Moon Wreck: Fleet Academy (The Slaver Wars)

by Raymond L. Weil

  Jeremy sat down and gazed at the command console, which formed a half arc around him. Everything was showing green, and no potential problems were indicated. Looking up, he noticed Kelsey smiling at him; then she turned around and began working on her navigation console.

  Several minutes passed, and things continued to run smoothly. They normally did as the ship had experienced a minimal number of problems over the last few days. Needless to say, Jeremy was shocked when a warning alarm went off loudly in the Command Center.

  “I have meteors entering our projected flight path,” Ensign Roberts reported as a number of red icons started showing up on the scanner screen. He quickly began using the scanners to determine the exact path of the meteors.

  “Are they a threat?” Jeremy asked with concern in his voice as he stood up and looked intently at the scanner screen. “Why didn’t we pick them up on the long-range sensors?”

  “They’re too small,” Roberts replied as he checked his scanner screen against the New Horizon’s plotted course. “I show a sixty percent probability of them crossing our course at the same point we will be at in four point six minutes.”

  Jeremy studied the scanner screen for a moment. “Helm, reduce speed to five percent sublight. Kelsey plot us a new course around the meteors. Helm, standby for emergency maneuvers if necessary.”

  The New Horizon reduced speed. Jeremy was hoping this would allow them the necessary time to plot a new course and go around the approaching group of meteors.

  “New course plotted,” reported Kelsey in an anxious voice.

  “Deviating to the new course,” the helm officer spoke as he adjusted the ship’s flight path.

  Jeremy watched the scanning screen, and after a few moments saw with satisfaction that the New Horizon was going to miss the meteors by a safe margin. He let out a sigh of relief and sat back down. “Helm, once we are safely past the meteors, resume course and accelerate back to ten percent sublight.”

  “What the hell is going on here?” an angry voice echoed across the Command Center.

  Jeremy turned toward the hatch that allowed admittance to the Command Center to see a livid Major Maher standing there.

  “We had to adjust course to avoid some meteors, sir,” Jeremy replied surprised at the major’s anger.

  “You don’t adjust the New Horizon’s course without the approval of a command officer,” snarled Maher, striding up to Jeremy and looking down at him. “Where’s Lieutenant Nelson? You could have put this entire ship in jeopardy.”

  “I’m right here,” answered Nelson as he entered the Command Center with a look of concern on his face. “What seems to be the problem?”

  “Your pet cadet officer here changed the course of the New Horizon without permission and endangered the ship!”

  “What happened, Cadet Lieutenant Strong?” Lieutenant Nelson asked, his eyes narrowing.

  Jeremy explained in detail what had happened with the meteors and the actions he had taken.

  Lieutenant Nelson walked over to the scanning and sensor console and replayed everything back so he could see with his own eyes exactly what had occurred. He then went over and spoke briefly with Kelsey as well as the helm officer.

  Major Maher was watching and wondering how he could use this unexpected incident to his advantage. He didn’t want to get Jeremy thrown off the ship. He might make a useful hostage later if his plans went awry. Lieutenant Nelson was another matter. The lieutenant had been a problem to his plans from day one, but Maher had not been able to do anything to shake Commander Tellson’s confidence in the man. This incident might just be the leverage Maher needed to do just that.

  Lieutenant Nelson returned to Major Maher and spoke in an even voice. “Cadet Lieutenant Strong took the correct actions. While we can’t be certain any of the meteors would have collided with the New Horizon, his actions alleviated any possibility of that occurring. He reduced speed, changed course, and then after the danger was over put the New Horizon back on her original course and speed.”

  Major Maher stared coldly at Lieutenant Nelson before speaking. “You both will be going on report,” he retorted. “The commander and I will review this incident closely to see if any disciplinary action will be needed.”

  “There won’t be,” a stern voice commented from the doorway of the Command Center. Commander Tellson was standing there gazing at his two officers. “I have been standing here for several moments, and from what I have overheard, Cadet Lieutenant Strong acted properly.”

  “Yes, sir,” replied Major Maher, gazing at the commander. He had not noticed Commander Tellson’s arrival in the Command Center. He could still use this incident against Lieutenant Nelson, but Strong was still out of his reach, at least for the moment. “I will be putting this in my incident report, Commander,” Maher stated. “Lieutenant Nelson should not have left the Command Center, and in my opinion Cadet Lieutenant Strong should have called for a qualified officer to come to the Command Center.”

  “That is your right as executive officer,” Tellson replied, not happy that his second in command obviously had a bone to pick with Lieutenant Nelson. “This incident will be reviewed, but I don’t see anything to be concerned with.”

  “Not even with Lieutenant Nelson leaving the Command Center and placing a cadet in charge in his absence?” Maher pressed.

  “It’s part of Cadet Lieutenant Strong’s training,” replied Tellson, his eyes narrowing. “You have done the same thing with Cadet Lieutenant Barr, have you not?”

  Maher was silent for a moment. He had allowed Barr to be alone in the Command Center as part of his training on several occasions. “Perhaps I am making too big of an issue out of this,” he admitted finally as he realized the commander was correct on this point. “I was just concerned that the New Horizon could have been damaged, and we are so close to starting our mission.”

  “I can understand that,” Tellson replied with a curt nod. “We have a good crew, so let’s not do anything to jeopardize that.”

  “Yes, sir,” Maher replied. “I will be returning to my quarters.” Maher left the Command Center, keeping his face composed. He would keep an eye on Lieutenant Nelson; the man could still pose a threat to Maher’s future plans for the New Horizon.

  Commander Tellson turned to face Lieutenant Nelson and Cadet Lieutenant Strong. “I will need an incident report from both of you,” he began, his eyes focusing on the two. “I don’t believe either of you did anything wrong, but I still wish to review your actions. Cadet Lieutenant Strong, from what I have seen and heard you took the appropriate actions to keep the New Horizon safe. You didn’t hesitate, and you were not afraid to make a decision. That’s the mark of a good commanding officer. I would expect no less from you.”

  “Thank you, sir,” responded Jeremy, feeling a glow inside at the commander’s comments. For several moments, he had been afraid that his days on the New Horizon were numbered.

  -

  Major Maher had summoned several of his co-conspirators to his quarters. With the completion of the FTL trials, the rest of the crew and the scientists would be brought on board shortly. Sitting behind his desk, he looked over at Cadet Ensign Trace Rafferty, Lieutenant Reece Sandusky, Cadet Lieutenant Matt Barr, and Ensign Adam Bates.

  “We need to keep a close watch on Lieutenant Nelson,” Maher began, still smarting from the incident in the Command Center. His eyes narrowed, and he arched his eyebrows. “We should be leaving on our mission to Tau Ceti sometime in the next few weeks. I don’t want anyone doing anything to endanger our plans.”

  “How many of the new people coming up can we count on to side with us in the takeover?” Lieutenant Sandusky asked.

  “At least four, possibly six,” Maher replied. His group down on Earth had spent a lot of money to arrange for certain people to be included on the mission. “It wasn’t easy, but our people down on Earth managed to get four people who are sympathetic to our cause listed as scientists or research assistants and another two tha
t are leaning toward us.”

  “Any chance the government will find out what we have done?” Sandusky asked. “If anyone talks or someone finds out how much money has changed hands, this whole thing could blow up in our faces.”

  “It won’t happen,” replied Maher, shaking his head confidently. “My people down on Earth are watching for this. They will make certain that any mention of what we’re planning to do is stopped immediately. We have already had to remove several people who were talking too much. Their deaths were made to look like accidents.”

  “What about Jeremy Strong?” asked Barr, wanting to get rid of his rival. He had a strong and growing dislike for the admiral’s son. “I think he should be taken out along with the command crew.”

  “Perhaps later,” answered Maher, shaking his head in denial. “For now, he will make an excellent hostage if something goes wrong. That’s your job. When we launch the takeover, I want you to make sure the cadets are locked in their quarters and well guarded. We may need them later.”

  “You just need us to keep him alive?” Cadet Ensign Rafferty asked with a gleam in his eyes. “A few broken bones would make him know we mean business.”

  Maher was silent for a moment. “No, we don’t want him hurt. If we need to use him as a hostage, he needs to be unharmed.”

  “Later, when we don’t need him as a hostage, we can dispose of him,” Sandusky added, his gaze focusing on Barr. “He could be a trouble maker down the road, and we don’t want any of that.”

  Barr nodded. That would work for him as long as he was the one to dispose of Jeremy. He smiled inwardly to himself; he could see the daddy’s boy on his knees begging for his life. It wouldn’t be short, and he wanted Jeremy to suffer.

  “Now let’s discuss our plans in more detail,” spoke Maher, wanting to get down to the main reason for this meeting. “Everything has to go down as planned. While we will be outnumbered, we will be the only ones with weapons. Once the command crew and other officers are eliminated, the rest of the crew will fall in line.”

  “What if they don’t?” Ensign Bates asked with a frown on his face. “There may be a few that refuse to follow our orders.”

  “If they are men, we will dispose of them,” Maher spoke, his eyes showing a deadly glint. “However, we will need all of the women. If any of them resist, they can be locked up in their quarters until we arrive at our destination.”

  “Where is that?” Barr asked. He had been curious for quite some time as to where they were going.

  “Somewhere farther in toward the center of our galaxy,” Maher replied. “We are going where the stars are denser and where Earth will never find us. If the drive functions properly, we will be going at least ten thousand light years in toward the galactic center. We have chosen several open star clusters that should meet all of our requirements. An area rich in stars and hopefully natural resources where someday we can expand as our population grows.”

  Barr nodded. This fit in with his plans as well. He wanted to escape Earth with all of its political infighting and corruption. They would begin anew on a new world free of all the hazards of current society. Barr listened as Maher outlined in detail what he foresaw as taking place when they launched their takeover of the New Horizon.

  “Won’t Admiral Strong come after us?” Bates asked, still showing some concern. “They have four exploration cruisers that could be equipped with FTL drives.”

  “Not a problem,” Maher answered confidently. “It will take several weeks or even a month to equip one of the exploration cruisers with a working FTL drive. By then, we will be long on our way, and they will not be able to follow us.”

  -

  Jeremy and the other cadets were in the officer’s mess eating. They were discussing the exciting events that had occurred in the Command Center and Maher’s reaction to what had happened.

  “You saved the ship!” exclaimed Angela, allowing some aggravation to show in her voice from Maher’s reaction when he had come into the Command Center.

  “The meteors may never have even hit us if we had stayed on our original course and maintained our speed,” Jeremy reminded her. Changing course and speed had only been a precautionary measure.

  The incident with Maher had bothered him immensely, and he didn’t understand why the executive officer had been so spiteful. For a moment, it was almost as if he were dealing with Matt Barr. He wondered if the executive officer and Lieutenant Nelson were having problems. If they were, that could very well have been what was behind the incident.

  “It’s a very good possibility they would have missed us,” continued Kevin, nodding his head in agreement. “The scanners only reported that the meteors would be in our general vicinity when we passed through that section of space. The odds are they would have missed us by hundreds of kilometers.”

  “Perhaps,” Kelsey said, looking speculatively at the other three. “But I prefer to play it safe, and that’s what we did. Major Maher had no reason to act as he did.”

  “He’s the executive officer,” Jeremy pointed out. “He can do what he wants.”

  Angela took a bite of the stew she was eating and nodded her head. “Perhaps he just overreacted since we are so close to actually launching the mission to Tau Ceti.”

  “I hope that’s what it was,” Kevin said, looking down at the hamburger and fries on his plate. The food on the New Horizon was excellent.

  “Look at it this way,” said Jeremy, trying to put a positive spin on what had happened. “We had our first real emergency situation, and we survived it.”

  “Yes, we did,” responded Kelsey with a smile. “We will soon be on our way to Tau Ceti, and maybe we will find a habitable planet there.”

  “Can you imagine if we did?” Angela added with excitement in her eyes and her stew momentarily forgotten. “How soon do you think it would be before colonists would arrive?”

  Jeremy swallowed the stew he had been eating. It was quite good, and both Angela and he had opted for it. “Possibly a few years,” Jeremy pointed out as he thought about what would have to be done before colonists could safely travel to a new world. “The planet will have to be surveyed and the wildlife and plant life categorized. The colonists will have to know what is safe to eat and what isn’t. It will take a lot of research and hard work before the planet is deemed safe for colonization.”

  “Perhaps not as much as you think,” Kelsey commented with a faraway look in her eyes. “They may let the colonists do most of the research. Once an Earth like world is discovered there will be a lot of pressure on the governments to begin colonization, particularly with the overcrowding on Earth.”

  “I agree with Kelsey,” Kevin commented. “I think colonization would begin immediately.”

  “We would have to build some colony ships first,” Jeremy reminded them. “That will take some time.”

  “I think it would be exciting to get to explore a new world similar to Earth,” Angela added as she thought about what it would be like. “Just think of all we could learn. It would be like finding another Avenger.”

  “I don’t know if anything could be like that again,” commented Jeremy, recalling his early days of growing up on the crashed spaceship.

  Angela was quiet for a moment and then looked over at Jeremy. “I wonder where the Avenger came from? No one has ever said.”

  “I don’t know,” replied Jeremy, truthfully. He had asked his dad several times, but each time the answer had been evasive. Sometimes Jeremy had the feeling that his father was hiding something from him. “My mother did manage to recover some of the ship’s logs as well as some basic information about the ship in the early days of the Avenger Project, but to the best of my knowledge they never found out where the Avenger came from.”

  “The ship has supposedly been there for hundreds, if not thousands of years,” Kevin added.

  It was one of the favorite topics at the academy and students talked constantly about the Avenger and where the ship had come from. The onl
y thing that was common knowledge was that the ship’s crew had been human, and the ship had crashed on the Moon hundreds of years in the past. There was a growing group of people on Earth who believed the Avenger came from a previous civilization that had existed on Earth and had been their first attempt at the stars. There was even speculation that the lost civilization of Atlantis had been responsible for building the ship.

  “Perhaps we will find out someday,” Kelsey said as she took a bite of her salad. She looked at the others for a moment, and then her eyes widened as she saw who had just walked into the room. “Barr just came in; I hope he doesn’t say anything.”

  “After what happened in the Command Center, you know that he will,” Kevin said with aggravation in his voice, not wanting to hear Barr’s comments about the incident.

  Angela watched as Barr picked up his tray and food and took a seat at a table across the room, not even glancing at the four cadets. “Perhaps he hasn’t heard,” Angela spoke surprised that Barr wasn’t going to harass them.

  “Maybe after Lieutenant Nelson’s last warning, he has decided to leave us alone,” uttered Kevin as he reached for a fry and dipped it in ketchup.

  “Perhaps,” responded Jeremy, glancing over at Barr. He noticed that Barr had been joined by several other people. There was another cadet from his group and several other members of the New Horizon’s crew that Jeremy had seen in the Command Center on occasion.

  “How soon do you think we will depart for Tau Ceti?” asked Angela, wanting to get her mind off of Barr. She truly enjoyed discussing what they might find in their exploration of the Tau Ceti system.

  “Sometime in the next two weeks,” replied Jeremy, recalling what Lieutenant Nelson had told him earlier. “The ship will be checked out one more time by the techs, and if everything passes the scientists and their lab technicians will come on board. They will have a week to familiarize themselves with their labs before we depart. From what I understand, the equipment in the labs was picked out by the scientist themselves so it should go rather quickly.”