeda raised a pistol and pointed it at Freya. “Get up, traitor,” Andromeda hissed while barely controlling her urge to pull the trigger.
“Hardly,” Freya said as she spun and knocked the gun out of Andromeda's hand. Instead of trying to escape, Freya tapped the touch pad. Satisfied, she stood up and raised her hands as Akira held his gun on her.
“Liz, what did she do?” Fiona asked.
Liz and Andromeda examined transmission log entries for the last hour. “She sent a series of commands, Boss,” Liz replied. “It looks like a lot more than what was needed to open the damn door.”
“Andromeda?”
Andromeda looked and gasped before turning and slapping Freya. “How dare you. Recall that last order!”
Freya rubbed her cheek and smiled. “No can do, Commander. The only way to recall that order is to tear the computer core out and vaporize it. You don't have the time.”
“Someone tell me what the hell is going on!” Fiona said angrily.
“Capt. Heranna set Annihilator's self-destruct. The ship will detonate in five minutes, well before we reach altitude, and I can't stop it.”
“Can you slow it down?” John asked.
“Yes, I think I can,” Andromeda said. Freya lunged at Andromeda as she sat down next to Liz, but was stopped by Saul.
“Now, don't be a bore, Capt. Heranna,” Saul said with two of his claws pressed against Freya's neck, right above her carotid artery. “I think we should go to the brig where you can keep Procis company. I suggest you don't make a fuss. I'd hate to see all that delicious blood spray out and go to waste.” He led her out the room much to the shock of the other crewmembers except for Cora and John who were busy lining up the Hippolyta for docking.
“Two minutes until we’re in position,” Cora said.
“Andromeda?” Fiona asked. They were all getting damn worried.
“Got it. I've initiated every diagnostic program in Annihilator's memory banks which should overload the central processing core. I just hope it'll be enough.”
“Excellent!” Fiona said. She looked up at the main viewer and saw the red hexagon overlaid on the image of Annihilator's hull in the distance. It was fast approaching.
“Everyone to positions. Standby,” Akira said. “Liz, call Penthesileia and give them a status report.”
“Aye, Captain!”
Cora started counting down. “In position in three...two...one...mark!” The Hippolyta came to a stop and hovered just below the Annihilator's hull.
“Extend docking plate and arm explosive bolts,” Fiona ordered.
“Explosive bolts?” Andromeda asked Liz.
“In case this goes bad, we can separate the ship from the docker.”
“Plate extended; bolts armed,” Cora said as she checked her displays.
“Moving into position,” John called out as he pulsed the attitude. Hippolyta slowly closed the gap between her and Annihilator.
There was a lurch followed by the sound of atmo screaming across the hull, growing in intensity as they approached the planet.
“Annihilator's shields are down! Compensating. Five feet to go.”
“What about the shields?” Andromeda asked.
“Not until we're docked,” replied Liz.
“Contact in three...two...one...contact! Firing claws!”
The ship lurched once more as hydraulic rams pushed the eight claws into the Annihilator's hull, locking the plate and freighter to the bottom of the war ship.
“Shields up!” John said. He scanned his instruments and was satisfied they had a hard dock on Annihilator. “Captain, we're ready.”
“Copy that. Andromeda, time check,” Akira said as he scanned the bridge.
&nb
sp; “Sir, it will be close,” she said with a worried look.
“It'll have to be enough,” Fiona said as she sat back and took a deep breath. She hit the ship-wide intercom switch. “John, initiate twenty-two second burn at your discretion. Everyone hang on.”
John and Cora buckled in while they watched the master chrono. After one last check, John placed his hands on the throttles and waited while the timer counted down. “Rotating auxiliary engines to vertical. Main engine deflectors to vertical. Attitude jets to standby. Full burn in tee-minus five...four...three...two...one...mark!” He pushed the throttles forward past their stops.
Hippolyta shuddered as its massive engines pushed it into the underside of Annihilator with millions of pounds of thrust. Hippolyta's structure groaned and creaked as it transferred the force from its engines to the ship it was attached too.
“Twenty seconds to go,” Fiona said as she took Akira's hand in hers and squeezed it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The Penthesileia followed Annihilator into Earth's atmosphere while the other ships took position in high orbit to wait, watch, and render aid if and when Annihilator detonated. The crew of the Penthesileia knew they could do nothing or risk killing the planet they were sent to save. The Bridge was silent as they watched Annihilator approach the point of no return. Moments ago, the Hippolyta made their final report.
“Status?” Athena ordered.
“We are coming up on point of no return,” the captain reported. “We've confirmed activation of Annihilator's self-destruct system. Cmdr. Clyemne's efforts to slow the timer have been successful.”
“Thank you, Captain. Adm. Fenstrom, as Fleet Admiral, I take full responsibility for Annihilator.”
“How about we wait for recriminations and self-incriminations until this is over. I still have hope. Those kids flying Hippolyta are tough. Their plan may work.”
“Captain, Annihilator's shields are down.”
“Can we help Hippolyta?” Joshua asked, knowing Penthesileia was much larger and more powerful than the freighter.
“No,” Rachel said from the command chair. “We're not designed for it. We'd just destroy Penthesileia and possibly set off Annihilator's munitions.”
Moments later, another report from Science. “Captain, energy surge from the underside of Annihilator, near the bow. It looks like output from the freighter's main engines. Ma'am, that's a lot of thrust for a freighter.”
“Hippolyta was designed for both hauling freight and acting as a tug. I hope she has enough power to push Annihilator into a new profile,” Joshua explained.
“Twenty seconds until end of programmed burn. Coming up on altitude target,” the Science Officer reported.
“Profile change?”
“None yet, Sir.”
Rachel looked to Athena, who then looked at Joshua. “We have no choice,” he said. “Do it.”
Athena grimaced. “Captain, you are authorized to go weapons hot.”
“Aye, Admiral. Weapons Officer, go weapons hot.”
“Aye, Captain. Weapons are hot.”
The Penthesileia prepared for one final battle.
“Status,” Rachel ordered.
“End of burn in three seconds...two seconds...one second...”
“Prepare to fire.”
“Profile status...ma'am! Plus one-degree...plus two degrees...plus four-degrees...plus five-degrees...recalculating orbital profile... Ma'am, computers indicate escape trajectory achieved. Minimum safe distance in fifteen seconds.”
“Status of Hippolyta?” the admiral ordered as everyone watched their scopes for any sign of the freighter.
“Nothing, Sir. Scopes are clear.”
“Dammit, John, break away,” Joshua whispered as he stared at the main viewer.
“Captain, get us out of here,” Athena said.
“Helm, escape vector.”
“Aye, Captain.”
“Five...four...three...two...one...minimum safe distance.”
Annihilator exploded like a sun going nova.
“Comm! Hail the Hippolyta. Science, Weapons, Defense, full spherical scan.”
Athena closed her eyes and whispered, “Andromeda, Romy, I'm so sorry.” She opened them and looked over at Joshua who calmly watched the view screen.
“Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is Capt. Fiona Hisakawa aboard the LTV Hippolyta on Starguard Channel One requesting assistance. Mayday, mayday, mayday.”
Joshua took over. “LTV Hippolyta on Starguard Channel One. This is Adm. Joshua Fenstrom. What is the nature of your emergency? Over.”
“Engines almost gone, electrical system damaged. We are barely maintaining orbit. No injuries, but we need a tow, over.”
“Got them,” the Science officer reported. “Sending coordinates to Navigator.”
“Got them,” the Navigator said. “Course on the board. ETA three minutes, best possible speed.”
“Engage, best possible speed,” the captain ordered.
“Hippolyta. This is Penthesileia. We'll be there in three minutes.”
“Aye, Penthesileia. Three minutes. Hippolyta standing by.”
The Bridge broke out in applause.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The Bridge shook as the freighter strained against the giant Annihilator. Gauges redlined and alarms sounded as the Hippolyta was pushed to her limit and beyond.
“Ten seconds to end of burn,” John called out.
“Deflection no joy,” Natasha said as she watched her sensor readouts.
“Systems failing across the ship,” Joanie said from the auxiliary engineering console.
“Compensate,” Fiona ordered.
“Come on, baby, push this brute,” John muttered as he watched readouts with a wary eye. “Five seconds!”
“Plus one-degree! Plus two-degrees! Plus three-degrees! Plus five-degrees!” Natasha yelled.
“End of burn!” John said as the computer brought the mains to idle.
“John, get us out of ...” An explosion at the back of the Hippolyta stopped Fiona in mid-sentence. She slapped the intercom button. “Streen, report!”
“Lost number one and four engines. Engineering depressurizing. We're evacuating.”
“Streen, get out of there. Sickbay! Medic to Engineering. Atmo leak.
“On our way, Captain,” a male voice said. It was Romy.
“Romy?” Andromeda said in shock.
“Go and give them a hand,” Fiona said to Andromeda.
“Yes, Capitan,” the young officer said before grabbing a medical pack and heading out the door.
“John, we need to go.” Fiona said as she watched the master chrono. She knew their chances of surviving a blast were decreasing with every tick of the clock as the chances of a detonation increased. They were strapped to a big bomb, and they knew it all too well.
Before she finished speaking, John was throwing switches to release their hold on Annihilator.
Nothing happened.
The docking plate remained firmly attached as the war ship headed to space, dragging them along with it.
“Arming Emergency Detachment System,” he said. He ripped-off safety covers and threw the switches hidden underneath.
“Twenty seconds to Minimum Safe Distance.”
“Ready, Ma’am,” he said.
“This is the captain. Everyone hang on!. John, go.”
“Three...two...one...detonation!” He pressed the firing button.
Explosive bolts connecting the plate mechanism to the Hippolyta's superstructure fired like a zipper down the length of the freighter, separating it from the plate system. A second later, rocket motors fired, pushing Hippolyta away from Annihilator at better than three gees acceleration.
In the ship, everything not nailed down flew up to the ceiling by the three times Earth's gravity force.
“Ten seconds to Minimum Safe Distance,” Natasha squeaked out as she pressed against her seat harness at three times her normal weight.
The roc
kets burned out, releasing everything, but only for a moment.
“Firing all thrusters, full power,” John said as he pushed four levers forward. Knowing they may only have seconds before Annihilator exploded, John did everything possible to put distance between Hippolyta and the doomed star ship. The pressure returned, this time only slightly less in magnitude.
“Five seconds until Minimum Safe Distance... Four... Three... Two... One... MSD!” Natasha yelled. Then Annihilator blew.
Three-miles of war ship exploded as munitions of every size and type detonated, forming a ball of plasma twenty miles wide. Even in the rarefied air of the upper atmosphere, the shock wave was enough to slap Hippolyta, throwing its occupants around like rag dolls.
Barely remaining conscious, Fiona's training took over as she ripped a cover off the Command Chair's arm, revealing a red button, which she pressed. “Mayday, mayday, mayday...” she said before giving details. Someone touched her arm. It was Akira, bruised and beaten, but not seriously injured. “Wife, are you hurt?”
“No, get me out of this harness,” she said as she tried to get out of the chair. “Get a damage report, find out who's hurt.” She stood-up, wincing.
Sheila, Doc, and Andromeda rushed into the control room. While the two medics attended to the rest of the Bridge crew, Andromeda ran over to check on John. “John, are you injured?” she asked while checking for fractures and lacerations.
“I'm fine,” he said with a smile. “Really.”
Out of relief, or maybe because it was the right thing to do, she kissed him, then pulled back in shock. Before she could say anything, he kissed her back.
“Mr. Sato, when you get a chance, could you give us a status report?” Fiona asked. John looked up and saw the rest of the bridge crew staring at him and Andromeda. He looked over at Cora who was giving him the “Awww shucks” look as Doc ran over and gave her a quick once-over.
“Yes, Ma’am,” he stammered as he checked readouts. Meanwhile, Andromeda went off to attend to the others. “We're in a slowly decaying orbit, but we should be okay for another hour. Main engines are dead. Secondary engines are out. Thrusters are gone. Half the electrical systems read damaged. Ma'am, I apologize, but I may have broken the ship.”