Descent

by Hamish Spiers

  Carla sighed. “Well, it can’t hurt to try, right?”

  Eroim still smiled and Carla saw a hint of his previous self coming back. “I guess not, Captain.” He flicked a switch. “All right. Good luck.”

  Carla smiled back and then leaned over the communicator on the side of her seat. “This is the Lantern. Our vessel’s crippled and we need assistance. Is there anyone out there? I repeat, this is the Lantern. Our vessel’s crippled and we need assistance. Is there anyone out there?”

  There was a reply, almost immediately.

  “Lantern, this is the Lady Hawk.” The speaker’s voice was strained. It sounded as though he were in pain. “I’ve got minimal steering and my life support is failing. Oxygen levels -” He trailed off for a moment and Carla heard labored breathing. “They’re falling fast,” he managed. “But I’ve got engine power.”

  “I think we can help each other,” Carla said.

  “I think so too.”

  Carla frowned again. The Lady Hawk. It could be Asten’s ship. The ship that Asten, Drackson and herself had, for a little while, called home. But since Asten and Selina had been captured and the Lady Hawk taken, she wondered who the pilot out there could be. Assuming that it was indeed the same ship. The voice sounded familiar as well but she couldn’t place it.

  “We’ll meet you at our main hatch,” she said. “By the way, I’m Carla Casdan. Who are you?”

  “I’m Deramar Ardeis.”

  Carla stood by the hatch. At her side stood a spry man of slight build who doubled as a mechanic and a guard. Olev and Tatiana were there as well. Olev limped as he walked. He had some shrapnel in his thigh but he said he could wait his turn in the infirmary. All of the group were armed and their weapons were trained on the hatch.

  When it opened however, they lowered them.

  The tall, four armed man from the other vessel may have been the orchestrator of several hundred thousand murders but he was no threat to them now. Gasping and clutching at his side, he collapsed on the deck and rolled onto his back.

  “You’ll need masks,” he wheezed. “There’s nothing left.” He broke into a fit of coughing.

  Carla nodded to the slightly built man beside her. “Come on, Alec. Let’s get him to Reece.”

  Alec pulled the much larger man over his shoulder and gave Carla a smile. “It’s all right. I’ve got him. But I’ve got to ask. Do you really want to save this man?”

  Carla sighed. “I think enough people have died today, don’t you? And we can’t leave him like this. We’ve got to at least try to help him.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” Alec conceded. “I don’t think everyone will see it that way but you’re right.” With deceptive ease, he dragged Ardeis away.

  “Then get a mask for you and Eroim!” she called out after him. “See what you can salvage to get our engines back online.”

  Another woman arrived, looking a bit dazed and holding a healing patch on her forehead. However, Carla saw she had a blaster in her other hand. “Is everything under control, Captain?” she asked.

  Carla nodded. “Ardeis isn’t a danger to us, Tae’aras. Why don’t you go back to your bunk and lie down?”

  The woman nodded, fighting to keep her eyes open. “Thanks, Captain.”

  As she left, Carla turned to the siblings beside her. “Well, there’s nothing more we can do now. Why don’t you go and have a rest as well? And Olev, you’re next in line after Ardeis so don’t you go too far.”

  Reece frowned as he fumbled in the medical kit. It was odd. He remembered being on the table in this room when he had first been brought aboard the Lantern. Then, he had been the patient. Now, he was playing the medic of the crew. He wasn’t quite sure how that had happened. He wasn’t more qualified for it than anyone else on the ship. He had just started handing out medical kits and then Kailis had suggested he take over in the infirmary. Although, given that he had nothing else to do on the ship, it seemed like a logical idea.

  Then Alec had brought in the man who now lay on the table before him. A man who had just murdered hundreds of thousands of people in the blink of an eye. Now, Reece realized that Deramar Ardeis wasn’t only a monster of a magnitude worse than Jared Kareim but that the Jared Kareims out there were his agents. And, perhaps because this man had given the crew of the Lantern a chance of survival, or perhaps because Carla just felt compassion for anyone who was suffering, regardless of the things they had done, he was now doing his best to save the monster.

  Not that it mattered. The monster was dying and all Reece could do now was to make his passing as painless as possible.

  His patient stirred and blinked.

  “Why are you tending to me? I can see that no friendship lies between us.”

  “You think I don’t like you?” Reece asked, glancing back at him as he prepared a painkiller. “Whatever gave you that idea?”

  Ardeis smiled. “You’ve done little to conceal your disdain, my friend. You see me as nothing but a mass murderer.”

  Reece shrugged and administered the injection he had prepared. “That’s true. But whatever you’ve done, Carla doesn’t want to see you suffer.” He put the needle away, wiped his hands on a towel and sighed. “You’re lucky, you know. I imagine right now there’d be a lot of people out there who’d be glad to see you reduced to this. But Carla isn’t one of them.” He applied a numbing patch to one of Ardeis' injuries and placed an oxygen mask over his face. “If I know her - and I think I do now - then I’d say the only thing she hopes you suffer is remorse.”

  Deramar tried to laugh, although it ended in a spasm of pain and a few coughs. “That’s one affliction I don’t think I’ll need to worry about enduring. I did what I judged to be right. And if the circumstances were to repeat themselves, I would do the same again.” He turned his gaze on Reece again. “So do you think perhaps your captain might like to substitute remorse with a more fitting punishment?”

  “A lot of people might,” Reece replied, trying to keep the annoyance he felt at Ardeis’ ingratitude from showing in his voice. “As I said. But not Carla.” He stopped what he was doing and turned to his patient. “I have a question for you though. Why did you decide to help us? If you’re dying as you say, then what’s in it for you?”

  Ardeis inhaled, clouding his mask with condensation. “My people are ruined. We’ve lost everything we worked to obtain. So as it’s all over anyway, there doesn’t seem to be any sense in letting you and your friends die. The grand ambitions of the Imraehi, the dreams of an interstellar empire, have ended and that’s the only part of the inevitable historical account I’d be interested in reading. Your deaths, or the deaths of any of our enemies, at this point would serve no purpose. So you may as well live.” More condensation filled his mask. “Because someone should.” He leaned back and closed his eyes. “I don’t suppose you have a court reporter on this ship?”

  “No,” Reece said. “But if you want, I can take a statement for you.”

  “Then take this,” Ardeis said. “I, Deramar Ardeis, gave my life for what I believed in. And if I could have but one last request, it is this. I ask only that the United Frontier takes care of the people of Katara in my absence.” He opened his eyes again and looked at Reece. “Can you remember that?”

  Reece’s expression remained impassive. “Yes.”

  Ardeis closed his eyes once more. “Then you’ve done all you can for me, my friend. Leave me now and let me die in peace.”

  “How’s it looking?” Carla asked over the shipboard communicator.

  “We’ve got power,” Alec replied. “Enough for sublight speeds anyway. I wouldn’t want to try the main drive though.”

  Carla thought it over. “I think that’s all right. If we can move, then we should be able to get to a friendly ship that can give us some more assistance. And, if not, then I suppose we can land on the planet and take our chances there. By the way, do you think we can tow the Lady Hawk?”

  Alec hesitated. “It’ll slow us down
, Captain. And it won’t be easy with only minimal steering capacity.”

  “I know that,” Carla said. “But can we do it?”

  “Well... yes. We’ll have to go slow and steady. But yes.”

  “Then I’d like to bring it with us,” Carla said. “And slow and steady’s how I plan to go anyway.”

  “All right, Captain. I’ll leave the docking clamps in place.”

  “Thanks, Alec.”

  The bridge was silent for a few moments and then Carla’s communicator came to life once more. She answered it. “Yes?”

  “Carla? It’s Reece here. I just thought you should know. Deramar Ardeis is dead.”

  Carla nodded. “Thanks, Reece. Can you get Olev in then and take a look at his leg?”

  “Sure. No problem.”

  “Thanks.”

  As she ended the call, the door to the bridge slid open and Kailis entered. She was a little shaky on her feet but other than that, she looked fine.

  “I’m sorry about everything, Carla,” she said. “I was watching the radar but everything happened too fast.”

  Carla climbed to her feet and hugged her. “It’s all right, Kailis. It was no one’s fault.” She smiled and tussled her long bluish black hair. “Now, you take your station and see if you can find any friendly ships nearby.”

  Kailis smiled back. “Thanks, Carla.”

  On the Albatross, Selina sat with her head buried in her hands. “Father’s gone. And now Asten.” Through bleary eyes, she looked at Drackson. “And Naima too. I haven’t forgotte-” The word broke off in an uncontrollable sob. She climbed to her feet. “Oh, Drackson.”

  Drackson held her, keeping his own fears and grief under control but not by a large margin.

  Then he led her to a spare cabin. “Here. Why don’t you have a rest? You’ve had an exhausting two weeks. You must be dead on your feet.”

  Selina relinquished, closing her eyes and nodding. “All right. I’ll have a lie down.”

  She collapsed in a heap on the bunk inside and was asleep straightaway.

  Drackson hit the switch for the door on the way out, closing it behind him, and then he went to check on Alia, who was sitting at her usual station.

  She was bleary-eyed as well.

  Drackson placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke softly. “Anything?”

  “Maybe,” Alia sniffed. “I’ve got Jiang’s signal again. Somewhere out there in the debris.”

  “Let’s go and see if we can get a bit closer then,” Drackson said, giving her an encouraging smile. “If the beacon’s still transmitting, then there’s a chance Jiang’s out there too.”

  Alia tried to put on a smile as well.

  Drackson reached out and brushed some tears off her cheeks. “Come on.”

  On the bridge, Alia took the pilot’s seat. Taking a breath, she looked over her controls and then got the ship moving. “All right. We’re moving in.”

  At a cautious pace, they drifted into the field of debris in front of them. They weren’t worried about mines any more - whatever gimmick Admiral Seirvek had used to turn the Imraehi’s own traps against them had succeeded in clearing most of the things anyway - but the danger from collisions was still very real.

  However, with an effort, Alia navigated a safe path through the drifting hazards. Then, on the viewscreen, they saw it. A strange metallic monster drifting amongst the rest of the debris.

  “What is it?” Alia asked.

  Drackson studied the viewscreen a moment longer. “I’ve never seen a vehicle like that before but, if I were to hazard a guess, then I’d say it’s some kind of battleroid.” He smiled. “And I’d say that Jiang found her way off Orbital Six. Okay, Alia. Bring us closer.”

  Jiang was still unconscious when she was brought on board, disheveled and with an unnatural pallor to her skin. Alia feared the worse but, after checking her vital signs, Drackson assured her that Jiang was fine.

  He opened one of the Lantern’s medical kits, produced a scanner and ran it over Jiang’s forehead, checking for internal injuries. Then he ran it the length of her body and switched it off.

  He gave Alia a smile. “She’s all right. I’ll put her to bed and leave some water and something for headaches in her cabin in case she needs it. But I’d say she just needs lots of rest.”

  “She’s not in a coma or anything?” Alia asked.

  Drackson shook his head. “No, no. Nothing like that. She’s just had a bit of a shock to the system.”

  He carried Jiang to her cabin, laid her on her bunk and made her as comfortable as he could. Then he left the water and the medicine and closed the door.

  “So what now?” Alia asked when he came back.

  “Well,” Drackson said, “I for one would like to get clear of all this debris and any unexploded mines that might be about. And then I think the most sensible thing to do would be to join up with Maia and Zak’s task force. I’d say we should be pretty safe with three Freedom-class Dreadnoughts looking after us. And then I think the best thing to do would be to turn in and call it a night. It’s been a big day.”

  26. Safe at Last

  Asten smiled in his sleep. He felt the warmth of Selina’s body pressed up against his own. It was a little too warm though. Hot actually. He wondered if he was still lying on the beach, if Drackson and Naima’s arrival had been his imaginings. Then he frowned. A persistent beeping intruded on his repose. Blinking, he opened his eyes and recalled where he was, trapped in a damaged Harskan power glider. And the woman lying pressed against his side was Naima, not Selina. The softness of her skin, the warmth of her body... They were not unpleasant sensations. Quite the opposite. But she was not Selina. She was also rather larger in stature than both he and his wife were.

  She was sleeping heavily, he realized, but the regular heaving of her chest against his side and the sensation of her breath on his neck assured him that she wasn’t seriously injured.

  He then tried to see where the alarm was coming from. There was a flashing orange warning light above his head and next to it... Next to it was a panel with Harskan script.

  He rolled over and nudged Naima’s shoulder. “Naima?”

  Naima gave a contented sigh, with a heave of her shoulders, and went right on sleeping.

  He nudged her again. “Naima. Wake up. I think we’re in trouble.”

  Naima opened her eyes and Asten watched as she went from the world between sleep and wakefulness, her expression unfocused, then puzzled and then resolute as she recalled where she was.

  To Asten’s surprise, she smiled at him. “Good morning, sunshine.”

  Asten laughed, Naima’s mischievous grin bringing home the absurdity of the whole situation.

  “Good morning,” he replied. Then he nodded towards the alarm panel over his head. “Any idea what that is?”

  Naima rolled onto her back and looked. “It’s not a proximity alarm.” She frowned. “We’re about to re-enter the atmosphere.”

  “Is that a problem?”

  Naima climbed up onto her knees to get at the controls of the glider. “I don’t know. But with all the damage this thing’s taken, I’m not sure I’d want to risk it.”

  She played with the controls. “We can still steer,” she said. “And we’ve got a little bit of propulsion.”

  “What about radar?” Asten asked, sitting up and crouching beside her. “Flying out blind would be just as risky as attempting re-entry.”

  Naima nodded. “Quite right. It’s probably even riskier.” She had a look at the instrument panel and sighed. “What do you know? We don’t have radar.”

  “Can you get a reading on our shields?” Asten asked.

  Naima looked. “Well, Asten. I think we might make it through this alive.” She clapped her hand on his shoulder. “Even if it puts you right back where we found you.”

  “And puts you in Selina’s place,” Asten said. He looked down and sighed. “I’m sorry about getting you into this mess.”

  Naima smiled. “I
t’s all right. We won’t be quite as stranded as you and your wife were. You really love her, don’t you?”

  “Of course,” Asten said. “She’s my wife.”

  Naima nodded as she steered the glider and prepared for atmospheric re-entry. “It’s an interesting idea, this marriage of yours.”

  Asten looked at her. “Harskans don’t marry?”

  “Many species don’t,” Naima pointed out. “However, we do pair for life. Once one Harskan commits themselves to another, they won’t enter intimate relationships with another individual, even though they don’t typically remain together.”

  The glider began to vibrate as it penetrated the atmosphere.

  “But how does that work?” Asten asked. “I mean Drackson had younger siblings. If his father didn’t remain with his mother, then -”

  “He returned,” Naima explained. “And then he left again.”

  “And Harskan children remain with their mothers?”

  Naima shook her head. “They remain with whichever parent has the higher social rank to give them the greatest advantage. Drackson’s mother was of higher social standing than his father.”

  “So what about you and Drackson?” Asten asked. “Are you just going to part ways one day?”

  Naima shook her head. “No. We may be Harskans but we’re not exactly permanent residents in our home sector any more. Although, I guess it depends on Drackson.”

  “And you,” Asten said.

  Naima smiled. “And me. All right. Brace yourself. This might be a little rough.”

  Asten held onto the remains of a safety harness and leaned against one wall of the glider, while pushing his feet hard against the opposite one. The initial impact was a little bumpy but their forward momentum was powerful enough to put them into a smooth skid - although they both had to hold on tight to avoid being thrown against the front of the glider. Then, after several more seconds, the glider came to a stop.

  Naima pulled a switch and the hatches slid open underneath them, exposing a mound of sand.

  Asten looked at his Harskan companion. “The beach again?”

  “Sand’s a good bet when your landing gear’s not working,” Naima replied. “Come on. Let’s try to get out of this thing.”