by Ken Lozito
“SRD-3, sir,” Colonel Cross answered.
“Prioritize the SRD-3 feed, Lieutenant,” Connor said.
Lieutenant Daniels entered a few commands and the SRD-3 feed came to prominence.
Connor kept his eyes on the main holoscreen. Everything in his gut told him that this was the Vemus, but he wouldn’t do anything until he had undeniable proof. They were resource-stricken as it was, and he couldn’t afford to send any missiles out there until he was sure it was the enemy.
The SRD-3 feed cut out. Rather than start barking out orders, Connor waited for Phoenix Station’s crew to do their jobs.
“SRD-3 is no longer transmitting. Putting the partial transmission up on the screen, sir,” Lieutenant Daniels said.
SRD-3’s sensor sweep had been about to give them a view of the dark side of the anomaly when it suddenly cut out, but there was no indication that the SRD had been fired upon.
“Tactical, show me where our remaining SRDs are in relation to number three. Is there any overlap so we can see what happened to it?” Connor asked.
He knew there was no chance to change the SRDs’ approach because there was already a significant delay in the data transfer from the edge of the star system, not to mention the speeds with which the SRDs were moving away from them. No, they were essentially looking at a window into the past. Whatever had happened to the SRDs had already happened.
“I believe I have something, General,” Lieutenant Daniels said and showed them the feed from SRD-4. “It’s in the upper left quadrant of the feed.”
The feed showed a close-up view of the rocky asteroid surface, and Connor could barely see something small flying through the edge of the camera feed. Lieutenant Daniels replayed it and zoomed in on the spot. Connor watched the grainy image of something flying past that seemed to slam into something invisible. There was no flash. The SRD simply broke apart.
“What happened to it?” Sean asked.
“Were there any spikes detected in the scanner array?” Colonel Cross asked.
“No, ma’am,” Lieutenant Daniels said.
“There wouldn’t be,” Connor said, drawing their attention back to him. “It was destroyed before the array could have detected anything in the first place.”
“How do you know that, sir?” Sean asked.
“It’s the Vemus. They used some type of X-ray laser to take out the SRD. The drone didn’t actually hit anything, but a focused shot could easily disable the drone,” Connor said.
Colonel Cross frowned. “If that’s true, why wait for the SRD to get so close? Why not take it out sooner?”
“They didn’t want to show their hand. A short high-power pulse is all it would take. It likely didn’t target the other SRDs because they were just taking pictures. Number three was actively scanning it when it passed,” Connor said.
“So when the drone got to something the Vemus didn’t want us to see, it had to take action,” Sean said.
“Correct. We forced their hand. Now we know they’re coming,” Connor said.
“How do you think they’ll react, sir?” Colonel Cross asked.
Connor drew in a deep breath. “They’re still pretty far out in the system, but my bet is they’re going to speed up.”
“Look at the size of that thing. Twenty kilometers across. How many of them could there be?” Sean asked.
“Work with tactical. I want to find out all we can about them. We run the numbers and devise firing solutions based on what we get. Remember, we’ve got to be smart about this. There’s not a single weapon that can take out something of that size. We need to wear them down layer by layer until there’s nothing left,” Connor said and then looked at Colonel Cross. “Call in your reserves. We need all hands for this.”
“Yes, General,” Colonel Cross said.
“Comms, send a preliminary report to COMCENT, along with all SRD data,” Connor said.
Connor swung his gaze back toward the main holoscreen. The Vemus had tracked them to this star system, sent in an invasion force, and collected data about the colony. Now they were coming. He hesitated to even think of what they’d seen on the images as a ship, but he didn’t know what else to call it. The Vemus ship was larger than any city they had on New Earth, and it was heading right for them.
10
Captain Jon Walker had only just returned from a Phoenix Station supply run when he got the call from Major Shelton. The deep-salvage team led by Daniels had missed two check-ins. His brother was part of that team and was now among the missing CDF crew. Colonel Hayes had specified that Jon was to lead the rescue team and go in search of the overdue salvage team. Jon wasted no time calling in key members of his squad to be part of the away team. The combat shuttle was stocked with the extra supplies required for a rescue mission and headed out almost immediately.
Six hours later, they still hadn’t found a trace of the missing salvage team.
“Nothing on our scope, not that it would do much good here,” Lieutenant Chester said.
Daron Chester had been assigned to Jon’s squad shortly after Jon arrived on Lunar Base. The two of them had become fast friends.
“We’re following the path Daniels took,” Jon replied.
“Yeah, but why don’t we just head to their last known check-in point and start searching there?” Lieutenant Chester asked.
He gave Daron a sideways glance. “You really don’t know?”
“No, I just love the sound of your voice. Just brightens my day,” Lieutenant Chester said mockingly. “No, I don’t know. That’s why I asked . . . sir.”
Jon snorted. The tacked-on formality was a nice touch. “We follow the path they took. If we skip around, we run the risk of missing something vitally important.”
“Like what?” Lieutenant Chester asked.
“What if they were returning to Lunar Base and had an issue? Or their ship was damaged somehow? Or anything else you can think they’d encounter in the middle of a debris field like this? We’d miss them while we just skipped ahead,” Jon replied.
Daron thought about it for a minute. “I guess you’re right.”
“I am right, and if I’m not, we can continue moving forward with our search knowing for a fact that we didn’t miss them rather than just hoping we didn’t,” Jon replied.
They’d been following the path Daniels had taken through the debris field, and there was so much enemy-ship wreckage that Jon wondered how Brian could hope to find anything. They flew amidst the ruins of battleship carriers and heavy cruisers, which were on a slow but steady course away from New Earth in a field of space known as no-man’s-land. The salvage team had staggered their flight path through this wreckage.
“Explain to me again what they were doing out here,” Lieutenant Chester said.
“They were looking for live Vemus samples. My brother’s a field biologist, and the team that’s studying the Vemus needs live samples for analysis,” Jon answered.
Lieutenant Chester shivered. “The whole situation gives me the creeps. This thing took out all the people back home and then traveled sixty light-years to get to us here. And your brother wants to get up close and personal with one?”
“I wouldn’t say that. He just needs a sample. They want to understand how the Vemus work so we can protect ourselves,” Jon said.
“Really think we can do that? Protect ourselves, I mean,” Lieutenant Chester asked.
“No idea. I don’t know how any of that stuff works, but I hope there’s something our scientists can find that was missed,” Jon answered, craning his neck back. “Sims!”
A few moments passed and Corporal Sims came to the cockpit.
“You wanted me, sir?” Corporal Sims said.
“Yes,” Jon said. “Chester is wondering whether we can really protect ourselves from the Vemus.”
Sims’ narrow eyes peered at him for a moment. “You mean the infection that leads to becoming the Vemus?”
“That’s the one,” Jon said.
“Sir
, I’m not sure—”
“I’m not asking you to answer me definitively. I know you’re not a biologist, but you are a medic. So what’s your opinion?” Jon asked.
Corporal Sims swallowed. “I really don’t know. The write-ups they sent out about it say the Vemus is a parasite that uses a virus to spread itself. You have to come into direct contact with a parasite to be affected by it.”
Lieutenant Chester frowned. “What does the virus do?”
“No idea. My suggestion is not to let it touch you if we find ourselves in the presence of any Vemus forces,” Corporal Sims said.
Daron swung around in his chair to look at the medic. “Don’t let it touch you,” Daron said with a hint of sarcasm. “You’re a big help.”
Jon snorted and Sims shrugged.
Chester grumbled. They were all worried about the Vemus. Sims’s advice was as good as any. A few minutes later, an active response to their scans appeared on the combat shuttle’s heads-up display.
Jon adjusted their course and headed for it. They flew toward a large piece of wreckage that was the size of a CDF heavy cruiser like the Vigilant. As he studied it, he couldn’t begin to guess what part of a ship the wreckage could belong to, but it must have been from a battleship carrier.
They found the salvage team’s shuttle attached to the hull.
Jon decreased their velocity.
“Looks like they found an exterior hatch left intact,” Lieutenant Chester said.
The salvage team’s shuttle was located near an airlock. Jon tried to open a comlink to the shuttle, but he didn’t get a response. He switched over to the personal comlink channel and still didn’t get a response.
“This is the place. Now, do we go inside or do we fly around this thing and see if there’s anything more to learn?” Jon wondered aloud.
Sergeant Roger Lee came to the cockpit and looked at the heads-up display. “I’m not sure if flying around the outside will tell us that much, but you never know. It shouldn’t take long to make a quick sweep.”
Jon nodded in agreement. He decided to play this by the book and do a bit of recon by flying around the outside of the Vemus ship wreckage. Specialist Hank Horan attempted to reach the salvage team as they went, but there was no response.
Their previous approach had showed that the wreckage was the size of a heavy cruiser, but as they circled it they learned it was significantly larger. The broken innards of a battleship carrier came into view on the HUD. Glowing lights were strewn from the twisted metal framework where the ship had been ripped apart.
“They still have power,” Sergeant Lee said.
“And judging by the size, there should be several intact layers to explore,” Jon said.
“You say that like it’s a good thing,” Lieutenant Chester said.
Jon frowned at him.
“Not to worry, Captain. That’s what the big guns are for,” Lieutenant Chester said.
“Alright. Suit up. We’re going inside,” Jon said.
They finished their circuit around the wreck and still couldn’t raise the salvage team.
“Sir,” Specialist Thoran said, “since there’s still power in the wreckage, whatever the Vemus are using to suppress communications must also be active.”
“Understood, Specialist,” Jon said.
What the specialist didn’t say was that there might not be a reply because the salvage team members were all dead. He glanced at Daron, who bobbed his head. Jon wasn’t going to leave until he found out.
He flew the shuttle back to the salvage team’s ship and engaged the landing gear. Metallic spikes drilled from the metal skids, holding the shuttle in place. Jon set the shuttle’s systems to standby and climbed out of the pilot’s chair, then walked to the back of the shuttle and stepped into his Nexstar Series Three combat suit. He slipped his arms into the open sleeves, which closed upon feeling his presence. Jon activated the combat suit’s systems, bringing them online, and the rest of the suit closed up, sealing him inside.
“Final gear check!” Jon called. “Check yourself and the person in front of you.” There was a flurry of activity as they all did one final check on all the joints and fittings of their equipment, along with those of the people around them.
Jon depressurized the shuttle, and the hatch popped open and swung down into position. They all quickly moved to the edge and hopped off. They engaged their magboots, which kept them attached to the hull of the ship. At least this section of the exposed hull was original and not that Vemus exoskeleton crap.
Jon led the five-man team toward the airlock and saw that the salvage team had used the manual override to gain access to the ship.
“Once we’re inside, we go slow and steady. Check your corners,” Jon said.
He opened the airlock. They stepped inside and closed the outer door.
Lieutenant Chester stepped to the inner door, and Jon stood ready with his AR-71. There was a faint flickering of light beyond the small round window. Lieutenant Chester hit the door controls and stepped to the side. Jon went through first and entered a dark corridor. His HUD compensated for the low light, so he could easily see the features of the corridor.
Jon shuffled a few steps away from the door to allow the others to come through.
“No comms chatter, sir. Shall I try to reach the salvage team?” Specialist Thoran asked.
“Not yet. They have to be somewhere inside here. No need to draw unwanted attention until we have more of an idea of what we’re dealing with,” Jon replied.
“What we’re dealing with . . .” Lieutenant Chester muttered.
Jon spun around. “Do we have a problem, Lieutenant?”
Daron Chester sucked in a harsh breath. “Sorry, Captain. Won’t happen again.”
“Alright. Stay to the back and guard our flank,” Jon said.
Daron was a good man, but there was no way to know how someone would react to imminent danger until they found themselves in harm’s way. Jon needed his whole team.
Sergeant Lee moved up to take Chester’s place. Jon kept a slow pace as they made their way down the deserted corridor. Emergency systems lit the way, but the rooms they passed were all dark and abandoned.
Jon’s suit sensors indicated there was minimal atmosphere being maintained. It had been over two months since the battle, and Jon was confident that the section they were in was as well sealed as they could have hoped.
As they moved forward, they hit a few dead ends and had to backtrack, but they soon settled into a routine as they delved further into the wreckage. They checked all the rooms they came across and then moved on.
“I think we’re in one of the aft sections of the ship,” Sergeant Lee said.
“How do you know?” Jon asked.
“This part of the ship would have been reinforced to compensate for the main engines. It’s likely the missile that took this ship out hit near the forward sections. This area is relatively intact,” Sergeant Lee replied.
“Intact and a strong possibility for contact with the enemy,” Jon said.
He activated the comlink in his combat suit and began sending out a series of pings, waiting for a reply. None came.
“Captain,” Lieutenant Chester said, “the IR spectrum shows an increase in temperature down the corridor to the right.”
Jon peered down the corridor. “Any idea what’s down this way?”
“Hard to say. If Lee is right, this could be part of the munitions factory they had on board the ship,” Lieutenant Chester said.
“Makes sense. That area of the ship would be heavily shielded,” Jon said.
They headed down the corridor, and Jon felt a shudder coming through the floor. It quickly stopped and then there was a loud chafing of metal grinding along. Each of them moved to the side and braced themselves against the wall.
“Impacts along the outside of this thing,” Sergeant Lee said.
Jon nodded. The wreckage they were in, while large, was still in the middle of a vast debris fiel
d. He wondered what they could have hit that would be felt throughout the area they were in.
They continued but Jon brought the team to a halt when he heard a knocking sound echo through the corridor. The repeated cadence was too regular to be a simple impact from wreckage outside the ship. This came from within. Jon motioned to the rest of the team that he’d heard something.
Jon pressed onward, thinking about how much he’d like to have the layout of this place. The farther they went down the corridor, the louder the knocking became. The emergency lighting became brighter as they came to a wide doorway. There was a long window that had years of dust along the edges, and there was also the periodic flashing of light from inside. This must be the munitions factory, but why would the equipment be operating?
Jon crept toward the window and eased himself up to get a better look. Beyond the wide doors was a vast space with long pieces of machinery.
“What do you see?” Lieutenant Chester asked.
“I’m not sure. This has got to be the munitions factory, but I don’t—”
Jon ducked back down, and the others backed away in response to his sudden movement. He’d seen something and it had caught him by surprise. Jon slowly rose again and peered through the window. He adjusted the visual spectrum of his helmet and zoomed in on the far end. There was a dimly lit room where he saw several objects moving in the shadows.
Jon swallowed hard and sank back down below the window. “We found them.”
“Good. Let’s get them and get out of here,” Lieutenant Chester said.
“We can’t,” Jon said and looked back at his squad. “There are Vemus forces inside. They’re clustered around a particular area.”
Damn it, Brian. Why did you have to volunteer for this? Jon thought. The salvage team was in serious trouble, and Jon wasn’t sure if he could get them out.
Sergeant Lee crept by and peeked through the window, then came back to him. “I saw the salvage team. They’re pinned down in a room on the far end, but . . .”
Jon shook his head. “There are a lot of Vemus soldiers.”
At least that’s what he thought they were. Even with the enhanced display, it was difficult to make out the details from this distance.