The Cassini Mission

by Rob Colton

  The Cassini Mission

  Galactic Conspiracies 2

  Rob Colton

  The Cassini Mission:

  Galactic Conspiracies 2

  ©2013 Rob Colton

  http://www.robcolton.com

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 1626330069

  ISBN-13: 978-1626330061

  All rights reserved. No part of this story may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Cover art by Slumberus – http://slumberus.deviantart.com

  The Cassini Mission

  Galactic Conspiracies 2

  The adventure continues in this action-packed follow up to The Degan Incident!

  Dr. Aron Adler is ordered to take part in a rescue mission to a research colony located on an uninhabited planet in the outer rim. He is to immediately report to the U.S.C. Cassini, which will take Aron, two other scientists, and a unit of Union Marines to the colony. Once there, they are to assess the situation and retrieve any data or specimens.

  Formerly a scientist in the Union Navy, Aron was dishonorably discharged following a court-martial for failing to obey orders. Stepping foot on the Cassini brings up old feelings he would rather forget. Shunned by the crew of the Cassini, Aron finds comfort in the arms—and bed—of Marine corporal Kane Robertson.

  Upon reaching the colony, it becomes apparent that not everything is as it seems. Once again, Aron is faced with a difficult decision: follow orders or follow his heart.

  Special Thanks

  Thanks to Alicia Nordwell for the kick in the pants I needed to finish this. Her input was valuable in making this story the best it could be.

  Thanks to Jalane for taking time to do a professional edit on such a short schedule.

  Chapter 1

  Doctor Aron Adler; access granted.

  At the computer’s pleasant announcement, the security lock disengaged and the door opened with a swoosh.

  Not looking up from my comPad, I made my way to my lab’s main workstation. Once seated, I transferred control from the pad to my workstation and activated the scanner. I had just gotten the electron scanner calibrated and it was now streaming bio-chemical data to the large computer screens mounted on my lab wall.

  “Yes,” I said in triumph as I skimmed over the new data. Everything looked to be in order.

  With my eyes locked onto my screens, I called out to our lab’s resident research assistant. “Thomas, please start a DNA profile analysis on the specimen that’s being scanned.”

  When I didn’t get a response, I lifted my head up and swiveled my stool around, annoyed that he wasn’t answering me. “Thomas—”

  Thomas wasn’t sitting at his station. I scratched my head, thinking back to when I walked into the room. Was Thomas even in his seat when I arrived? He must have gone to the break room. He was never without a doughnut it seemed. I shrugged and turned back to my work. I was better off without him anyway.

  A flashing icon on my screen caught my eye. I tapped the icon to bring up my comm panel. Apparently, I had missed a call from Devin Drago. Not expecting to hear from the young man, I was pleasantly surprised.

  I had come across his case when an old friend contacted me with bioscans of a pregnant human male. I had heard of spontaneous womb generation in other species, but had never come across a human male with the condition, so of course I was fascinated. When Devin said the Degan male who impregnated him claimed to be his true bondmate and had gone missing, I had used my connections with a colleague who worked for the Degan Science Institute to inquire about the missing bondmate.

  It was through my colleague that they tracked down the Degan’s father. Imagine my horror when I found out that Devin had been taken prisoner by a rogue group of scientists. Thankfully he was rescued by the Degans and the couple was reunited. Last I heard, he was living happily on Dega with his bondmate.

  Pressing play on the message, I was greeted by a smiling Devin. He held a squirming toddler on his lap. The boy’s half-Human/half-Degan heritage was apparent in his ears and eyes, not to mention the horn nubs on the top of his head.

  “Hi, Doctor Adler. It’s me, Devin Drago. I bet you didn’t expect to hear from me, but I wanted to again thank you for your help. This our son, Callan. We wouldn’t be here without you. And well…” With a grunt, Devin pushed up from his chair and stood slightly, revealing the swell of his belly. A very pregnant belly. “Surprise. Well, I’d better go before Bastian drags me back to bed. I’m supposed to be resting. Say ‘bye’ to the doc, sweetie.”

  Devin and his son waved to the screen as the message ended. I returned to my work with a smile on my face.

  I wasn’t sure how long I had been caught up in my work when the door opened unexpectedly.

  “Doctor Adler,” Thomas panted.

  I looked up from my computer screen and frowned at the research assistant for interrupting me. The portly man leaned against the door frame, his hand clutching his chest as he tried to pull in lungfuls of air.

  I reached over and tapped the computer controls to begin the chemical analysis process. “Thomas. You really are in bad shape. All that crap you eat. You should come running with me sometime. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m in the middle of something.” I tapped again to queue up the DNA profile process.

  He shook his head forcefully while waving his hand back and forth in front of him. He managed to sputter between breaths, “No. Navy. Here.”

  Well, that certainly got my attention. The Navy was here? Was that what he was trying to tell me?

  A barrage of unpleasant memories flooded my mind. Feeling sick to my stomach, I felt an overwhelming need to get the hell out of here. As I stood up from my stool, two men dressed in standard Union Navy security uniforms pushed into my lab, practically knocking Thomas down in the process.

  My eyes darted around the room, looking for a quick exit.

  “Doctor Aron Adler?” the officer intoned. “Your presence is required at Union Military Headquarters.” His hand not-so-subtly moved on top of the phase pistol holstered to his belt. “Immediately.”

  Crap.

  * * * *

  “Doctor Adler? Admiral Bolander is ready for you.”

  I looked up from my pocket comPad’s screen and the data I had been collecting to acknowledge the executive assistant. She gave me a sympathetic smile as she stood waiting to escort me.

  I glanced over my shoulder. The two security officers who brought me in were standing at ease on either side of the exit. That was the only way out of the office, and I was not going to get by.

  So much for making a break for it.

  Standing up, I slipped the small, paper-thin computer screen into the pocket of my white lab coat, then ran my hands down the coat to smooth out the wrinkles.

  I had been in the middle of work when I was summoned to the Admiral’s office. I had no earthly idea why a Union Navy Admiral would need to see me. The security officers certainly gave me no explanations on the matter.

  After clearing my throat, I took a deep breath and followed the young woman to the Admiral’s office door, trying my best to not show my nervousness.

  She tapped a button on the panel and the door swooshed open. With a pleasant smile on her face, she motioned for me to enter.

  My step faltered momentarily as I was surp
rised to see my boss’s boss seated in front of the Admiral’s desk. I wasn’t sure what I was even doing at Union Navy Headquarters in the first place, and I sure wasn’t expecting to see Director Carson.

  Union Research operated outside of the Union military branches, though they did collaborate frequently. Research civilian scientists often worked with the Union Navy science divisions for exploration and deep space experiments. Though none of that explained my presence here.

  As a Union Research exobiologist, I ultimately fell under Director Carson’s chain of command, though he really had nothing to do with the actual day-to-day operations. I only wanted to be left alone to do my work, and this meeting was interrupting that work.

  And there was also the not so insignificant fact that just being in the midst of all of these Navy officers was bringing up memories that I would rather not dredge up.

  I swallowed anxiously when the door shut behind me. Neither man acknowledged my presence for what seemed like an eternity.

  Admiral Bolander was sitting at his desk. He swiped his finger over his comPad as he scrolled through whatever what was on his screen. I stood in front of the two men with my hands clasped behind my back, wondering one more time what I was doing at the Union Navy HQ building.

  When Bolander gave him a nod, Director Carson finally stood up, grunting as he hefted his pudgy body from the chair. He moved towards me to shake my hand. “Good to see you, Dr. Adler,” he said, his voice flat and emotionless.

  “Thank you, Director,” I said, hoping that the nerves didn’t show in my voice. My eyes drifted to the hair on top of his head. The way the hair there had a slightly unnatural curl, along with the subtle color difference, had me wondering not for the first time if the hair was transplanted. Unlike the scientists under his command, Carson always wore a suit. Dark and ill-fitting, it hung limp from his body. Except for the white dress shirt. Its buttons practically screamed as the fabric stretched to the limit over his belly.

  “It’s been quite some time since we touched base. How’s your research coming along? Non-humanoid protection mechanisms, correct?” He gave me a forced smile, clearly not really interested in my answer, as he looked over at the admiral before I could even open my mouth.

  The last time I had seen the director was at last year’s office Christmas party. We certainly didn’t speak of my research then. Before today, I would have bet that he wouldn’t have known me by sight—let alone my name—or what I worked on.

  “Yes, that’s right. It’s going very well, thank you,” I replied anyway, trying to be polite. My eyes darted towards the admiral, then back to Carson. I decided not to mention the fact that it would be going better if I wasn’t wasting time here. But I wasn’t a complete idiot, so I kept my mouth shut.

  To take my mind off the uncomfortable silence, I glanced around the spacious, spartanly decorated room. Behind the Admiral’s desk was a wall of windows that overlooked an outdoor courtyard of green grass, lined with trees and flowers. It was a sharp contrast to the modern industrial design of the HQ building.

  One wall of the office contained a large e-glass panel that displayed high-level schematics for a class of space cruiser that I did not recognize.

  Admiral Bolander stood, holding his comPad to his side. I glanced down at the screen as he lowered it and I saw my identification picture. As I was wearing a standard dark blue Union Navy uniform in the head shot, he was obviously reading my old personnel file. My feelings of unease ramped up by an order of magnitude.

  Bolander was an imposing man. Though in his sixties, he was in prime shape with broad shoulders and muscled arms. Tall and distinguished, he had a head full of salt and pepper hair. He might be considered handsome if he cracked a smile. The admiral narrowed his dark eyes and looked me up and down, assessing me as if I was a unicellular organism under a microscope. Standing in his shadow, I felt just as small. He paused for several moments before he spoke, making me want to squirm.

  “Research colony RC-8460 has gone silent. A team is being dispatched to check it out and provide assistance. We want you as part of that team.”

  What the hell? I glanced between the two men and tried to choose my words carefully. “I’m not sure I follow, sir.”

  “The research at that facility is very valuable to the Union. It will be your responsibility to make sure that it is protected and retrieved.”

  I looked between the Admiral and Carson and then said as diplomatically as I could, “Surely a data expert would be a more reasonable choice? I’m an exobiologist, not a—”

  “I am well aware of your credentials, Doctor,” the Admiral cut me off, sounding offended while simultaneously shooting me a scathing look of annoyance.

  Carson attempted a smile to diffuse the sudden awkwardness in the room and said, “You will join two other scientists as part of this team.”

  I still didn’t understand what was going on. “But, I’m a civilian, sir. It’s not lawful for me to—”

  Admiral Bolander interrupted me. “For this mission, you’ve been reinstated into the Union Navy.”

  “This is very important, Dr. Adler,” Carson said firmly.

  I pressed my lips together to keep my jaw from dropping. I was not being given a choice. My chest tightened, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. The memory of my court-martial and subsequent dishonorable discharge from the Union Navy pounded into my brain like a vivid nightmare. After my discharge I was no longer allowed to set foot on any Union Navy vessels or I would be charged and imprisoned. And now they were telling me that I was being reinstated into the armed forces just so that I could travel on a Navy ship.

  Rendered speechless, I just stood there.

  Admiral Bolander glanced back at his comPad and swiped his finger a couple of times. He read for a second and then tossed the piece of plastic onto his desk.

  “This mission is Level 3 classified. Insubordination will not be tolerated. You fuck up this time and there won’t be anything left for a court-martial. Report to Luna space dock 24A at 0900 hours. You’re dismissed, Lieutenant Adler.”

  His voice was so sharp it could have cut glass. I felt like I had been sliced down the middle. Fisting my trembling hands, I managed to squeak out a response. “Yes, sir.” With a nod of my head, I turned sharply and left the office as fast as I could.

  I had packing to do. And I needed a stiff drink. Or ten.

  Chapter 2

  Early the next morning, after a night of restless sleep, I took the first available shuttle to the Luna Space Dock. The dock was located in a selenocentric orbit around the moon and was the jumping point for many space vessels leaving Earth and our solar system. I had been to the station numerous times and normally had no problems, but I was not looking forward to this trip.

  I sat back in my seat and tried to calm myself as the ship launched. The shuttle was only a third full, so it was quiet and I had plenty of elbow room on either side.

  When the ship broke atmosphere, I glanced out the window to take a look at the stars. Despite the circumstances, I felt myself begin to relax. The view of empty space set to a backdrop of twinkling stars always did that to me. As I reclined back in my seat, I re-read the mission brief on my pad once more.

  The brief was just that. Brief. No details whatsoever. RC-8460 was a research colony on a small, deserted planet in the outer rim. The star system was located well outside of the Galactic Planetary Union borders.

  Well, that simply made no sense. Why the hell were they so far out? The distance alone would make supply requisition extremely difficult. What were they doing out there in the middle of nowhere? The brief made no mention of the nature of their research so I wasn’t sure if the planetary environment was a factor in this mysterious research.

  I skimmed through the itinerary and one thing caught my eye. A six week cryosleep was required.

  Aw, crap. How did I get myself into this mess?

  I sighed and put the pad back into my lab coat pocket. It was no use reading through i
t one more time. Further details weren’t going to just magically appear in the document.

  I smoothed down the white coat and gave the hem of my top a downward tug to straighten it. I wore the standard uniform worn by all Union Research civilian employees: clean white cotton shirt and white drawstring pants, a crisp white lab coat, and comfortable white shoes. The outfit looked very reminiscent of hospital-style scrubs. The only splash of color was the blue and gold Union Research logo on the lab coat’s breast along with my embroidered name.

  Fashion-wise the uniform was a complete bust, but function-wise it was very comfortable and easy to maintain. For people in my line of work, that was a major plus.

  Once the shuttle landed and the outer ramp opened, I grabbed my Navy-issued footlocker from the storage compartment. I pressed the latch button to raise the handle and pop the wheels, then disembarked, making my way to the moving walkway that led to the space cruiser docks.

  When I reached the gate’s waiting area, I dropped my foot locker and sat down on it while I waited for the ship to arrive. I was staring out the window at the moon’s surface and the fabulous view of Tycho Crater when I heard a voice calling out to me.

  “Aron Adler? Is that you?”

  I looked up to see a Japanese man approaching me with a grin, pulling his rolling footlocker behind him.

  “Kenji!”

  I had met Kenji Kanataka years ago at the Union Naval Academy. While we weren’t friends, we hung out in the same circles and had mutual friends and acquaintances.

  I stood and gave Kenji’s hand a vigorous shake and looked him over.

  Kenji was in great shape. He was slightly taller than me at roughly 5’10”. He had black hair, brown eyes and had very typical Japanese features. He wore the regulation navy blue jumpsuit uniform, and it looked good on his well-developed body. The two gold pins on the upper left breast of his uniform indicated he held the rank of Lieutenant.