Alpha Class [Book 2]

by TS Paul

  “It’s something for the future. The Queen wanted it so a Yollin could fly it. She is always thinking.” Peter pulled up standard Yollin sizes and compared them to the pod. “See their feet would go there. This one has lots of minor modifications that are adjustable. Sort of one size fits all pod.”

  “Oh, good you are all here.” Jeo entered the bay and looked around. “Is this it? Way bigger than the other ones.”

  “It is. The controls are the same as the other one, and there is always the EI. I will be in that over there. If we are attacked, let the EI do the flying. Understood?”

  “Yes. After Egypt, I do understand the advice you give. Did you see my flight plan?” Jeo looked at Peter expectantly.

  “The insane one? Oh yeah, I did. You really want to poke the bear, don’t you? I told the other Queen’s guards you were crazy just so you know. It's approved. Something you said stuck with the Queen. Don’t get used to it. We like her unpredictability.”

  “Wonderful. Let’s get started then!” Jeo approached the pod, but Peter held him back.

  “Slow your roll there speedy. The last part of your little trip is an overnight stay. Did you get any supplies? Food, water, camping equipment would be helpful. I may be a wolf, but that doesn’t mean my ass likes sleeping on the ground. And why overnight? We can go up and down in less than an hour each way?” Peter just stared at Jeo.

  “I like camping. This one is for me as much as them.” He pointed to where Alpha Class was gathered. “They should be able to enjoy the whole experience. Plus it will be really cool to see the sun come up over the wall.”

  Peter only shook his head. The man was going to get him killed. “Give Isaac down in stores a call. Tell him I sent you. He will put everything together and send it up to us.”

  ~~~~~~

  Kwan Lee was a farmer. When he wasn’t farming, he worked in what he liked to call salvage. Those in the Western world might call him a pot hunter or tomb raider. Watching the crops grow was very boring. Finding pots or bits of ancient junk was more exciting and so much more profitable! He would do it full-time, but then he would have to tell the Government about it. They would either take his money or forbid him from digging anymore. This way he had the best of both worlds. There were always gullible tourists to sell junk to.

  He was digging into a ruin with his pick and shovel when he heard the shot. There wasn’t anything out here except ruins, rock, even more ruins, and lots of sand. Kwan had to pack his own water, it was so scarce. He immediately dropped to the ground. Real bandits were rare, and the closest Chinese patrol was at least ten miles from here. His cousin kept track of them for him. Kwan valued his life and wanted to continue living. He heard the men before he saw them.

  “Did you get it?”

  “No. Is it possible for you to tromp around less? It’s your fault the animals all flee in terror before we even get there to kill them.”

  “Weeks of chasing the beast with you has drummed that out of me. You’re just making things up.”

  “I never miss. It’s your fault, it has to be.”

  “Whatever. Have you found any sign of that army patrol?”

  “They went off in the other direction. For now, we’re safe. The beast could not have run far. The sooner we catch it the sooner all of this goes away. I hunt things, not the other way around.”

  “Do you really think Beijing will stop hunting us when we find the beast?”

  “If we can prove that the technology is there. It’s that damned TQB. This tech is supposed to be just like it. That is why they’re so desperate. Can we do that, can we prove it?”

  Kwan strained his ears to hear the answer to the question, but the men had walked too far. The words Patrol and hunting sparked his interest. Could these men be smugglers or spies? Grabbing his shovel, he ran for home. His wife’s cousin was a sergeant in the border defense force. Maybe he knew who these men were.

  Reward money flashing through his head, he ran faster.

  ~~~~~

  “You want what?” Isaac was the current head of shipping and stores on the QBBS Merideth Reynolds.

  Finding, storing, and tracking all the supplies the asteroid base used on a daily basis was a huge job. Several EIs, specifically created by ADAM did all the hard stuff, but he was the man-on-the-ground. It was he that interacted with requests like this one and supervised the employees. Plus, he was teaching his job to students at the Etheric Academy. Charlie class was here at the moment. With luck, they wouldn’t trap themselves in the warehouse like Foxtrot did last term.

  “Camping supplies for seven including food, water, and bedding.” Jeo peered into the screen.

  “I can read you know. My question is why? Why sleep on the ground with the bugs if you can sleep in a warm bed with running water and electric lights?”

  Jeo shook his head. “Everyone keeps asking me that one.”

  “You should listen then. I’ll send a courier to you with an outdoor survival package for ten. They will bring an extra pallet of peel and eat foods as well as seven cases of suit food. You have Wechselbalg kids with you, and extra food will never go to waste around them.” Isaac closed the screen and looked around for a helper.

  “Your name is Krystal, right?” His attention was on the tall blond girl.

  “Please call me Kris. What can I do to help, Isaac?”

  “Gather up at least two others in your class and head over to the fourth distribution port. That is the one in sector four near the loading dock. The EI is pulling the packages now. Take some cargo lifters with you. Double check the invoice and take them to construction bay one. Jeo, the head of construction and defense will receive them. He has another one of your classes with him.”

  “Do you know which class?”

  “Uh, Alpha I think. The ones that tried to blow up the moon.” Isaac remembered the rumor he’d heard.

  “Nice! I can say hi to Maxim then. He’s dreamy.” The young girl left to go find some friends.

  “Was I ever that young?” Isaac spoke into the air.

  “I’m sorry Isaac. Can you repeat the question please?” The primary stores EI apparently heard him.

  “Forget about it, Michale. It wasn’t important. Let’s go back to work.”

  ~~~~~~~

  Sergeant Rong Bat-Uul stared at the paperwork on his desk. All he could think about was what his friend Shing over in supply liked to say. “The world actually ended in 1984. We just haven’t gotten caught up on the paperwork yet.”

  Hearing a knock, he looked up to see Kwan, his cousin’s good-for-nothing husband. “Go away, Kwan.”

  “Rong I heard something, and we could make some money this time.”

  “Forget it. I’m not helping you dig up the lost tomb of Genghis or some pit you found in the desert. Those days are done, Kwan.” Rong barely looked up from his work.

  “This is different. I swear!” Kwan wrung his hands in front of his body.

  “Different like the time you got me to buy that ancient necklace for my girlfriend from you, and I found a booth full of necklaces just like it in the marketplace for ten Tughrik.” Rong looked up at his cousin-in-law.

  Kwan gripped the desk. “I swear this is different. Out in the desert, I heard something. Two strangers walked past my dig and didn’t see me. They were talking about running from Chinese patrols.”

  “Lots of people run from Chinese patrols, Kwan.”

  “No. These men mentioned Beijing and something called TQB. Do you know what they were talking about?” Kwan looked at Rong.

  Rong thought of himself as a worldly man. He and his unit served with distinction in the middle east not all that long ago. Peacekeeping work was very satisfying for him as both a warrior and a man of peace. But TQB, that was something he and his friend Shing Bira were just discussing.

  “Are you absolutely sure that they said TQB?” Kwan nodded. He hadn’t seen his in-law this serious before. Maybe he would get paid after all.

  Rong grabbed his phone and gav
e Shing a call. “Shing I need you to come to my office if you can. It has to do with TQB.” He nodded and hung up the phone.

  “Kwan you better not be lying to me about this. I’m serious here. Shing is in charge of Internal Security for this region. Lying to him is not recommended.”

  His mouth open Kwan gasped for breath. “InSec? You just killed me!”

  Rong couldn’t help but smile at the antics of what the family called the black sheep. He was still family, though.

  A knock at the door made Kwan jump and tore Rong out of his dark thoughts.

  “Come on in, Shing.” The door opened, and a skinny man in a black uniform entered. He wore similar patches and emblems to that of Rong, but the jet black uniform was rather ominous.

  “You mentioned TQB, so I came right away. Who’s this?” Shing motioned to Kwan who looked as if he was trying to hide.

  “Meet Kwan Lee. He’s my cousin Mayleen’s husband.”

  “Is he the guy you told me about? The one who made genuine Mongol swords out of scrap metal from the dump and sold them to tourists. That Kwan?” Shing turned to stare at the smaller man.

  “That might have worked too if I hadn’t forgotten the label,” Kwan muttered almost to himself.

  “What did he say?” Shing looked over at his friend.

  Rong sighed. His mother was constantly telling him about Kwan’s antics. “He left the label in the scabbard. It said made in Taiwan. The tourist beat him to within an inch of his life.”

  The Intelligence officer started to laugh. “I remember some of the stories you tell about this guy. He’s also a scavenger too, isn’t he.?” Shing’s voice was suddenly darker and more sinister. “Digging up National Treasures is a death sentence. Or did you not know that? Hmmm.”

  “That’s not why he’s here Shing. He overheard a couple of Chinese nationals talking about TQB.” Rong drew his attention back to him.

  “Did he really? And what did they say exactly?” Shing peered at Kwan more intently.

  Kwan swallowed the saliva that was pooling in his mouth. This was it, his moment of truth. He launched into the story but left out the bit about digging a hole.

  “Interesting. There is a sudden push by the bandit groups to a certain area. That might explain why they are here this time. But TQB? If these men have even a portion of that technology… We need to get it first! Good work, Rong! This could mean a promotion for you.” Shing smiled at him.

  “What about me? I brought you the information!” Kwan looked at the man in black.

  “So. Want me to arrest you for theft of National treasure?”

  “No. I’ll just go home then.” Kwan turned to leave.

  “Wait. I need you to show Rong exactly where you saw the men. And I do mean exactly.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  “Sir, we have them!” The messenger was so excited he misspoke to General Chun.

  “What? Where? Are they still alive?” The General rose up out of his chair in excitement.

  “The Mongolian border defense force is scrambling into action, as is their pitiful excuse for an Air Force. Intelligence has picked up chatter about men with ties to TQB. That has to be the scientist and his guide.”

  The General sat back down in his chair a look of disgust on his face. “Do we have them in custody or not?”

  Horrified at what he said, the messenger started to plead for his life. The sound of the shot echoed in the room.

  “Stand up for yourself and own up to any mistake you make. Lie like a dog, and I’ll shoot you like one. Idiots!” He strode across the room stepping over the cooling corpse.

  Wham! The doors flew open slamming against the walls. “Call the general staff! I want representatives from the PLASF, IAU, and the Air Force in the War Room as soon as possible. Consider yourselves on a War footing as of now!”

  Special operations didn’t have much this far out, but the Intermediate Action Unit did. They might be police, but out here they were as good as the regular army.

  Chun’s second-in-command Colonel Li Ming Jung ran into the outer office. “What is happening? Have we been attacked?”

  Looking at her mussed uniform and undone hair Chun chuckled inwardly. Shameful. “No. Worse. The Mongolians have discovered our wayward agents and are moving to intercept the technology themselves. That must not be allowed. Only China should benefit.”

  The Colonel ignored the men dragging the dead messenger out of the room. Death in the line of duty was the norm here on the fringe of civilization. “I agree, sir. Those men belong to us. Should we inform General Bao Kou? They are on his border too.”

  Chun rocked back on his heels. His desire for the technology blinded him to the danger that the Northern Theater Command represented. General Kou was a complete unknown. If they were about to battle with the pitiful remains of the Mongol Empire, he would want in. He rubbed his hand across his face. “I will call and inform him. Open up the War Room and start alerting our forces. I will notify Beijing.”

  Colonel Jung saluted and ran to open up the tactical command center otherwise known as the war room.

  Chun walked back to his office. Grabbing his phone, he dialed the number from memory. He stared at the large map of China as he waited for the phone to connect.

  So close!

  ~~~~~~

  “Did somebody order some camping gear?” Kris and Vanko came into the construction bay. Behind them floated a half dozen large boxes on floaters.

  “That was fast. Tell Isaac thanks when you see him.” Jeo walked over to the line of anti-gravity pods. They called them floaters down in supply.

  “Peter? How in the god’s name are we supposed to put all of this? In there.” He pointed to the large pod.

  “You don’t think your drinking buddies didn’t consider the Queens need for shoes? The back seats fold down. Watch and learn grasshopper.” Peter asked the EI to open up the pod. Both the rear and side doors opened up.

  “It’s all voice operated by the EI. Please fold down the rearmost seats into cargo configuration.” As the men and half of Alpha class observed the rear seats folded down and made a platform in the back.

  Jeo asked. “Can someone bring the boxes over here?”

  When nobody answered, he looked behind him. All five Alpha Class members were clustered around the delivery people. Jeo stepped away from the pod and got close enough to hear what they were saying.

  “She was a hero. Craig was just goofing off as usual. He only lost a hand, but he could have died! Halli pushed past the others and ran right over to him.” Kris could only shake her head.

  “That’s crazy! Moonwalking is tough. I wonder how she learned to do it so fast?” Ron asked.

  “We don’t know. They are still on the moon, well, everyone but Craig. He’s still in the med bay. Doc Running Wolf says his hand will grow back in a few more weeks. He’s lucky. I’m going to start calling him stumpy.”

  “Oh, stop. You will not! Vanko stop kidding around.” Kris gave her companion a push.

  Nestor laughed. “Was it the same hand? Now that would be funny!”

  “No. Craig really was lucky. General Lance gave him a real talking to. The gist of it was he could’ve lost his head instead of the hand. This might calm him down some.” Kris looked in Maxim’s direction and blushed a little. Nestor saw it and made a note to poke fun at his cousin later.