Have you ever heard of pentaerythritol tetranitrate, commonly called PETN? Me neither, until I went to Iraq. There it was just called det cord. On Earth, a low yield det cord can be used as a precision cutting tool to slice through wire bundles, pipes, etc. My father’s organization, Galactic Force, developed an even better version. When I saw it used, I vowed to always carry a small roll with me. In this case, in the leg pocket of my combat suit, along with a couple of detonators. I took the boosted det cord out and wrapped it around the center of the beam several times, making sure to keep it a safe distance from Sif. I yelled a keep clear warning and then ignited the cord. It only took a second or two for the blazing cord to burn through the beam, setting Sif free.
At first, Sif seemed like that happened to him every day. It didn’t take him long to ask, “Where can I get some of that?” I had a store on the ship and promised him some. Then I thought maybe everyone should have a small role in the future.
While freeing Sif from the remains of the fallen wall was a great satisfaction, the bigger problem still remained. What to do about the self-destruct system.
“Ok, Wizzy, what do we do now?”
“Before you left the ship, I had some of my bots tag along with you. They were riding on your back, and you probably didn’t see them.”
Did I tell you I hate spiders? I do and have ever since my cousin Kenny threw a big one in my face when I visited him in Bakersfield, California. I’ll say it again — I hate spiders. Wizzy’s small bots looked like spiders, eight legs and all. Makes me shiver all over like I just did at this very moment.
“Then get them off of me and make them do their work!”
“I will, I will. But first, they have to plug a cord into your suit helmet and trail it to the wall where the device is located. Then I can see what is happening safely back here on the Argos. Easy peasy.”
“Easy for you to say. We’re the ones down here hoping the thing doesn’t blow us all up!”
“Have I ever failed you? Don’t answer that.”
“Now, let’s see what my bots have found. Hmm, that’s interesting. But that’s dumb. I wouldn’t have done it that way, silly lizards. You know, for a so-called advanced race…”
“Never mind the philosophy, Wizzy. Can you fix this thing or not?”
“Oh, I did that in the first second. I was just examining their style, or lack of it, and their clumsy method of…”
“So, the self-destruction system is turned off?”
“Oh, yes. They can jump up and down on their manual detonator or beat their AI to a pulp, and nothing will happen. I’m so clever.”
“Sif, have you deployed fireflies?” I asked, thinking I knew the answer.
“We have, but we are out now. There were many more compartments than we expected on multiple levels.”
I reached into one of my suit pockets and opened a tiny bottle, like a prescription bottle, and released dozens of the little spies. In just a few minutes, we could see into the control center where we expected to see Gurko and his Blue leader. They were not there. Wizzy took control of the majority of the fireflies and rushed them into a search pattern looking for the two senior Arkon. We found all the remaining enemy troops, and both Sif and Alton directed their capture. But no Arkon. Not even in the lavish apartment of the Arkon Blue.
I watched as Sif and his young Resistance commander sat down on the edge of the Blue’s bed and looked at each other. They were more than tired and now frustrated. They had a victory, but the edges of it were tarnished by not capturing the enemy leaders. They began questioning themselves and the intelligence they acted upon. But, in the end, they couldn’t find an obvious flaw. What went wrong? To their dismay, they soon found out.
One of Altor’s lieutenants burst into the Blue’s chamber and motioned for the two Resistance leaders and me to follow him. They didn’t have to go far for the young officer to show them an open sliding door in a nearby wall. He explained that he and his troops followed the passageway the door concealed, and they were led to a small empty hanger with a set of sliding doors in the ceiling. The doors were closed, but the implication was obvious. There had been a small ship there, and now it was gone. The two Arkon leaders had escaped. But to where?
I placed an urgent call to Amini.
“What is it, Nick?”
“Gurko and his boss have escaped.”
“Escaped? Where did they go, and how?”
“We believe they had a hidden shuttle. We found the hanger, but it’s empty. If you look to the east of our location with Argos’ sensors, you might find them. We cannot.”
“Wizzy,…”
“I heard and am looking, but they may be on the opposite side of the moon from us. There is nothing showing but friendlies on this side. I’ll give Amini coordinates, and she can leap to the other side. It is the only way.”
“Do it, Wizzy.”
How Wizzy came up with safe coordinates in a part of space we had not been before, I had no idea. Maybe it wasn’t safe, but we had no choice. As soon as the coordinates were entered, Amini pressed the leap drive activation button. The normal flash occurred, and it took nearly a minute for sensors to recover. When they did, and with the help of Wizzy, we all saw something that was a surprise to us. There, in the distance, was the frigate, and it was taking a shuttle aboard.
On her own, Amini used thrusters to turn the Argos’ nose to face the frigate and hit the engine throttles. Doc zeroed in on the frigate that was coming into range and began firing everything the ship had. It wasn’t enough. The frigate disappeared in a dim flash as it entered FTL. I thought about telling Amini to follow, but anybody who was familiar with tracking in FTL knew it was essentially useless. Amini returned to our original position and waited to recover shuttles and Tiana to reload her troopships and return to Tye. She left a small force on the moon to look through the facility more closely for items of intelligence that might be valuable. She and everyone who participated in these last two battles had met the definition of success… and Founders Day was not even over.
Just over one hundred days had passed since we first entered Tye space. We came to collect information and ended up assisting in the evolution of a new life for people on an old planet. We were happy with what we accomplished. I just hoped the Consortium would think the same. It was a slim hope. Some might say imperceptible.
Chapter 31
Sif joined us on the return flight to Tye, all the while talking our ears off about the wonderful fight and how many enemies he killed in righteous combat. In some respect, it was a gruesome tale, but he deserved the right to tell it. We were all tired and about to leave one person on watch and hit the rack when Wizzy spoke so loudly that I thought we must be on fire or something.
“Perk up, everyone. I have news. Don’t know if it is good news or not.” His floating avatar was wringing his hands in a sign of agitation.
“What is it?”
“There is a Consortium ship in orbit over Tye.”
We were all instantly on edge, our tired bodies sitting stiffly in our seats.
“What ship?” I asked.
“It is New Horizons.”
I was worried now. Had it been something like a corvette or even a frigate, I would have been only moderately worried. But New Horizons? She was one of the biggest ships we had, and only senior officers commanded her. We were in BIG trouble.
“Who commands, Wizzy?” I asked, knowing anyone commanding that ship knew my father well and probably me. We hadn’t reported back home during this whole mission, and we went way past the guidelines that were set for us. I’d probably lose my job and my ship.
“It appears it is Commodore Stan Walters. You know him, right?”
Just when I thought this couldn’t get any worse, it did.
“Oh, I know him all right. Don’t you guys worry, though. It was all my fault, and I’ll ta
ke the hit.
“The hell you will,” called Amini. “I was here and did as much as you did.”
“That goes for me too,” Doc called out.
Sif looked at us like we were crazy. “We all did what was required, and we won. How can we be in trouble if we won? It was the most glorious set of events I have been part of for many cycles. Your people should be proud of us all. I am.”
It was late by Earth time when we finally steered into orbit above Viron and close to New Horizons. A brief message from her required us to attach the Argos to the lower docking station near the lower flight bay at 0730 Earth time the next day and await further orders. We all tried to get some sleep until then, but I, at least, tossed and turned the whole time.
“Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey, everyone,” came Wizzy’s too loud voice over the 1MC. “Nicky, after Argos docks, you have a request to meet with the commodore as soon as the ship is secured. Or is that an order? Anyway, he will be sending an officer to escort you to his quarters.”
Great. I was hoping it was all a bad dream. I just had time to shower and change into the uniform I hadn’t worn since this mission started.
Amini handled the docking for us. As we approached the New Horizons, I had a sense of pride in her and what she had allowed Galactic Force and now the Consortium to achieve. I spent many a happy hour aboard her preparing for my first real space assignments. However, the smile that had grown on my face disappeared as the Argos docked and an airlock was extended to us. I walked through the airlock and stepped into the big flight bay. I saw an unfamiliar officer standing there waiting.
“You are Captain Hall?”
“Yes.”
“My name is Bartleby. Follow me to the commodore’s cabin, sir.”
As we walked, my mind strayed to simple things like the sight and smell of military ships. My brief time in the U.S. wet Navy was filled with gray colored bulkheads, uncovered wiring and pipes, and the mixed smell of paint, fuel oil, and humans crammed into a small space. Spaceships were no different. The color of the bulkheads had changed to light green, the wiring was less conspicuous, and there were no exposed pipes. The smell was different too. There was always a hint of ozone mixed with the slight smell of cleaning chemicals. There was something else also. It was hard to describe. Maybe it was the higher percentage of oxygen in the air or possibly the scent of recycled air or even the latent scent of the purifiers and fans that controlled the airflow. Whatever it was, it was the same on all military spaceships.
“Here we are, Captain Hall,” Bartleby said courteously.
I was so intent on taking in the big ship I had ignored where we were going and even how long it took. All that changed when fear lurched inside me.
“Thanks,” I said, as I knocked on the big door in front of me.
“Enter,” came the old familiar voice of Stan Walters from inside. The door buzzed open, and I stepped in.
Stan looked older than I remembered. Probably because of the increased responsibility he had taken on. He stood from behind his desk and walked over to me with his hand extended.
“Good to see you again, Nick,” he said, as he hardily shook my hand. “Have a seat. We have some things to talk about.”
Oh, boy. Here it comes, handshake aside.
“You’ve been busy.”
“Yes, sir. I can explain.”
“I’m sure you can, but first, let me say we’ve been worried about you. Your father has been after me for months looking for your reports and learning how you were doing. I felt guilty for not being able to tell him anything beyond the first comm drone data. He finally convinced me to take this trip out here.”
I was about to launch into my explanation when he held up a hand.
“No, let me continue. While the ship sat here waiting, I had the chance to visit with the new interim President of Tye.”
Tye had a president?
“President Marza had quite a lot to tell me about you and the Argos.”
President Marza? That was logical to me — and fast. But there couldn’t have been an election yet.
“Excuse me, Commodore. I know Marza, but only as a leader of the local Resistance. How did she become president?”
“Oh, yes, I forgot. She was elected as the leader of the Resistance as you call it. After that Gurko fellow was beaten and departed, the resistance renamed itself the Ergo Party, something to do with an ancient Tye philosopher, and placed itself and her in temporary control of the planet until elections could be held. There was no objection by the citizens, only relief as far as I can tell.”
“I see. I’m not surprised. Once you get to know her, you can see and feel her integrity, confidence, and purpose.”
“Yes, I know what you mean. Anyway, she explained that you arrived here as a trader in lumber but were taken advantage of, and later attacked, by a guy named Toor. She said you tried your best to keep out of things, but were drawn in by the oppressive force of Gurko. One thing led to another, and you wound up helping the Resistance. Have I got this straight so far?” Stan asked with a hint of a smile.
That was not exactly what happened, but I wasn’t going to stop the story.
“Yes.”
“Um. Later she realized that you and the Argos had capabilities that were uncommon, shall we say, and that you were able to use them in assisting the Tye people in an extreme time of need. In fact, you and your crew were key elements in saving the planet from a horrible time of slavery. The one thing I don’t understand is this Arkon Red fellow named Sif. He was not part of the Argos crew when you departed Consortium space. How did that happen, and what are you going to do with him?”
I gave Stan a short version of meeting Sif in a prison cell, releasing him and his showing increased allegiance to the crew and to me and, of course, to fight. He smiled when he heard this.
“And you now consider him a permanent part of your crew?”
“Absolutely.” I was keeping my remarks as short as possible so as not to interrupt the surprising turn this conversation was taking compared to what I expected.
“Interesting. However, I don’t think the Consortium would support an Arkon, especially a Red, as part of a Consortium crew. You’ll have to let him go.”
I was shocked. Of all the things I expected to happen to the Argos and me, this wasn’t one of them.
“Then, I’ll have to resign, Commodore.”
I watched Stan flinch and sit up straight in his chair. He was silent for a moment.
“Are you serious?”
“Yes, sir. It was my choice as commanding officer to bring him on board and my decision to integrate him into the crew. Since then, he has been a true and valued asset. To let him go would violate my promise of a position and loss of credibility with my crew. We can’t see all Arkons as our enemies forever. The Consortium sent us out here to see what was going on. I also believe that part of our mission was to evaluate the people of these new systems as trading partners and potential allies. Arkons are a part of the people in these systems. We can’t change that.” I knew my passion was showing, but I didn’t care.
Stan relaxed a little, and his frown, more like a scowl, started to turn into the faintest hint of a smile. He sat back into his chair and steepled his fingers in front of him.
“You speak well. A good commanding officer supports and defends his crew, just as you have done. And, you’re right about assessing the people of these systems as potential allies and trading partners. I’ll let you keep your Arkon for now. I will try to share your passion when I explain my choice to the Consortium. They could say no, but I’ll do my best.”
That was a relief. I was also surprised at myself. I was prepared to say little or nothing in this session, but I discovered a new strength sitting across the table from one of the highest-ranking officers in our forces.
“So, getting back to what you have
been up to, Jennifer (the New Horizons AI) tells me that your long-range comm drones were inoperable. Fried, I think, was the word. Care to tell me how that happened?”
I explained the FTL incident and the rock that hit the ship and the effects. After that, I told him, we lost our leap drive for a long while and lost the long-range comm drones all together. I even mentioned that Harry had decided to change his name. I expected some discussion on that, but all I got was a nod.
“And these losses are why you couldn’t keep us posted on your progress?”
“Yes, sir. I thought of sending one of the crew to headquarters with information, but we were short-handed when we started the mission. In addition, all the potential shipping that could have carried a message was being intercepted by Gurko and his men. I wasn’t going to ignore these people’s problems just because there was no quick or convenient way to communicate home. In my view, that’s why we have commanding officers on ships — to make those kinds of decisions.”
The commodore nearly burst out laughing.
“Good for you. And you’re right. If every time a decision had to be made, we decided to go home to report or ask permission, we’d never get anything done. But why did you decide to fall in, so to speak, with the Resistance movement? That wasn’t in your mission orders.”
“First, Commodore, it was because we needed help in getting the intelligence information we needed. In the beginning, the help we gave the Resistance was a byproduct of intelligence gathering. You know, make friends with the natives to learn more. Later, when we realized we were trapped here, I exercised the part of my orders that allowed me to deal with the unexpected as appropriate.”
“You mean the elastic clause.”
“Yes, sir. It became an issue that I felt was in keeping with the heart of the Consortium ideals and the core of Galactic Force. I think it was what my father would have done. To do nothing would have meant more lives lost and more slaves taken. I would do it again under the same circumstances.”
Crucible: Records of the Argos Page 29