Time Storm

by Philip R Benge

  On the floor above the Heliots, Kruger, was monitoring everything through the surveillance cameras and knew what to expect when he saw Trajo clamber up the access ladder.

  “They`re going to blow the access hatch, move back.”

  The resulting explosion was deadened by the heavy door that sealed off the access hatch, even so the ship shook with the power of the explosion, but the heavy door held. Kruger knew that it would not keep them out for long and had already formulated a plan to deal with any alien troopers who were foolish enough to try and climb the ladder. He ordered Masterson to open the door and then Kruger pitched a grenade down through the hole that had once been the access hatch. Kruger knew the strength of his ship more than anyone else alive did, and so had no worries about the grenade blowing a hole through its outer wall.

  The grenade exploded into the face of a Heliot trooper killing him instantly, the rest of the Heliots immediately moved back into cover.

  “We are trapped down here Aswan, so much for the plans of the earthman, we might have died down on the planet as warriors rather than to die up here in space as rats caught in a trap.” Trajo wailed.

  “We are not going to die Trajo, just give me a moment to think things over.” Aswan said patiently.

  “And while you take your time thinking of a way around our problem, the captain of this ship that we have trapped ourselves on will come up with even more ways to kill us, such as opening the hanger door and waiting us out.” Trajo screamed out for all in pressure suits to hear.

  “Quiet Trajo, we can always return to the planet if need be, in the two crafts waiting for us in the hanger.”

  “And be destroyed by the Phasers of this ship.” Trajo replied scornfully. “Divilio may have had his faults but he would never have led us into this trap.” Trajo wined.

  “Divilio led our magnificent fleet into the trap that brought us here.” Aswan responded angrily, to this retort Trajo had nothing more to say, she simply hung her head in shame and apologised to Aswan.

  “I am sorry Aswan, you of course are correct, no blame can attach itself to you, whatever the outcome of this final battle by the once great army of Heliot.”

  Tyler who had seen the dead body of the Heliot trooper carried by him, had requisitioned his damaged helmet so that he could now listen into all that was said by the Heliot commander, and on hearing what had been said between Aswan and Trajo, Tyler had decided to step into the Heliot breach.

  “Aswan, this is the earthman here, can I speak to you.”

  Aswan immediately brightened up, for hadn`t he offered this same earthmen the position of tactical officer, maybe the earthman has a solution to their present impasse.

  “I will come back to you, earthman. Trajo you take command up here while I speak to the earthman.”

  Aswan was soon back with Tyler who switched off the radio within the helmet that he had taken, and while warning Aswan to be quiet indicated that Aswan was to turn his radio off too. Aswan couldn`t understand all the secrecy, but decided that he needed a sit down anyway and so was about to lead the way into one of the cabins when Tyler said that they should talk back aboard the cargo vessel.

  “I am fighting a battle earthman, or haven`t you noticed. So I am a little too busy for all of this.”

  “The captain on board this vessel has a liking for listening into other people`s conversations, Commander, and as you are all wearing pressure suits that you took from his ship`s hanger, he is very likely listening in to everything that is said over these radios,” Tyler explained indicating the radio inside of the helmet he carried. “And as you seemed to value my advice so much that you offered me a senior position in your army, maybe you wouldn`t mind listening to some of it now.” Tyler said patiently waiting for Aswan`s answer.

  “I am sorry earthman; yes I would value your advice if you have any to offer me.” A chastened Heliot replied.

  “Ok then, I may have a plan that will get you out of the jam that we find ourselves in and move things along nicely.” Tyler said happily.

  “I had hoped that you did when you asked to speak to me, but quickly, for I don`t know how much time the captain of this ship will give us.”

  Tyler led the way back to the safety of the cargo vessel. He had no fear that the captain of the space cruiser would open the hanger door and release all the oxygen out into space, as the middle deck where the ship`s crew were located was now open to the lower level of the ship. He assumed that all the space suits that were aboard the space cruiser were in the hands of the Heliots. “Ok here goes, and Tyler told Aswan the newest adaption to his plan.”

  Kruger had indeed been listening in to all that had been said over the suit`s radio frequency, and he had laughed when he had heard Trajo whine so beautifully, but then he heard a voice that he recognised.

  “It`s that man Burrows down there, I knew he was trouble the first moment that he spoke in the temple down on Orion.” Kruger screamed. “Not only does he give advice to the President but now he is here with the aliens.”

  “He may be here, Captain, but what can he do.” Billings said.

  “Do, he can try and screw us again, that is what he can do.”

  *********

  Down below on Orion, Masters was looking at a large monitor that was receiving pictures via the satellite. Ivor Johansson had been able to reprogram the satellite to change its orbit and turn its cameras towards outer space.

  “There Colonel, the pirate`s ship hasn`t so much as moved an inch, obviously a battle is going on inside for control of the ship, and until it is over the ship will stay in orbit, just above our heads.”

  “Yes, just above our heads.” Colonel Bragg agreed, and then continued on with his argument. “And they are just as ready to blow us all to hell and back.” However, he did have the grace to look slightly guilty.

  “Should they be foolish enough to fire upon us, it will be the last thing that they will do, for we shall then detonate the bomb that you managed to get aboard their craft.” Masters replied angrily. “Anyway, I am sure that Tyler has everything well in hand.”

  At that precise moment in time the satellite phone on Colonel Bragg`s belt sprang into life.

  “George are you there, it`s Tyler, come in if you can hear me.” Colonel Bragg answered.

  “Mr Burrows it is Colonel Bragg here, how are thing up there.”

  “That is what I want to speak to George about, is he there.” Masters took the phone from out of Bragg`s hand with a smug look upon his face.

  “I am here Tyler, what can we do for you.” George Masters asked.

  “The Commander of the Heliot forces has agreed to let Tryon, Fleur and myself go, so we will be travelling back down to the temple square in that small cargo vessel, so please don`t fire upon us when we land, understand George, we should be leaving quite soon.”

  George looked at Colonel Bragg, and the others that were in the Bishop`s private room in the temple with the earthmen were Tryon and John Parsons.

  “Well gentlemen, what do you make of that? He obviously did not mean for us to take what he said literally, did he Tryon?” Colonel Bragg asked.

  “As I am here and Fleur is still in our village and not with Tyler in that space ship above our heads, then what he said must have been meant for someone else`s ears.” Tryon replied.

  “Well do we take it that the cargo vessel is about to make another trip down to Orion, then?” Bishop Sinclair asked of everyone.

  “I really don`t know what that call was about; it was most unlike Tyler especially as it was over the satellite phone, which Tyler knows is being monitored by the pirate captain.” Masters lamented.

  “It was just like Tyler.” Bragg said. “He is scheming schemes again and someone up there is going to be on the receiving end of this particular one.” Bragg was feeling a lot better now, for it was obvious to him that Tyler was still very much in control of their new situation.

  **********

  Captain Kruger had ordered the crash doors t
o be opened so that he could easily move from the science department to the galley area of the middle deck level and into the engineering department. He was installed inside of the science department keeping an eye on the Heliot troopers via the close circuit cameras that were installed all over the ship. He was a little bemused following Tyler`s conversation with Masters, and even more so now when he saw that the Heliot Commander was taking time out of this important battle for the ship to repatriate the three captives back to the planet`s surface. On the bridge of the starship Karson had still not been able to get the computer to open the outer door on the hanger deck, and he wondered if he should continue as at least one of the crash doors was jammed open as well as two access hatches and a security door.

  The first part of Tyler`s plan had called for Aswan to interrogate the ten captive crewmen to find out if the Indefatigable had any portable force fields anywhere aboard the starship, although Tyler did wonder if they had been invented, this far forward into the future. Aswan left this part of the plan to Rada who had been left in charge of the cargo vessel, and also of their prisoners. The crewmen had so far refused to co-operate with him, so Rada showed them what to expect if they didn`t, he shot one and then another crewmen dead, after that the remaining crew men couldn`t help him enough. Such was the level at which the Heliots held the value of their captives lives.

  The next thing that Kruger saw was a further ten troopers quickly donning pressure suits taken from the ones on the wall of the Indefatigable, and leave the cargo vessel, they carried with them a further supply of them to the troopers who were still dressed in the clothing taken from the captive crewmen.

  Aswan then commenced his part in the stage production, he pointed up towards the cameras that were videoing everything that happened on the crew`s lower deck, and was watched by Captain Kruger up in the science department on the floor above. Shouting out an order over the pressure suits radio he called for all of the cameras to be destroyed, which the Heliot troopers took great joy in doing. Now Captain Kruger could only listen in on the pressure suit radios, to hear what was happening on the lower deck level. All of Aswan`s orders were now given by the laborious method of writing it down on paper and showing it to all who needed to see it.

  Next the hanger deck was decompressed in readiness for the supposed take off of the cargo vessel, which seemed about to return Tyler and his friends back to Orion. When all the Heliot troopers were ready the pressure door that separated the hanger deck from the remainder of the ship, and which had been closed during the de-pressurisation of the hanger deck, was blown open to ensure that the captain of the ship could not close it again. All the air from the lower deck immediately rushed out into the hanger deck and then into outer space if the Heliot troopers had not been wearing pressure suits they would have been dead by now, but they were wearing them. However, it didn`t end here for the air in the access tunnel connecting up to the middle deck level also rushed out into space, as did the air in the galley area where six of Kruger`s crewmen were keeping watch. In micro seconds the ships computer registered the decompression on the two lowest decks and immediately closed the heavy crash doors that led from the middle deck galley to the science and engineering departments. The six crewmen died very quickly in the vacuum that followed the blowing of the airlock. It also trapped Captain Kruger and nearly all the rest of his crew inside the science department.

  It had been because of this deliberate decompression that Tyler had insisted on the need for the hanger deck to be decompressed beforehand. Otherwise the decompression of the rest of the ship would have been far too violent, and also the ship would have lost a valuable amount of air that would be needed when the troopers had control of the ship. The Heliot troopers had already been told what to do after the decompression, they were to count to ten and then climb up the access ladder and secure the galley area up above them.

  Once up there Trajo, moved over to the heavy door that housed the next access tube and quickly blew that door open. She next scaled the ladder to the upper level and made short work of the access hatch. Aswan now had control of that galley area as well, all he had to do was get access to the bridge and the ship would be his. Trajo then fixed Kamet explosive onto the wall that formed the inner part of the captain`s cabin and blew the wall apart. The zero atmosphere now extended up to this floor and even into the captain`s cabin. Aswan now ordered his men into the cabin, and then Trajo erected a force field using one of the portable devices taken from the ship`s stores to prevent the bridge area from also becoming a vacuum. Aswan particularly wanted to take at least one bridge officer alive to show them how to open all of the crash doors without having to resort to blowing them all open. Aswan and the troopers now prepared to open the door of the captain`s cabin that led directly out onto the deck of the bridge.

  *********

  On the cargo vessel Tyler, Appolon and Caroline followed Rada up to the bridge where upon he boasted of his killing of the two captives, and the way that the rest of them had vied with one another to answer all of his questions. Tyler felt revolted by Rada`s attitude and realised that what he now had to do would be that much easier. On the bridge besides themselves and Rada were two other Heliot troopers. Tyler turned away from all of the three Heliots seemingly to speak to Appolon who looked at him in expectation. It said a lot for him not to show the surprise that he obviously must have felt when he saw Tyler take out his Phaser pistol from his belt where he had pushed it, turn and shoot Rada and then turning the pistol slightly he then shot the second Heliot soldier. Appolon had the benefit of that split second when Tyler turned and fired, to take his own Phaser out and shoot the third Heliot soldier. Caroline was stunned for a moment and then she said.

  “Oh, we`re going home then are we?” Caroline`s lack of interest in the killing of the troopers was because it was part of this squad that had shot down Tolono`s people without any reason in the world, and so as far as she was concerned they deserved nothing less than death for their crime.

  Tyler looked across at Caroline smiling. “Yes Caroline, home, but first pick up those three Phaser pistols and stuff them in my backpack.”

  When they were securely inside his backpack Tyler turned and opened the door, by his side was Appolon, outside the two Heliot soldiers had heard the Phaser fire and assumed that Rada had fired upon the primitives who were on the bridge. Even so, as they saw the door open they moved towards it whilst attempting to draw their Phaser pistols from the holsters attached to their belts, much like gun fighters in the old American west did. Unfortunately they wouldn`t have won any gun fights for as they became visible to Tyler and Appolon, both men fired hitting the Heliots at point blank range, taking them out of the battle. The other twelve Heliot soldiers were too far away, being down in the hold of the ship, and making far too much noise as they played dice amongst themselves, to be concerned with what was happening up on the flight deck of the ship. Tyler went to the door of the cabin that held the eight remaining captive crewmen while Appolon and Caroline quietly kept watch on both the lift and the stairs, to ensure that Tyler was not interrupted.

  Tyler had first requisitioned the Heliots two Phaser pistols and jammed them into his belt, he now felt like a pirate, before he opened the door and on being seen by the crewmen motioned for them to be quiet.

  “Are there any pressure suits on this deck level?” Tyler asked. When the crewmen looked questionably at him Tyler added. “Do you want to be rescued or not?” This brought about an immediate response.

  “Yes in the store room opposite.” The Commander of the cargo vessel answered.

  “Right then, whoever works in the engineering department go there now and do not leave it as the rest of the ship will soon be depressurised. I want to rid ourselves of the Heliot troopers on the lower deck, but remember to move quietly so that we do not alert those twelve Heliot troopers. Oh and first of all pull those two troopers into this cabin.”

  Five crewmen slipped down to engineering leaving Tyler and the remaining
three crewmen, who quietly moved out of the room and across the corridor to the store room; here the Commander showed him the pressure suits. They were the latest lightweight models, and quick to put on.

  “Alright put them on.” Tyler ordered.

  Within two minutes the three crewmen were all dressed in pressure suits and had full oxygen tanks fitted onto their backs. Tyler went to the door and called to Appolon and Caroline, Caroline who on seeing them dressed as they were asked.

  “What do they need those for?”

  “Later, first put these extra Phaser pistols into my back pack and then quickly put these two suits on.” Tyler then turned to the three crewmen.

  “Right you two go to your galley, and you Commander you stay with us to assist us in putting on our pressure suits.” Tyler ordered, his Phaser pistol always pointed ahead of him so that the all of the crewmen knew that he was the one in charge aboard this vessel.

  Appolon and Caroline had noticed the way he never took his eyes of the crewmen and never let his Phaser pistol drop, so they did likewise. Soon all three of them were in pressure suits and heading for the bridge having collected the two crewmen from the galley. Once there he spoke to the Commander.

  “The hanger door of the starship is wide open, Commander, prepare to take off as covertly as possible on my command.”

  “Yes Captain.” The Commander replied. He was very impressed by the primitive.

  “Caroline, I need to speak to Colonel Bragg, down on Orion, so you keep an eye on these guys, and if they as much as scratch shoot them.” Tyler said.

  “Don`t worry Tyler I will ensure that they do as they are told.” Tyler smiled at her through his helmet, and then walked quietly into the cabin where the crew had been kept after their capture. Tyler now called Colonel Bragg on the short wave radio.

  “Colonel, are you there?” Tyler asked.

  “Yes Tyler, I am here, what can I do for you?” Colonel Bragg answered.

  “Colonel where is the bomb, I need to unload it onto the mother ship, as we are using the cargo vessel to come home in?”

  Colonel Bragg knew the whereabouts of the bomb.