Alien Courage (Rise of the Empress) (64 page)

Cassy entered the Bridge and stood behind Toormis’s
seat. “Who are they?” she said.

“If I’m not mistaken they are the same Squadron that
just left. It was a trap and we’re in it,” he said coldly.

“I had no idea…” Cassy said.

“Space Command has been at this game for a long, long
time Cassy. I knew they would have seconded guessed every eventuality. They
just lost a couple ships and their crews,” Toormis replied why he was busily
working the controls.

“I’m so sorry Toormis. I should have listened to you,”
she said gripping him by the shoulder.

“Hey, if I knew Torquay or the Emperor was in there I
would have risked everything to get them out. That’s not the situation right
now. How we avoid that Squadron is the circumstance we need to solve
immediately,” he said with a strained voice as he tried to think of a solution.
“We need those two below,” he said and switched on the ship’s intercom. “All
hands to the Bridge immediately.”

Footfalls could be heard on the hard decking and the
Administrator and Peter ran onto the Bridge. “Administrator please sit in the
co pilot’s seat and Peter in the navigator’s seat. Cassy, I need you to look up
the ship’s database for Volen tracking systems. See if you can find what sort
of system they use to track their vessels or pods.”

“We didn’t have time to get the pod to the jettison
port. Have they located us?” the Administrator asked.

“I don’t know but they are probing with positive beams
trying to locate a cloaked ship. They have an idea someone is here. I think
they suspected a pod may have been released and had a tracking device.” Toormis
answered.

“Perhaps they have been sent back to locate any
cloaked pods they may have overlooked,” Peter added.

“Possibly, but I can’t see them leaving that quickly
if they had an idea a pod was left behind. The Emperor is involved here,”
Toormis replied.

The Administrator checked his arm console. “It doesn’t
make sense to me. What do you intend to do Toormis?”

Toormis looked at the scan monitor and sighed. “Well,
there’s your answer,” he said. “The Squadron at Zion has just left the system
and is headed this way, in a V formation. They know we are here and they mean
business.”

The Bridge went deathly silent. Cassy broken the
silence as see looked up from her monitor screen, “they use all manner of
tracking devices, too many in fact.”

“That cloud of space debris isn’t far. I can get there
before they can get a positive fix on us,” Toormis said and steered Traveller
in a wide arc.

“Can’t we just outrun them? You said this ship is
faster than most,” Peter asked with an air of logic in his voice.

“Not if there’s a tracking device in that pod. They’ll
see it move away if we dump it or do anything to upset its signal. We risk
being located and will be chased across the Galaxy, and then they will set
traps for us which ever direction we go.”

“They’ll have a fix on us by positive beam shortly
Toormis,” the Administrator said looking up from his calculations.

Sixteen Starfighters were spread in two large V
formations. Their support vessels with extra long range scanners and positive
beam emitters were monitoring every possible exit from the sector. Toormis made
it to the cloud of rock and dust shutting his engines down.

“Quickly come with me, Cassy you stay here and monitor
this dial. If it swings past this mark call me immediately. It’s the positive
beam receptor, it will tell us when they have a fix on us,” he said and started
running back to the space dock. The others ran behind him. He went straight to
one of the Starfighters in the hold at the edge of the space dock and scaled
the ladder to the cockpit. “Get that pod over here by flying platform and load it
under the Starfighter,” he shouted as he opened the cargo clamps on the
underside of the Starfighter. He climbed back down just as the Administrator
was positioning the cargo arms around the pod and lifted it onto the platform.

“Bring it quickly. Peter
help
me get the Ensign out,” Toormis ordered and the two of them rushed into the pod
when it arrived under the Starfighter. They laid the Ensign on the deck and
lifted the pod under the Starfighter and clamped the cargo arms onto it.

“I need to get him,” he said pointing to the Ensign,
“in the pilot’s seat.” Peter and the Administrator exchanged glances but
swiftly moved to obey Toormis’s order. They placed the dead Ensign on the
flying platform and with Toormis’ help from the co pilot’s seat they placed
him
as carefully as they could in the pilot’s seat. Toormis
reached forward and got the remote for the Starfighter, set its code and
activated it. He climbed down and all three looked up and saw the Ensign
sitting in the pilot’s seat.

“His last flight.
Let’s go, time is against us,” Toormis said and then
ran back with the other two to the Bridge. On the way he initiated the
Starfighter’s engine starting sequences. His remote flashed different colours
as the ship’s systems came on line. By the time they got to the Bridge the
Starfighter was ready to fly.

Toormis jumped into his seat and pressed a sequence of
buttons and the space dock inner doors closed and sealed while the outer doors
opened. He cloaked the Starfighter and lifted it off the deck and flew the
Traveller slightly forward with thrusters. The Starfighter was in open space
just behind Traveller.

“Toormis the needle is swinging almost to the line,”
Cassy said nervously.

“Do it!” the Administrator hissed as he saw the needle
Cassy was looking at touch the line. “DO IT!”

Toormis jabbed the remote with his finger and as the
Starfighter dropped vertically downwards he fired up the hyper-drive,
counting ,
“5- 4- 3- 2- NOW! He
decloaked
the Starfighter and engaged hyper-drive. The Starfighter glowed as it shimmered
and then in a flash was gone.

Immediately sixteen Starfighters and
their support craft disappeared in a flash as they engaged hyper-drive in
pursuit.

“Oh Toormis,” Cassy yelled and ran over to him and
wrapped her arms around his neck. “You are so wonderful!”

Peter stood up and tapped the Administrator on the
shoulder and said in terms the Administrator had never heard before, “come on
buddy, buy you a drink,” and they left the Bridge and headed toward the stateroom.

“Not so fast you two,” Toormis said, “Back to your
posts until we are well clear of this sector. Then you can disappear all you
want, we’re not out of trouble yet.”

Toormis set a course toward the disputed territories
but gave a wide berth to all Confederate outposts and satellite monitoring
systems. They left the quadrant without detection and then they relaxed feeling
confident they had eluded the two Squadrons.

“What happens when they catch up with the
Starfighter?” Cassy asked.

Toormis swallowed hard and with a great effort turned
to face her. “They won’t catch it and they won’t shoot at it either. They will
probably think it has the Emperor in it.” He answered.

“But it can’t fly forever!” she said with a surprised
look.

Toormis took a deep breath and noticed the
Administrator quietly got out of his seat and went aft. “The Starfighter is on
a course for the asteroid belt in the next sector. It will not make it through
it,” he said expecting Cassy to disapprove.

Cassy sat back in her seat and smiled. “That was a
nice way to give a brave pilot a funeral Toormis. I’m proud of you. “Toormis’s
heart missed a beat as he heard her words.

“Cassy. I love you so much. I feel so terrible I can’t
give you what you want.” Cassy got out of her seat and crossed the space to
Toormis quickly and sat in his lap. Without hesitation she placed her lips on
his and kissed him deeply. He melted with her touch and felt himself get swept
away wrapping his arms around her. Time stood still. She pulled her face away
from him and looked carefully into his eyes.

“Toormis you have given me all I could want or will
ever want. We are home now,” she said as she snuggled her face into his neck.
Toormis held her tightly as Traveller sped through the endless void toward not
only an uncertain destination but an unknown future.

---------

Peter walked past the small communications cabin where
he noticed the Administrator was sitting at one of its terminals. He walked in
and took an immediate interest in the Norfian Learning Cubes that were neatly
laid out on one of the console tables. “Interesting sort of technology,” he
said picking one up and examining it closely. “Have you told your Norfian
colleague in Space Command about them? I’m sure he would be just as intrigued.”

The Administrator looked up from the desk he was
working from, “unfortunately we can’t turn the main Confederate Communication’s
Console on. It would identify and indicate the position of the ship. They are
locked into a network. We can operate smaller systems but it’s too risky to
connect to the Space Command Network,” he said seeing Peter nod his head in
recognition. “I am working on the data disc we got off the dead Ensign; there
are multiple copies of the same program. The first communication on the disc
was to approach activating this data very carefully. I assume it’s been bobby
trapped,” the Administrator added and continued deciphering the opening
procedures of the data disc.

Peter picked up another cube and read its label,
‘STARFIGHTER – OPERATING PROCEDURES AND COMBAT TRAINING SENARIOS.’  
Peter held the cube up and looked closely at its semi translucent material and
felt its weight. The Administrator noticed the interest and stood up. “Would you
like to try that one?” He offered. Peter smiled like a young boy and shook his
head vigorously.

“OK,” the Administrator smiled back. “Sit here and put
this on,” he told Peter and handed him the standard communications headset with
holographic visor. Peter obeyed instantly and sat in the Communication
Officer’s seat and put the headset on. The Administrator hooked up the player
and plugged it into the console. Lights and switches flashed and data spread
across the monitor’s screen, also inside the visor. Peter started to read the
complex operating instructions. “Don’t worry about the amount of data you see
Peter. It’s a full course of Starfighter tactics as well all the maintenance
procedures and Squadron duties. A lot of information but the program will
assess your abilities and position you on the course accordingly. Let’s go
straight to the fun part, the flying assessment program,” the Administrator
said and highlighted the section and activated the program. “Peter you can
operate any part of the program at any time by just touching the symbols.”

“Wow!” Peter exclaimed as the cockpit of a Starfighter
holographically
materialized around him. A soothing
voice started explaining the controls as they highlighted one after another.
“Please choose your level?” the soothing voice asked. Peter looked at the
choices and picked the first. BEGGINNING: BASIC FLIGHT INSTRUCTION. TAKE OFF
PROCEDURES – BASIC.

Peter moved his hand and touched the symbols in thin
air and the program activated. Suddenly he was sitting in a Confederate Space
dock in a Starfighter as part of a standard Squadron of eight Fighters. The
Starfighter in front of him slowly left the ground and moved off in conjunction
with a series of commands. Peter’s instruments highlighted and he felt the
sensation of his Starfighter leaving the ground and slowly flying off after the
lead ship. Then the program stopped and was at the beginning again. He quickly
realized the program would not advance until he could master the procedures of
the previous action. Soon he was flying in formation around a Space Station off
Ennack. Peter grinned as his skill increased. He resisted the temptation of
proceeding to the combat training section but soon had his Starfighter
manoeuvring through tight mountain passes and gorges.

The Administrator went through the disc from the
Ensign and whistled as he read the data. He instantly saved the data by
scanning it with his arm console. He marvelled at the amount of free passage
the smugglers enjoyed within the Confederacy but realized the total lack of
concern Volen regarded for life, even their own. A rare sense of excitement
rushed through him as he viewed the Norfian access information. It lacked
detail of what was smuggled in or out of Norfis or how often but it gave exact
methods of avoiding the Trigeal blockade. ‘This is priceless,’ thought the
Administrator.