Lost Sols 1: Ancient Treasure (14 page)

It was quiet in the command center.
The Constellation had left Iapetus and was on the course Sarah had set for Mars. With their current course and speed Mars was still a couple of weeks away. Vincent was stretched out, relaxed, and staring into space when Monique came in. She was covered in grime and dirt. She told him about the missile launcher and their plan to attach it to the ship. "One missile might be all we need. Go ahead with the installation but do not load the missile yet. Once the launcher is installed have Isabella try to power it up. Maybe she can figure out how it works. We need to think of this as a back up plan. Isabella will have to guess on how this thing works and we'll only have the one shot. Firing this missile accurately is not something we should be counting on." Vincent startled to chuckle as he looked at Monique. "What are you laughing at?" she asked. "Back on Earth you were so prim and proper. Now you're covered in grime and dirt. It's a nice look for you." Monique turned and headed toward the door to find Isabella. "I guess that's what I get for hanging around with someone like you."

Captain Samuels
didn't like the information he received about the Constellation. It was even more frustrating his ship had left Earth without the tratium being applied. It was an upgrade the Lexington was scheduled for when the ship arrived back on Earth. How could he disable and board an invincible ship? If he was a betting man he would bet the crew ran out of material before the entire ship could be coated. The report from the Commander on Titan Station indicated the discoloration was only on part of the Constellation. If he was wrong it might be impossible to disable and board the ship. He would never leave Earth again in a ship which didn't have this new protection. It was absurd a group of ass backward amateurs had figured it out. He was interrupted by his second in command Tavaris. “We’ve concluded our investigation. The explosion on Rhea was triggered remotely as we suspected. It was a typical fragmentation device designed for maximum damage. We’ve also concluded the body was placed in the craft sometime after it had crashed. The burn marks on the suit didn’t match the burn damage of the craft. The temperatures on the craft would have incinerated the man. He would have had much more then scorch marks. Captain Samuels tried to figure out why someone would place the man in an alien ship, and smiled as he figured it out. “What is it sir?” Tavaris asked. “Our enemy might be a little smarter then I’ve been giving him credit for. It’s important we don’t underestimate him.” His conversation with Tavaris was interrupted by a call from the command center. “Sir, we’ve spotted a ship. It’s too far away to identify, and is not responding to communication requests.” the communications officer reported. “Keep trying and set an intercept course for the unidentified ship.” he said.

The Avenger was the newest, fastest, and most advanced ship Leviathan had ever produced.
Captain Ryan Hunter believed it also must have had the least amount of testing of any spacecraft before launch. Since the ship had left earth it had been having all sorts of problems. The environmental systems, the engine, and communications systems all had issues which had to be repaired en route to Mars. Now the Avenger was being hailed by an Air Force vessel, and communications were still out. "Captain, communications are back online. We can transmit." It was about time. The last thing he wanted to do was to raise suspicion, and it was the first thing he had done.

"Captain Samuels
, the ship has responded. The Captain of the vessel states it is the Avenger. He says they are transporting terraforming equipment to Mars." "Tell their Captain we will be docking with their ship, and we will be performing a routine safety inspection.”

"The Air Force ship is the
Lexington, and it is going to dock with us. The Captain of the ship states he will board us for a safety inspection. Should we prepare weapons?" Captain Hunter had lost the advantage with the Air Force ship. He didn't have the element of surprise and his position had likely been reported to Earth and any other Air Force vessels. "No it's too late for that. We don't have any contraband and we have the terraforming equipment. We don’t have anything to hide. Let them perform their safety inspection. Just remember our cover story and we'll be fine. Send a coded message to the Constellation. Tell them we are being boarded.” he said.

The
Lexington pulled alongside the Avenger and the ships docked. Captain Samuels lead his team onto the Avenger. Captain Hunter was surprised when he saw the Captain of the Lexington. The two Captains had begun their careers together at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma. "Captain Samuels, what a surprise. You're still in the service? I figured you would have retired to a life of luxury a long time ago.” Captain Hunter said. "That's not my style. I'd rather fly around out here and bother you. Somebody has to police the solar system." Captain Hunter had never liked the man. He didn't see any reason to change his mind now. "How about you come to my quarters, we'll have a drink, and discuss this safety inspection of yours?" he asked. "Sure, the inspection will take awhile. Let me have a word with Tavaris here first. I'll meet you there." Tavaris was instructed to escort each crew member to the Lexington. He instructed Tavaris to have CIA Agent Thompson interview each crewmember separately using whatever means necessary to discover what each one knew.

"That ought to do it.
It looks as secure as we can make it." Monique said into her comm link. "I think you're right. We'll come back later and try to power it up. I hope this will work and wasn't a waste of time." Isabella responded. It had taken eight hours to install the missile launcher. It definitely looked out of place on the Constellation.

Vincent was in his quarters with
Dalton when Patrick called to tell him the EVA was complete, and the launcher had been installed. “How long do you think these aliens have been visiting Earth and our solar system?" he asked Dalton. "It's the tendency of mankind to be self centered. As a species we wonder how events shape us, and affect us. With this new evidence I think it would be dumb to assume we've been visited only recently. For all we know these aliens or others saw the dinosaurs, or witnessed the beginning of life on Earth. We've only occupied Earth for a fraction of it’s' history. In our early recorded history there is evidence of alien visitation with the Sumerians. The knowledge the Sumerians had of the solar system was extraordinary, and it was claimed they were visited by gods from the skies. I have no doubt the Sumerians were visited. Maybe before our little adventure I would have had some doubt, but not anymore. Almost every early culture on Earth has indirect evidence of past alien influence. We know for a fact Mars was a paradise at one time and was fully capable of sustaining the same type of life Earth does today. We saw what happened to the Atlanteans. Who knows how many other times it's happened in the past. Life from this solar system could be spread throughout the cosmos." Dalton said. "When you put it like that, mankind is at the center of its own ego and not much else." Vincent replied.

Agent Thompson had interviewed the pilot a
nd the engineer of the Avenger with no surprising results. Both of them had looked nervous but gave all the expected answers. The communications officer was next. Her name was Sandy. She was young, and the most likely to make a mistake if properly motivated.

"The
force was lucky to have someone like you Hunter. Why'd you give it up?" Captain Samuels asked. "That's easy, the Air Force doesn't pay nearly as well as Leviathan. Plus I can choose the assignments I want. There's more freedom, less oversight, and more vacation time. I’m in charge out here, and I don’t have someone on Earth watching my every move. Leviathan chooses their captains carefully and then gives each captain their total trust to carry out their mission. What's the real reason for this inspection anyway? I've made nine trips to Mars and have never been inspected." Captain Hunter asked. "Just a few trouble makers we're looking for. Nothing which should concern you. You wouldn't know anything about it would you?" Captain Samuels asked. "No, I haven’t heard of anything unusual. I make sure I have a solid crew and collect my paycheck. That's the only thing that concerns me." he said.

Sandy Greyson was sweating.
She had only been asked a few questions but she was nervously tapping her fingers on her data pad. She took it with her everywhere. Lying was not something which came easy to her. Agent Thompson was asking her another question. "You've said the purpose of this trip is to bring terraforming equipment to Mars. Is that correct?" Sandy indicated it was. "You do realize I've already interviewed other members of your crew. I see in your personnel file you have a husband and a son living in Texas. This is a matter of national security. It's important for you to keep in mind anyone caught lying to us will suffer, as will their families. Do you want to see your husband and son again? Do you want your son to grow into a man? I'm giving you one last chance to tell me the truth. Your answers had better be the same as the other two crewmembers I’ve already interviewed. I know the true meaning of this mission. If you tell me the truth I promise you will be spared and you can go back to living a normal life. What is the purpose of this trip to Mars?" Sandy was getting angry. She could handle any threats against herself, but her son and husband were a different matter. "I'm a citizen of the United States. I have rights." she said. "You're not in the United States. Even if you were it wouldn't matter. You've lost your chance, I’m done with you. The Captain will decide your fate and the fate of your family now." Sandy panicked. She had no option. She had to save her family. "Wait. I promise I'll tell you everything. Just give me one more chance." Sandy confessed all she knew.

Captain Samuels was still talking with Captain Hunter when he received a text message from Agent Thompson.
"They're all guilty." It was time to wrap up his conversation. "Tavaris tells me the inspection is complete. It was nice catching up with you Hunter. Have a safe journey." He said. “It was good talking to you again. It’s nice to know we have somebody out here watching out for us.” Captain Hunter said.

Ag
ent Thompson greeted Captain Samuels at the airlock. "She's locked in a holding cell. We have a full confession. It was their mission to assist the Constellation and to continue the mission if the Constellation was destroyed." Agent Thompson said. "What was the mission?" Captain Samuels asked. "To recover artifacts in the pyramid on Mars. It's in the dead zone in the Cydonia region." Tavaris said. He had heard the rumors about Cydonia. Supposedly there was evidence of both alien and Martian civilizations in the ruined city. "Do you think Captain Hunter could provide additional information about the pyramid?" he asked. "It doesn't look like it. She said everyone attended the same briefing together.” Agent Thompson replied.

"Undock the ship and prepare to launch missiles."
Captain Samuels said as he arrived in the command center. The order was acknowledged and the Lexington was almost ready to fire.

"Captain, the
Lexington is pulling away and we are no longer docked. They did not follow proper docking procedures and just left." Captain Hunter knew something was wrong. "Is all personnel accounted for?" he asked. "No, Sandy is not on board." replied the pilot. With his communications officer absent the Captain opened a channel to the Lexington himself. "Captain Samuels, we are missing a crewmember. Do you still have Sandy aboard your ship?" he asked.

The
Lexington was almost in position to launch their missiles. Captain Samuels just had to delay for a few seconds longer. "No Captain Hunter, she was escorted back to her quarters aboard your ship. She is there somewhere." He was notified the ship was now in position. "Fire one!"

Captain
Hunter was about to order an evasive course when his pilot yelled "Incoming!" the last thought he had, was how much he hated that man.

Captain Samuels watched in satisfaction as an explosion rocked the Avenger.
Their subversive acts had cost them their lives. Each and every one of them deserved it. Only the military should have access to any advanced technology or information. If someone else had access, it would eventually be turned against the United States and lives would be lost. It was time to hunt down the Constellation. "Resume course to Mars."

When he entered the oval office William Spencer was surprised to see the Secretary of the Navy,
the Secretary of the Air Force, and the head of NASA already seated with the president. "Please sit down Bill." President Michael Louis said. "We've been discussing the situation on Mars and the Constellation. So far the ship has managed to avoid capture or destruction. We need more assets to find this ship and to handle any future issues. With that in mind, I'm restructuring our space resources. The Air Force will no longer conduct any operations in space once the mission to hunt down the Constellation has ended. The primary mission of the Air Force will be to protect the interests of the United States against our enemies on Earth, and to develop a strategy to protect the planet against an attack like the one in 1947.

For all intents and purposes the role for NASA will remain the same.
NASA will continue to explore and develop technology for use by the other branches of our military. From this point forward the Navy will be responsible for patrolling the solar system and taking care of problems which arise. Submariners are better equipped and have the training necessary to undertake long voyages in cramped quarters and withstand the rigors of space. I've been planning these changes for some time and now we have a good reason to make them.