Star Runners: Mission Wraith (#3)

by L. E. Thomas

  “Fun.” Austin thought of his mission. “Had she been told of my funeral?”

  Nubern smiled. “Her ship has been so far out that no communications had reached her, yet. After she is cleared from quarantine, she will receive all transmissions that were stored in their ship’s system when they arrive back in the core worlds. Once I heard about the situation from Major Braddock, I knew I wanted to prevent word from getting to your mother, so I took leave and went to deal with the situation.”

  Nubern’s grin grew wide. “I have some pull, you know, so I was able to prevent the news from reaching her before it is downloaded. I will tell her what has happened, but in person. This was a black ops mission, but she deserves to hear the truth and not some cold message from the Navy.” He shrugged. “Anyway, her ship will soon be on the way back to the core worlds. I think she is handling her transition to the Legion Navy really well. She really loves you, Austin. Before she was out of communication range, she would write about you all the time.”

  Austin eyed him. “So you two have become close then?”

  Nubern sighed, his eyes rolling. “I suppose we have, son.”

  Austin let his gaze on linger on his mentor. “I think that’s great, sir. I really do.”

  “Okay,” Nubern said in that certain way to suggest he wanted to change the subject. “You know where you're headed next?”

  “With my current situation, I have no idea. The Formidable is shipping out at the end of the week. I hope I’ll be on board.”

  “I do, too. Let me know what’s going on when you get a chance.” He gestured to the left. “By the way, is that it?”

  Austin followed his gaze. There at the end of the row of fighters was the Wraith. They had walked around the entire hangar.

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Braddock told me a little about what you went through to get it,” Nubern said with a sigh. “Beautiful fighter.”

  Austin took in a slow breath. “It sure is, sir.”

  Nubern stared at him. “Are you doing fine? Are you taking leave with the rest of your squadron?”

  He shrugged. “I’m heading down to Oma, but I’m going alone.”

  Nubern frowned. “I had heard you’ve been spending a lot of time in your quarters since completing your mission.”

  “And?”

  “Don’t make it too much of a habit, that’s all. Make sure you leave yourself some time to recover from what you’ve been through, but there’s no reason to always be alone. People care about you. Make time for them.”

  “I’ll make the time.” He smiled weakly, a plan forming in his mind. “I think I know where I’d like to go first.”

  Nubern placed his hands on both of Austin’s shoulders. “You know I’ve always been proud of you. Don’t you?”

  Austin felt his face warm. “Yes, sir.”

  “But what you have accomplished at such a young age …” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I don’t have the words. You are, well, you have become my hero.”

  Austin nodded. “Thank you, sir.”

  They embraced. Nubern squeezed him, holding him close for a moment.

  “I’ll see you soon,” Nubern said as they parted. “I have to head back to Quadrant Eight.”

  Austin smiled, the mention of his home quadrant bringing a flood of nostalgia. “Tell Earth I said hello.”

  “Will do.” Nubern held his gaze a moment longer, then marched out of the hangar. His boots echoed as they drifted farther away until Nubern disappeared through the hatch and into the busy corridor.

  “Lieutenant,” a deck officer called, rushing across the hangar floor. “Your shuttle is departing for Oma in a moment.”

  Austin held up his hand. “I’ll be right there. I want to see this.”

  The deck officer seemed miffed at being told to wait but held his tongue.

  Austin turned his attention back to the Wraith, looking out of place next to a line of Legion Tridents. A lift hoisted the black fighter into the air, and the crew pushed it onto the transport ship. Austin looked at the sleek design one last time, not knowing if he would ever see the stealth fighter again. He wanted to reach out and touch it, but the fighter lifted twenty feet into the air and moved toward the transport.

  Braddock had said the Wraith would be secretly sent back to the Legion core worlds for study and reverse-engineering. With any luck, the Legion would be able to create its own stealth ships before the Zahl Empire recovered from this setback. Although the Zahlian Empire had said nothing of this incident, they did mention the loss of the Dauntless due to a reactor accident that claimed Sector Regent Tulin, who had been aboard. With Tulin’s death, the tension between the Zahl and Legion governments should subside.

  He studied the Wraith’s smooth surface, didn’t see a scratch.

  I did it, he thought. I got you.

  Turning to the deck officer, Austin nodded and followed him toward the departing shuttle.

  *****

  Austin dangled his feet in the warm waters of Seaside, his thoughts on Ryker basking in the sun. He had arrived two days ago, renting the same room they had used after dancing at the Glistening Orb. Other docks lined the waterway, stretching into the distance and disappearing into the morning fog.

  Although he had tried, he hadn’t been able to sleep much. Falling into restless naps a couple hours at a time, he had been ripped from sleep by horrible nightmares. They had changed now, however, no longer about the fires and the Battle of Atlantis. Now, he awoke with no memory of the dream, only a passing feeling of depression.

  He had pressed his face into the pillows, wondering if he could smell her hair. He knew it was crazy to try, but he didn’t care. When his father died, he could smell his Dad everywhere. The smell lingered for months, but slowly faded with the passage of time.

  There had to be a mistake. His mind convinced him several times each hour his death was an error. Dad hadn’t died. The doctors had been mistaken about their entire diagnosis. This lasted for weeks, and he found himself doing the same thing with Ryker.

  Austin shook his head. He had read the encrypted after action reports Nubern had sent him, saw there were no beacons or escape pods found on long range scans. A physical search of the area was impossible since the moon had been located just inside Zahlian territory.

  He stared over the water, remembering their time here. It had been before the promotion, before she allowed the pressure to get to her and throw up her defenses. For the first time, Austin realized he never blamed her for calling off their relationship. He understood.

  Staring down into the water and watching the daylight flicker over his feet, he wished he could have told her he knew her secret. She had the rest of the fleet fooled into thinking she was a hardened warrior. Part of her was this facade and always would have been an incredible Star Runner, but there was another side, a softer side Austin thought she saved for him.

  And now she was gone.

  The bell on his room’s door pinged. He ignored it, dipping his hand in the water and taking in a breath of the sea air brushing over him.

  Perhaps a swim was in order …

  The door pinged again.

  Sighing, he leaned back on his hands. “Enter!”

  The door opened with a rush. Soft footsteps entered and stepped out onto his dock.

  “Austin?”

  He smiled, his eyes still on the water. “Hey, Sky. What are you doing here? How did you find me?”

  “Some of the squadron is staying here, too. Said they saw you getting a drink earlier.” She paused. “Are you okay?”

  “Sure. How are you?”

  “Good.” She nodded, her eyes drifting to the water. “It’s beautiful here.”

  “It is.”

  “I’m … sorry about Ryker.” She nodded slowly. “She was a good person who didn’t deserve the things I said to her.”

  He stared at her, saw the pain and regret in her eyes. “Are you okay, Sky?”

  She paused. “The Formidable’s
leaving orbit in four hours.”

  “I’ll be on it,” he said, exhaling.

  She stepped next to him, her body blocking the light. “I was worried you might not be coming.”

  “What?” he asked, squinting as he stared up at her. “The Legion owns me now. I’ve signed my papers and will probably die in the uniform.” He smirked. “Again.”

  She eyed him. “I’m glad to hear it.”

  “That I’ll die?”

  “No!”

  He laughed. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m just waiting for the orders for my exciting ‘revival.’ Not sure how they are going to proceed with that, my reinstatement.”

  Skylar folded her arms over her chest and stared out over the water. “That’s part of the reason Braddock sent me to find you.”

  Austin blinked. “Oh?”

  “Our orders have been received.” She stared at him. “They are starting an elite and covert team for the top Star Runners in the Legion. It’s for the best of the best. Word has it we’ll be the ones flying the next generation of Tridents once they have been engineered. The galaxy is changing, and you helped it change. We are some of those lucky few who have been chosen for transfer.”

  “We’re leaving Tizona?” he asked. He stared at the horizon for a second. “I am happy where I am. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Skylar lingered at the edge of the dock. She knelt down next to him.

  “I’m sorry you’re hurting. I really am. If there is anything I can ever do, let me know. I … I care about you. Don’t forget that.”

  Austin nodded quickly, his eyes fixed on the water.

  She stood and turned to the door.

  “Will you leave Tizona?” he asked.

  She paused. “Yes. This is an opportunity to be the best I can be. I won’t turn it down. You have inspired our entire squadron—me included—with your bravery and your sacrifice. There are some … well, some of us who will be very sad if you don’t join us.” She stared at him. “You’re a hero, Austin.”

  “Thanks,” he whispered.

  She walked across the dock, her footsteps sounding hollow over the wooden surface. He leaned forward, popping his knuckles. He stared into the cloudless sky, thinking of how far he had come since Mom took him to the Tizona Academy a thousand lifetimes ago.

  “Sky?”

  “Yes?”

  “What are they going to call this group?”

  She exhaled sharply. “I forgot to tell you, didn’t I?” She paused, her voice cracking as she spoke. “It’s not official, but word has it the elite Star Runner force will be called the Scorpions.”

  Austin nodded. He smiled, his eyes welling up. He pressed his lips together and cleared his throat.

  “Hang on,” he said, yanking his feet out of the water. “I’m coming with you.”

  Captain Kurt Nelms traveled light, the Karda being loaded with extra fuel tanks instead of missiles and the inside of the ship was being outfitted to hold more passengers if required. His carrier, the Redoubtable, had been taken off its recent patrol of The Fringe to deal with marauder attacks and ordered to the Zahl-Legion border. It didn’t make any sense to him—scuttlebutt had it that the feelings between the two governments had warmed a bit since the threat of war in the past year. But after twelve years in the Legion Navy, well, not every order had to make sense.

  He adjusted the Karda’s course as it passed through the moon’s atmosphere, lining up for the coordinates he had been provided as the last known location for the missing crew.

  Shaking his head, he thought about the situation that brought him to this mission. Once the Redoubtable had arrived at its location, Nelms had been quietly ordered to prep a search and possible rescue mission for this remote moon orbiting a gas giant just across the border inside Zahlian space. He had been told a curvature drive had been misaligned, and an entire team had disappeared over the border. Nelms had never heard of such a thing happening with a curvature drive but knew better than to ask questions.

  All the markings had been removed from the Karda, and he had been forced to leave all forms of identification on board the carrier. That was fine with him—there wasn’t another ship in the entire system.

  The gorgeous land stretched out beneath him like a green and purple blanket. As he descended, he saw the trees mixed with strange mushrooms the color of a plum. The coordinates led him to a winding river curving through the forest. The water led to a canyon in the distance.

  He paused, staring at the situation within the canyon as he hovered over the final coordinates he had been supplied for the mission. Charred and blackened vegetation surrounded a crater away from the river just as the ground started to incline. Rock outcroppings covered what looked like a cave at the top edge of the canyon. He hovered the Karda, bringing the vessel around on its axis in a slow, tilted curve.

  What happened here?

  Helms leaned forward, peering through the canopy. Could this be the crash site? Or perhaps a meteor had done this? He stopped the Karda’s turn when he faced the river.

  Burnt pieces of metal and steel were strewn about like a scrap heap at the water’s edge. It looked like the remains of a vessel of some kind, but any resemblance had been destroyed by … something. Okay, he thought, a meteor didn’t cause that.

  He glanced at his position, reverifying the coordinates. He was in the right place. There must be no survivors. The mission had been for nothing, but at least he had been able to get away from the carrier for a while—the guys were going to be jealous when he told them he got to see the daylight for once.

  Firing up the engines, he pulled back on the stick and prepped to fly into deep orbit.

  An orange streak of light flashed across the sky to his right. Nelms glanced in the direction of the light, saw a trail of yellow-orange smoke arching across the sky. A sparkling ball of light glowed from the end of the arch, flickering as it fell toward the ground.

  A flare.

  Somebody was alive down there.

  Nelms shifted the Karda around to the right, surveying the ground as the craft rotated. He searched for any sign of life he might have missed. Perhaps there would be a campfire or maybe some shelter. He found his answer down the river from the site of the crater.

  One man waded into the water, his hands stretched over his head. He wore no shirt and had a scraggly beard fit for a rat’s nest. He wore tight black pants that appeared similar to a wetsuit. Another man in a similar black outfit stood on the rocks in the middle of the river with a laser rifle draped over his chest.

  Nelms hesitated, eyeing the man with the gun. He activated the external speaker system.

  “Please put down the rifle,” he said. “Put down the rifle and I will approach.”

  The bearded man wading in the water waved back to his companion with the rifle. The man on the rock stood straight, swinging the rifle behind his back.

  Confident the men meant no harm, Nelms eased the Karda down to the river’s edge. His landing skies sunk into the soft, wet ground. Leaving the engine running, he grabbed his laser pistol from its holster and hurried to the back of the Karda. With one swift movement, he slid open the side door and jumped down to the surface.

  With the men coming toward him on the opposite side of the Karda, Nelms remained behind the craft for a moment. He took a second to enjoy a deep breath, allowing the warmth of real light rays to wash over his skin. It had been three months since he felt true light from a star warm his skin instead of having to make do with the artificial light from the UV rooms on board the carrier.

  Shaking his attention back to the situation at hand, Nelms inched around the back of the Karda to face the men strolling toward him. He held the pistol over his head and fired.

  “Hold it!” he yelled.

  The two men stopped, raising their hands over their heads. The bearded man stood closest to him while the other armed man remained farther back. While the other man hadn’t aimed his rifle or moved the weapon at all, he hadn’t closed in or
offered a smile or pleasant expression. Cautiously, Nelms moved forward as if each step could kill him. When he was about a stone’s throw away, he held up his free hand.

  “Are you stranded here?” he asked. “Are you from a Legion ship that crashed because of a curvature drive failure?”

  The bearded man closest to him sighed, his body sinking as if it deflated. “Thank you.”

  Nelms frowned. “Am I missing something?”

  The man shook his head. “No, we have been expecting you. It took longer than we thought it would, but better late than never.”

  Nelms lowered his pistol, still unsure of what the man meant. “I still don’t understand. I was told to look for a ship that had suffered curvature drive misalignment and crashed here.”

  The man nodded. “That’s our code, yes. If things went wrong, we were expecting a rescue mission, and that was the code phrase. Thank you.”

  “You’re Legion?”

  “Serpents.” The man grinned. “I’m Captain Towers. This is Lieutenant Adams. We’ve been stranded here for quite some time.”

  Nelms shook his head, holstering his pistol. “I see. Any more of you out here?”

  “No,” Towers said quickly. He hesitated and stared off at the horizon. “Actually, we witnessed an escape pod coming down shortly after our ride left us. Came down to the west of here.”

  Nelms pulled out his tablet and activated the local map. “Show me.”

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  About the Author

  L.E. Thomas is an award-winning writer and graphic designer. His work has also appeared in newspapers, magazines and websites. Thomas lives in Georgia with his wife and rescued dog where he is currently at work on his next novel.