Retreat And Adapt (A Galaxy Unknown) (28 page)

"Yes, sir."

* * *

"Increase the power, slowly," Captain DeWitt said.

The hangar was as quiet as a tomb as the forty-three engineers, scientists, and technicians stared in silence at the several monitors located around the work area. All were displaying an image of the new Extended Range DeTect screen being used for the test.

As the power increased slowly from zero, blips representing ships in orbit around Quesann popped onto the screen. Ten shuttles had been positioned in billion-kilometer intervals beginning at a distance of five billion kilometers from the base and extending out to fourteen billion. When a blip representing the first shuttle appeared, scattered noise was also visible, but a cheer went up in the hangar.

"Quiet down," Captain DeWitt said. "You can cheer when we see the shuttle sitting at fourteen billion kilometers."

The technician continued to increase the power, and more of the deployed shuttles appeared, but white background noise began to appear just beyond the four billion kilometer range and began to increase rapidly as the distance was increased. When blips representing the shuttle at the seven-billion-kilometer range should have made an appearance, it was impossible to discern anything on a screen that appeared as a solid image of white noise.

"Shut it down," Captain DeWitt finally said to the technician at the console. "Okay, people," she said to the others in the hangar, "just as there was no reason for cheering before, there's no reason for long faces now. All we were attempting to do here today was duplicate the results of the last test by the original creative team who gave us the DeTect system. The white noise we've seen today is exactly what they were getting so long ago. When they couldn't make any further improvements, they locked the system in at four billion kilometers and that's where it's remained until now. At that distance there's no background noise in the image.

"We've collected all the data we need, so now it's time to get to work. Let's analyze the data in the computers and develop some theories about making improvements to the system. You all know what to do, so let's start doing it."

To the com chief, Captain DeWitt said, "Recall the deployed shuttles, Chief. Have them report back to their ships."

"Aye, Captain."

* * *

The audible signal in the living quarters area sent Vyx scrambling to the bridge. A light on the com was flashing so Vyx flicked a switch on the console and listened to the incoming message.

"Attention Desert Denizen. Respond using encryption code 19AR94HW463D."

Vyx called up the specified encryption code from the computer and activated it. "This is the
Scorpion
," was all he said as he keyed the mic.

"
Scorpion
, this is the SC Transport Ship
Edison
. Transmit your current location."

Vyx deftly keyed an instruction into the navigation computer and verified the information that popped up on the screen. "Transmitting," Vyx said as he tapped the send key on the navigation computer.

"Data received,
Scorpion
. Standby."

"Roger."

Less than a minute later, Vyx heard, "
Scorpion
, cancel your envelope. We will arrive at your vicinity in ninety-two seconds."

"Roger.
Scorpion
cancelling envelope." As Vyx tapped a contact point on the helm console, the
Scorpion
came to a complete stop and its envelope dissolved. Vyx leaned back in his chair and waited for the
Edison
to arrive.

* * *

As the
Edison
neared the coordinates provided by the
Scorpion
, the helmsman canceled the double envelope and engaged the sub-light engines. Over the next sixty seconds, the transport closed with the small ship.

"The
Scorpion
is just ahead, Captain," the
Edison
tac officer said.

"Helm, take us to five kilometers from the ship," Commander Garth Ginsburg said.

"All stop," the Helmsman said a few seconds later.

An image of the
Scorpion
filled the full bulkhead monitor at the front of the bridge.

"Com, inform the
Scorpion
that we're preparing to take her aboard."

"Aye, Captain."

"Tac, open the bow and send out the tugs."

"Aye, sir."

Ten minutes later, tugs were visible on the front monitor as they approached the
Scorpion
. The process of guiding the small ship into the enormous transport took the better part of an hour, but as the
Edison's
bow began to close, the
Scorpion
was being secured in place.

"The captain of the
Scorpion
is here," the computer advised Captain Ginsburg as he sat at his desk in his office next to the bridge.

"Come," Ginsburg said, and the doors parted to allow Vyx to enter.

"Welcome aboard, Trader," Ginsburg said as Vyx strode into the office.

"Thank you, Captain," Vyx said as he looked around. Compared to the offices of captains on most warships, Vyx would have to describe Ginsburg's office as austere. The walls seemed to be covered in some sort of fabric applied directly to metal surfaces, and the furniture was covered in a kind of plastic or vinyl material rather than the real leather found in the offices of warship commanders. Vyx reminded himself that command officers aboard support vessels came from the group who never made the cut for warship command and so never attended the Warship Command Institute in Australia. It was rare when they risked their lives during their careers, so they didn't get all the perks of the people for whom such risk could be a daily occurrence.

"Have a seat," Ginsburg said, gesturing to the chairs facing his desk.

Vyx dropped into the nearest chair and crossed his legs. "We appreciate your giving us a lift, Captain. We didn't particularly relish the idea of spending the next four years traveling to our destination and back."

"My orders are a little vague, Trader. Perhaps you can enlighten me. Where do you need a ride to? And why have we been ordered to transport a civilian spacecraft?"

"I wish I could tell you where we're going, but I can't. It's not because I wouldn't like to, but simply because I don't know. I can give you a course but not a specific destination. As to why you're transporting a civilian spacecraft— you're not. We both work for the same boss on Quesann."

"You're SCI?"

"Yes, Captain. We've been tailing a freighter of interest for months. We've come to believe that it's headed to a destination outside GA space. At their present speed of Light-450, they won’t reach the border for two years, and then we don't know how far outside GA space they intend to travel. We don't wish to spend the next six years tailing them to where they're going and then traveling back to Uthlarigasset. This ship can reach the border in a few months and have us back to Uthlarigasset in six."

"You've been following them at Light-450? In that small ship?"

"That small ship can keep up with any non-DS ship in the First or Second Fleets. We had no trouble following the freighter at Light-450, but without Light-9790 we'll be following along for possibly years and then have to return the same way."

"We can take you to the border, but we're not permitted to cross out of GA space. We're not a warship."

"What are your orders for this mission in exact terms?"

"To pick you up and take you wherever you wish to go."

"So there's your authorization to cross the border. The responsibility is on my head. If you still feel hesitant to do as I ask, I can send a message to Admiral Carver and ask her to clarify the orders for you."

"Carver? Not Kanes?"

"Kanes isn't in your chain of command. I want you to feel comfortable that Standing Orders about crossing the border are suspended on this occasion."

Ginsburg thought for a few seconds before saying, "My orders do say to take you wherever you wish to go, so I can't be faulted for following orders."

"Exactly. I'll provide you with the course the freighter was following. Then I'd like you to move five billion kilometers away and follow a reciprocal course until we're sure we've passed the freighter without their knowledge. Then we can return to the course and keep on traveling until we see something."

"What is it you expect to see?"

"A rendezvous area, although exactly who might be rendezvousing I don't know. It could be Uthlaro, Raiders, Denubbewa, or someone else."

"Denubbewa?"

"Possibly."

"We have Standing Orders to avoid them."

"I'm not asking you take them on. I don't want to mess with them either. We just want to learn what's going on out here."

"Okay, Trader. I'll play along. I just hope you know what you're doing."

"As do I, Captain. And I must remind you not to repeat anything I've told you. Your crew must not know we're SCI. They might surmise it, but you mustn't confirm it. They also should not know the speed capability of my ship. If you have to tell them something, tell them we can only travel at Light-150."

"I'll have to tell my XO. He's in charge should anything happen to me."

"Okay, but no one else."

~ October 2nd, 2287 ~

"The doctors say that the four Upper Council members have little time left," Chairman Strauss announced at the Lower Council meeting. "The mutating organs have not responded to any attempted treatments and bodily functions are failing."

"What of the other members?" Council member Kelleher asked.

"So far, they seem perfectly healthy."

"So if the female members had taken the DNA Manipulation process first, they might be okay?" Council member Overgaard said. "Even if they didn't use it to change their gender?"

"Yes, perhaps if they only used it to alter their appearance slightly, the recuperative powers the process offers might have saved them," council member Blosworth offered.

"That's strictly speculation," Strauss said. "We don’t know if that's the reason the eight members are still healthy. We'll have to perform a lot more testing before we allow anyone else to use the processes. Nicole Ravenau warned me that more testing should be done, and I passed that warning on to the Upper Council, but they felt they couldn't wait. No one is at fault here. It's just been a tragic turn of events."

"So it may be a considerable time before we can avail ourselves of the processes?" Council member Ahil Fazid asked.

"If you value your life, Ahil, I'd suggest waiting. However, if you'd like to sign up as a test subject, I'm sure we can squeeze you in as one of the early experimentations. "

"Uh— no, that's quite alright. I'll wait."

"I thought you might, Ahil," Strauss said with a grin.

* * *

"Come in, Trader," Ginsburg said as the doors of his office opened to admit Vyx.

"Good morning, sir," Vyx said. "You wanted to see me?

"Yes, I did. We crossed the border from GA space into unclaimed territory about four days ago and are presently ninety-eight light-years 'into the black' as you've called it. I'm working on my daily report and wondering how much longer you intend to keep going. We haven't seen a sign of another ship for almost a month. There's nothing of value out here. That's why no nation has ever claimed it."

"My team and I were discussing that yesterday. We feel that if someone wanted to establish a rendezvous area outside GA Space where it was unlikely that Space Command would ever happen across it, it would be located in an area such as this with no habitable planets and a hundred parsecs from the border."

"Why a hundred parsecs?"

"It's a nice round number. It's enough to be outside the area that a Space Command patrol vessel might travel on a whim after crossing the border and yet not too far for vessels that are trying to avoid contact with Space Command."

"Trader, I'm beginning to think that you and your companions have been out here too long."

Vyx smiled. "Perhaps, Captain, but playing hunches has always worked well for us. Sometimes it plays out and sometimes it doesn't. So let's keep going for another ten days. We'll turn back at a hundred parsecs if we don't spot anything."

"Okay, Trader, it's your call. Another ten days it is. But if we don't spot anything, we turn around, right?"

"Right, Captain. We turn around at a hundred parsecs and head back to GA space."

* * *

Jenetta trudged wearily to her suite on the top floor of the military governor's palace after another long, hard day. The days seemed to be getting longer and longer, but that might be because good news had been so scarce lately. The weapons research people were still attempting to expand the DeTect range, but they hadn't yet achieved any decent measure of success. Work on the one scout-destroyer converted for dropping a bomb on an as yet unidentified enemy had been completed long ago, but without a way to place a bomb where it would be effective, the conversion work had been a wasted effort. For that reason, Jenetta had not authorized conversion work on other ships. Construction work on the Senate and SHQ complexes was progressing rapidly under Brian Holt, and each step forward was a reminder that her dream of being captain of a warship was slipping away. She imagined that once the complexes were finished, she would be pulled more and more into the political bureaucracy. She didn't object to losing the governorship of Regions Two and Three. Those jobs were better placed with the civilian GA Council. But having to take a seat on the AB would forever anchor her dirt-side. She'd be lucky to even slip away for a quick wave-hopping flight around Quesann. The day she dreaded was coming closer with each sunset.

As the doors to her suite opened before her, Cayla and Tayna bounded into the room. They loved coming home at night because it usually meant playtime. They sat quietly in one of her offices all day and looked forward with great eagerness to their play at night. Jenetta knew she had to give them some time, so even feeling as tired as she did, she rolled around on the floor with them for a while, then spent some time brushing their fur while they mewled lightly and gently nuzzled her legs. When she felt consciousness slipping away, she got up off the floor and slid into bed. She was fast asleep in minutes.