A Galaxy Unknown

by Thomas DePrima

  "I thought that you might have been caught. I couldn't wait any longer."

  "I know, Captain. Sorry that it took us so long. We needed trucks with covered rear cargo areas and I figured that we should have some cargo handler coveralls for the drivers for when we get to the ship."

  "Good thinking, Gunny. What's the delay?"

  "The other boys had to strip the coveralls off the fellahs that we stunned, and then they had to get dressed in them. Here they come now."

  Three more trucks floated to a halt behind the first, and there was now more capacity than needed. Browne was wearing cargo handler coveralls over his uniform so Jenetta told him to take the lead truck. She gave him some quick instructions, including directions to the airlock piers, and the trucks moved out as soon as she had climbed into the rear.

  Arriving at the designated pier, which extended out alongside the ship, Browne's eyes opened wide, but he quickly concealed his anxiety. There was an armed guard at the docking ramp entrance, and another at the other end where it disappeared into the ship's forward cargo bay. He pulled up next to the first guard and said calmly, "Gotta load of food provisions for you."

  "This ship's already been fully loaded. We're not expecting any more deliveries."

  "Yeah, well, there was some kind of screw-up. This will be the last shipment, unless those dillweeds find something else they missed."

  "Let me see your shipping manifest."

  "Sure," Browne said as he made a production of looking for the viewpad in the cab. "Shit, it's not here. I musta left it in the back of the truck."

  "Stay in the cab," the guard said nonchalantly. "I'll get it."

  The guard sauntered around to the back of the truck and was momentarily out of sight of other guard. As he flipped open the rear canvas flap, Jenetta shot him point blank with her stun pistol. He crumpled silently to the ground.

  "Mr. Deitrich, you're about the same size. Take his place here and don't come into the ship until you're called, or security teams approach with weapons drawn."

  "Aye, Captain."

  Deitrich jumped down and lifted the sleeping guard into the back of the truck. He picked up the guard's white helmet and electronic clipboard, and sauntered slowly around to the cab.

  "Okay, Mr. Browne," Deitrich said, "you're cleared to drive in."

  "Thank you, Mr. Deitrich," he said, grinning.

  Deitrich waved to the other guard as the trucks drove out the enclosed airlock ramp leading into the ship. When they reached the second guard, a big brutish looking dolt, he held up a giant paw to stop them.

  "Waz goin on? Why waz you passed tru? We waz told this ship was fully loaded, except for crew."

  "Last minute food delivery," Browne said. "The officers must've wanted more fresh fruit and meat. Can't say I blame them; there isn't a food synthesizer made that can make a decent apple. You know what I mean? Apple sauce yes, apples no."

  The guard's simple mind was completely confused by the talk about apples and applesauce. To regain control of the discussion he said, "Lemme see your shippin pad."

  "Sure thing, pal, here."

  Browne lifted his stun pistol and fired just as the barrel cleared the bottom of the window opening. The huge guard crumpled to the ground as noiselessly as the first. On Jenetta's orders, another former captive, dressed in a security guard uniform, hopped out of the back and managed to drag the sleeping guard behind some stacked crates before putting on his white helmet and taking his place. The trucks immediately drove the rest of the way into the cargo bay and discharged the teams that would take the ship.

  Assembled into the three groups that Jenetta had arranged while still in the detention center, they made their final preparations to begin the assault. One group would race to the bridge, led by Jenetta; a second would head for Engineering, led by Browne; and the third, led by Gunny, would head for the crew quarters. All would stun any crewmen they encountered on their way. The guard in the cargo bay would stun any new crewmen reporting aboard during the takeover.

  Checking the cheap wristwatch that she had picked up from among the personal items stripped from the guards in the detention center, Jenetta said, "We have just fifteen minutes before the guards we left in the locker room are supposed to report in. If their one a.m. nap habit is known among their comrades, someone in security will probably go looking for them before a general alarm goes out. So at best, we have perhaps a forty-five minute window. Let's do this!"

  The three groups raced off in different directions to complete their missions. ‘You are here' style deck-layout images were mounted on the walls in the corridors so crewmembers could find their way around the ship, and that made it easy for the assault groups to find their destinations. As they proceeded to their objectives, they encountered people walking in the corridors, but they were past each one before the crewman had even finished sliding, unconscious, to the deck.

  Reaching the bridge, Jenetta's assault team paused for thirty seconds to catch their breath.

  "We'll rush in as soon as the doors are open," Jenetta told them. "Try not to shoot. We may need these people to operate the ship until we learn the controls. Ready?"

  Lt. Commander Hugh Michaels said, "Ready, Captain."

  The others all nodded and Jenetta stepped into the area where movement was monitored by the door opening mechanism. As the two doors slid open noiselessly, Jenetta's group thundered into the room.

  "Everyone freeze!" Jenetta yelled.

  The only two officers on the bridge, a young ensign and a lieutenant, froze as Jenetta and her team of seven quickly surrounded them. After relieving them of their weapons, a full set of restraints was put onto each young Raider officer, and then activated. Team members who checked the captain's briefing room, found it empty. One man was then assigned to watch the prisoners, and another the corridor door, while the rest checked out the ship's controls. Everyone was breathing a little easier.

  "Everything is straight forward, Captain," Lt. Commander Michaels said. "Two men, a helmsman and astrogator, can operate this ship well enough to take it out. We don't need these Raider officers. The ship is ready to go."

  Jenetta looked over at the two young officers. They had overheard the comment about not being needed, and fear was evident on their faces. They believed they were about to be killed.

  "Don't worry," she said to them, "you won't be harmed unless you offer resistance. Sit down."

  Both men, their arms held tightly against their waists, and their ankles locked together, bent at the waist and knees and fell backwards to the deck. Jenetta walked over to them as the man assigned to guard them covered them with his pistol. Jenetta pointed her controller at one and released his arms.

  "Put your left arm through his right and then put it against your waist again."

  When the ensign had complied, Jenetta secured his arms again. Both men were now linked together in addition to being completely secured. They could offer almost no resistance now.

  Jenetta bent over the lieutenant and said, "Do you know what this is?" She held out her pistol.

  "Of course, it's a stun pistol."

  "And do you know how it works?"

  "You aim it and pull the trigger?"

  "And do you know what happens when you're hit?"

  "It knocks you out for about six hours and you wake up with a hell of a headache. But you won't need that, we won't offer any resistance."

  "I'm glad to hear that. For the first offense, you get stun-ned. For the second offense, you get stunned and tossed out an air lock. There are no third offenses. Understand?"

  The lieutenant swallowed hard, and said, "I understand, Captain."

  "Good. Keep it uppermost in your mind and relay that information to your fellow prisoners— when they wake up."

  Jenetta looked at her watch. The bridge takeover had taken just seven minutes. They had eight minutes left before the guards were supposed to report in. Better yet, she had confirmed the strength of the stun pistol. Even the hardiest indi
vidual, such as the huge guard at the airlock, should be out for at least four or five hours.

  As she dropped her arm, Gunny entered the bridge. Eight pistols swung in his direction until he was recognized. He paused until the pistols were lowered, then walked over to Jenetta.

  Coming to attention, he said, "The ship is secured, Captain. We've stunned everyone that we could find below. Browne has Engineering under control, and my boys are roaming the decks looking for strays, but almost everyone on board was in the sack at this hour, so it was too easy. The idiot crewman in the armory opened the outer door without challenging me when I buzzed, and then just stared at me in surprise as I stunned him and his partner. We'll have to find someone who can unlock the cage door before they awake. And I guess they hadn't assigned quarters security codes yet because none of the doors were locked. We can seal the ship and leave as soon as you give the order."

  "At ease, Gunny. Well done. It took you just eight minutes in an unfamiliar ship."

  "Thirty-eight years in the service, ma'am," Gunny said as he relaxed. "I've been aboard a lot of ships. This one isn't so different. Just a bit bigger than the other Space Command battleships I've served on."

  "Tell me, Gunny. Could you do it again?"

  "Again, Captain?"

  "There's a second, identical battleship right next to this one. Remember?"

  Lt. Commander Michaels exclaimed, "You can't be serious, Captain! We have to get out of here before they find out their detention center is empty or that their security patrol is missing. We can't start another operation now."

  * * *

  Chapter Nineteen

  ~ August 11th, 2267 ~

  "Commander," Jenetta said, "if we don't take that other ship, it'll be on our six before we've gone a billion kilometers. And since a warship's temporal field generator is retracted into the hull when not in use, we can't simply blast theirs as we leave to prevent them from following us. We know that we can't outrun it, and we can't put up much of a fight with our limited crew, so we either have to take it or disable it. We don't have time to figure out how to disable it without first taking control of it, and I would prefer to take it anyway. Besides, having two battleships facing them might give pause to anyone considering pursuit."

  Lt. Commander Michaels grimaced but couldn't offer any response that would annul the logic of Jenetta's argument. Gunny would do whatever Jenetta said without question.

  "Gunny, get below and round up your men. Leave three on mop-up and the two at the airlock. Have Mr. Browne leave two men from his team in Engineering. Everyone else should be in the trucks so we can take our ‘food provisions' to the other ship."

  "Aye, Captain," Gunny said, grinning as he ran for the door.

  "Captain Yates, you were a Lieutenant and a command officer in Space Command before becoming a freighter captain. Do you think that you can handle this ship?"

  "Aye, Captain. I believe so."

  "Good. I'm putting you in command here. I'll leave Farrencroft and Lyons with you, in addition to the seven men below deck. Monitor commercial frequency 25932.5 while you're waiting. As soon as we take the other ship, I'll send you a communication that we're ready to leave. The coded message will be ‘Carver to Yates. Proceed.' At that time you call in Mr. Deitrich, seal the ship, and prepare to get under way. As soon as you see the other ship begin to move, follow us. If the other ship hasn't moved in twenty-five minutes, get out of here and get to the nearest Space Command base as best you can."

  "Aye, Captain. We'll be monitoring commercial frequency 25932.5."

  "Good luck, Captain."

  "You too, Captain."

  "Commander Michaels, are you ready?"

  Lt. Commander Michaels, wearing a wry grin, exhaled loudly and said, "About as ready as I'm ever going to be, Captain."

  "Good, let's do this. Kellogg, Ito, Newman, you're with us."

  Jenetta ran from the bridge with the four men hard on her heels. They reached the forward cargo bay as Gunny, Browne, and their teams arrived.

  "Everyone into the trucks," Jenetta shouted, "we have one more job and then we're out of here. Mr. Browne, you take the lead truck again. Same procedure."

  As Jenetta climbed into the rear of the lead truck, she immediately saw the fear filled faces of the women captives. She had forgotten about them as her mind raced with the details of the still unfolding plan to take the other ship. Doubts began to surface that she might again be pushing things too far, as when she had given orders to enter the spaceport instead of dropping their cargo and making a run for it. But it was too late to make arrangements for leaving them here now. She sat down on the bed of the truck as it started to move.

  No alarm had yet sounded, so the guards at the other ship's docking ramp and airlock weren't any more alert than the first two. They were easy prey for the now practiced assault team. Once again, Jenetta posted two men at the cargo bay's airlock entrance and the rest separated into teams, although the teams were a little smaller. Jenetta's team was comprised of only four plus herself. Checking her watch, she saw that time had run out. The security guards were supposed to be reporting in right then, instead of sleeping peacefully in laundry wagons.

  "Okay," she said, "we're out of time and I'm anxious to get the hell out of here. Let's do this."

  The three teams raced off as before, but this time they knew where they were going and didn't need to check the deck maps on the bulkheads. Jenetta's team stunned four Raider crewmen on their way to the bridge, and upon reaching the bridge, Jenetta allowed just fifteen seconds to catch their breath before giving the signal to enter.

  "Everyone freeze," Jenetta shouted as the team stormed onto the bridge of this second ship.

  Four men, all standing at the tactical station, were discussing something on the main plot monitor. They stopped what they were doing and calmly turned to face the five intruders. One, wearing the three wide gold bars of a full commander on his epaulets, said in an arrogant voice, "What's the meaning of this?" His stance and expression showed that he was used to being in command and having people jump when he spoke. Standing about five-foot eleven-inches, his curly black hair, protruding ears, and dark bushy eyebrows gave the forty-something-year-old a slightly comical appearance.

  "Galactic Space Command," Jenetta said forcefully. "We're taking back our ship. Everyone drop your weapons, very carefully, using just two fingers, and then move to the rear bulkhead."

  She saw the disbelief in their eyes, but they were hardly in a position to deny that five pistols were pointed in their direction. While not as lethal, or messy, as the lattice pistol that each of the four Raider officers carried, the stun pistols would be just as effective at enforcing the takeover.

  Lattice pistols had long ago been outlawed by the Galactic Alliance, but the extremely lethal weapons remained the favored personal weapon of Raider officers because they could be fired aboard ship with the certain knowledge that the projectile couldn't puncture a titanium hull. Like laser pistols, they used energy in place of chemical propellants, but they fired an actual object rather than an energy beam. Each fifty-millimeter long projectile consisted of four narrow pieces of formed spring-steel. Loaded under great pressure into hundred-round magazines, each projectile was stored in a flattened, compressed form. When pulled into the chamber, it instantly expanded to become a twelve-millimeter diameter latticework tube. Three tubes were always loaded into the chamber, ready to be fired instantly. With a leading edge as sharp as any straight edge razor, and spun by a rifled chamber, the fired projectile performed like the narrow blade of a filleting knife, slicing its way through whatever it struck. Since it wasn't attempting to push its way through the matter, as a lead projectile would, it didn't require nearly the mass. And where a laser pistol sealed the wound as it made it, the lattice pistol left large gapping holes that allowed a person's life force to bleed out in minutes from wounds in what were normally considered non-vital areas.

  The commander and two of the others carefully removed the
ir pistols and dropped them to the carpeted deck, but one officer, a lieutenant(jg), tried to make a fight of it. Jenetta saw the movement and fired as she threw herself to the left, landing badly. The three-round burst from his lattice pistol bored three, large nasty holes in the fabric and padding of the first officer's chair as the lieutenant crumbled to the floor. The projectiles didn't stop cutting until they reached the hard surface of the backrest's main supporting material. Jenetta had been standing immediately in front of that chair a second earlier.

  In an attempt to use the distraction, the other Raider officers bent to retrieve their dropped weapons, but Lt. Commander Michaels shouted, "Not a good idea, boys!"

  Newman collected the weapons as the three officers straightened back up, but Jenetta remained lying on the floor holding her left arm.

  "Are you all right, Captain?" Lt. Commander Michaels asked, his concern evident in his tone.

  "I'm fine. I think I broke my arm though."

  Moving to her side, Mr. Kellogg helped her get to her feet.

  "Can you continue on, Captain?"

  "Yes, I'm great. Thanks to our jailers, pain actually makes me feel good. I'm beginning to feel quite wonderful right now. Who's got the bag of restraints? Let's show our new friends here what we've been enjoying for so long."

  The Raider commander, still confident that the takeover would fail, said, "You're all escaped prisoners, aren't you?"

  "Bingo," Jenetta said.

  "You! You're the one that broke the Commandant's nose?"

  "Two for two," Jenetta said, feeling a little light-headed and giddy. A warm feeling was spreading through her thorax and abdomen.

  Each of the four men was fitted with restraint bands and Jenetta locked them on using the controller that had belonged to Arneu. Then she secured their wrists to the belts.

  "Great feeling, isn't it?" Jenetta said, then grinned at the three officers. "What's your name?" Jenetta asked the senior officer.

  "I'm Commander Levande Pretorious," he said smirking, "and you'll never get away with this."