20


Inspired by our post-poker game decision, Rejon sprang into action, rallying his people for a whirlwind tour of the system to gather resources. In less than a standard week, they had squeezed the system and filled their storage compartments.
“In the positive margin, the alien hybrid agreement has brought the people of this Xad and Wallach closer together than ever, even if most of the population doesn’t know the details,” X-37 said.
“Yeah, that’s fabulous,” I said, gazing from the bridge of the Jellybird. It was good to be off the Bright Lance despite the amenities it offered. Security for the ailing hybrids was the responsibility of a joint task force now, though Path stood guard over the vault as often as not.
Elise was at the helm, working with Jelly to find our place at the head of the slip tunnel formation. This jump was proving to be at least as chaotic as leaving the Xad system. There were just too many ships, and few of them were using the same level of technology. Each captain seemed to hold different ideas about their place in the formation.
Some captains wanted to go first for the honor of making the crossing first. Others wanted the military vessels to protect them, but then interfered by demanding too much control over their operations.
“This is a mess,” I said. “I’m about ten minutes from jumping ahead of everyone to scout the next system ourselves.”
“My analysis suggests that would not be the worst option,” X-37 said. “And I believe Jelly agrees with me.”
“I do agree,” Jelly said. “But that decision belongs to Elise, presently.”
“We wait for fleet command’s decision,” Elise said.
“Of course,” Jelly said. “We are holding course near the slip tunnel awaiting permission to proceed.”
* * *
Ten hours after we led the scouting expedition through the slip tunnel, it opened into a promising star system. I led a scout squadron of three ships including the Jellybird.
“Battle Axe and Hunter, begin security patrols,” Elise ordered. “We’re on the clock. The rest of the fleet will exit soon, and we don’t want any surprises.”
The RWS Battle Axe, commanded by Captain Hunger, moved immediately. “Battle Axe acknowledges. En route.”
The Hunter of Xad, also a well-armed scout craft, moved toward her assignment. “Hunter acknowledges,” said Captain Omon.
“Tell me about the system, Jelly,” I said.
“I believe it falls into the too good to be true category,” Jelly said. “There is one garden planet. Long range sensors indicate it to be well suited for humans, a bit larger than most planets in its category, which might be a bonus. There is only one other slip tunnel, making the system easy to defend while still having an escape route in one direction or another. Several planets and asteroid belts are rich with raw materials.”
I read through the data as it flowed onto the screen. “What am I seeing around the other slip tunnel? Are those ships?”
“There is a small debris field near the opening of the slip tunnel on the opposite side of the system,” Jelly advised. “It does not open in a true lagrangian point, so it seems the debris should be pulled into one of the competing gravity wells near it. This suggests the ship or ships were destroyed recently.”
“How recently?” I asked.
“We have insufficient data at this time,” Jelly said. “I recommend either proceeding to the other slip tunnel or sending one of the other scout vessels to investigate.”
“Negative, Jelly,” I said. “We stay together. Once we have this sector scouted, we will proceed in a squadron formation to the other slip tunnel to investigate.”
“I’ll let the Battle Axe and the Hunter know,” Elise said.
“Good.” I looked at Tom. “When Elise is ready, I’d like to take the micro-fighters out. Can you take the con?”
“It would be my pleasure,” Tom said.
A short time later, Elise pushed back from her workstation. “That’s done. Captain Hunger and Captain Omon are much easier to deal with than Coronas and Rejon.”
“They seem solid and they keep their ships in good condition,” I said. “I’ve seen their type before. I think we can count on them.”
“Great, let’s have some fun,” Elise said. “I’d like to do some speed trials with the micro-fighters before we’re surrounded by the junk fleet.”
We headed for the storage bay of the Jellybird we’d converted to a flight deck for a pair of micro-fighters. The small ships were designed to attach on the exterior of one of these Union stealth carriers, but this wasn’t practical for our needs. We put on our Archangel gear, integrated them with the micro-fighters as Elise had learned to do, and launched into the void.
“I’m still getting used to this,” I said. “When you showed me how to use my Archangel armor with my micro-fighter, I thought I would feel less vulnerable. But the interface is so smooth I don’t feel like I’m in a ship at all.”
“I’m telling you, Reaper, your reaction time is so much faster this way it’s hard to believe. Everything happens in real time and the suits are better at handling the G forces of hard turns, acceleration, and deceleration,” Elise said, speaking quickly due to her own excitement. “I almost can’t wait to get in a fight.”
“Famous last words.” Without warning, I punched my speed to maximum. Elise chased after me.
“Tom, stay close enough to pick us up but don’t do anything dumb,” Elise said. “I think I know what the Reaper has in mind.”
“Copy that,” Tom said. “A secondary scan shows a matching debris field near the slip tunnel we came through. None of this is a fraction of what we saw in the Xad system, but something happened here.”
“It appears that an unknown force placed mines or otherwise attempted to control these access points to the system,” Jelly said.
I laughed. Elise laughed with me but sounded a bit annoyed.
“Everyone guesses right once in a while,” she said.
“Admit it, you didn’t even consider the fact that both slip tunnels had been mined,” I said. “Even though we’ve been training to expect anything when we enter a new solar system.”
“We’re doing the patrols, aren’t we?” She didn’t exactly sound defensive, but I thought I could get under her skin a bit.
“That’s why I’m the scout leader on this mission,” I said.
She fired back immediately, reminding me of the girl I’d left on Greendale after Dreadmax and then returned to find living on her own. “Or maybe it’s because you’re pushy and like telling everyone what to do.”
“Something wrong with that?”
“You’re messing with me, Reaper.”
“Battle Axe to scout leader, we’ve cleared our sector and are moving toward your location,” Captain Hunger said.
“Copy that, Battle Axe,” I said. “Hunter, status?”
“Nearly complete. We found one derelict vessel. Initial scans show no signs of life,” Captain Omon reported. “It looks like what you found is a larger field.”
“Hold there and we will come to you after we finish here,” I said. “Battle Axe, rendezvous with Hunter.”
“En route,” Hunter answered.
Elise and I closed on my discovery. The ship was long and looked like one of the larger ones I had seen near Xad. It was so big that we were able to race down the middle of it, dodging around its twisted infrastructure and laughing crazily.
I twisted the controls, quickly learning not to over correct. Elise was slightly behind me, but I could feel her trying to pass despite the obvious danger in this environment. From time to time I caught flashes of her ship acrobatics on my display.
“Didn’t I tell you these things were awesome with your armor integrated?” The excitement in her voice made me laugh a bit.
“Settle down, kid. Let’s try not to get killed before the rest of the fleet gets through the slip tunnel,” I said.
We shot out the other side and banked around to head back for what the Hunter of Xad had found. The Jellybird, which had established a safe standoff distance from the Alon hulk we were zipping through, fell in with us on our new course.
“We have a few minutes before we get there,” I said. “Did you get any good data from our reconnaissance, X?”
“I’m sure that Jelly and I observed far more from your camera feed than you did, at least from an analytical standpoint,” X-37 said.
“Are you bragging, X?” I asked.
“It sounds like he’s bragging,” Elise said.
“Incorrect,” X-37 said. “I am reporting factual information, as always.”
“Well, was that an Alon ship or not?” I asked. The size and style of it reminded me of what the enemies of both Wallach and Xad had left behind. There had been few of their ships left behind in the conflicts over the ages. The most dangerous looking warships were of neither Wallach or Xad design.
“It matches the design parameters as we know them,” X-37 said. “However, there is little of value remaining other than the metal and ceramic alloys of its construction. All weapons, power sources, and technology have been stripped away.”
“Do you think someone like the people of Xad did that?” I asked.
“I do not believe that is the case, Reaper Cain. This was a more systematic salvage operation, probably done by the same people who built the ship.”
Elise and I arrived at the other derelict ship slightly ahead of the Jellybird.
“Tom, why don’t you take one point on the perimeter while Hunter and Battle Axe assume two other vector points. I’m going to show the Reaper the coolest thing about our little fighter ships,” Elise said. “This isn’t open at both ends like the other one so we’re going to have to get our hands dirty.”
Tom and the other captains acknowledged and took overwatch positions.
“Watch and learn, Reaper.” Elise swooped to the surface of the dark hulk, disengaging from the wings and propulsion systems seconds before she landed on the exterior hull of the Alon wreck. The micro-fighter peeled away from her and hovered at a point she set with the armor LAI.
We had learned that the advanced Union armor had a unique type of LAI, one that was spread out over groups of Archangel gear. That was how Elise initially figured out the integration technology. Apparently, it had been an option that Nebs never approved. The evidence suggested he hadn’t trusted his own people that much. Which had allowed us to defeat him against overwhelming odds.
“X, help me out,” I said.
“Integrating with the Archangel LAI now,” X-37 responded. “You may now disengage from the micro-fighter when you’re ready.”
I brought the little ship close to the deck, came to a relative stop, and gave the order. The wings and fuselage of the micro-fighter peeled away, dumping me unceremoniously downward. I landed on my hands and knees hard enough to stun me.
Elise laughed, unrepentant. “That was smooth, Reaper. Very nice.”
“Don’t get cocky, kid,” I grumbled as I came to my feet and joined her.
“Who me? Cocky?”
Strutting past her, I found an access hatch. Once I determined there was no power, I ripped it free and looked inside. Nothing but darkness awaited us.
“I’ll go first,” I said.
“Good. Everyone knows Reapers are expendable.” Elise took up a position to watch my back despite her bravado.
“On the contrary, Elise,” X-37 said. “Reapers were always used as a high-value asset, even when they were sent on missions with a low probability of success. My records show that the cost was always a significant factor in Union decision making.”
“Let’s not talk about the Union right now,” I said, activating my helmet lights to see the expansive passage spreading out ahead of us.
This ship wasn’t as large as the one Elise and I had recently flown through, but it was big. Walking from end to end would take time. There were metal catwalks, stairways, and ladders leading to areas that had been stripped of anything useful. Unlike Dreadmax, there was no rust anywhere. Every surface had a unique crosshatch pattern.
But that wasn’t what stunned Elise and me to silence. Twenty meters inside the access hatch I had ripped open, we found bodies. Most of them looked like they had been human. Their uniforms bore distinct similarities to some of the fashion experiments the people of Xad were currently wearing. Their weapons, however, looked like advanced versions of Wallach arms.
“X, can you compare these corpses to what we know about our new allies?” I asked.
“I’m working on it now, Reaper Cain,” X-37 said. “I believe these are Alon corpses.”
“What’s wrong with their skin? Or is that an effect of long-term void exposure? And while you’re at it, how long do you think the ship has been like this?” I asked.
“Please focus on the most well-preserved Alon body you can find,” X-37 asked.
I complied, kneeling over one of the bodies, not wanting to face the thing I thought had killed them. That corpse lay underneath a half-dozen Alon soldiers that had swarmed it and went down fighting.
“Please keep in mind that my reconstruction of probable Alon physiology is incomplete. Based on what I can see here, and on the rather incomplete references in the Wallach and Xad databases, these soldiers were very tall, well adapted to the void, and possessed radically different pigment from your skin or anybody we have encountered in our journeys.”
“What else, X?” I asked, standing and moving toward the Alon bodies piled on top of a creature that I thought was going to be too familiar for comfort.
“I don’t like this,” Elise said. “Tom is telling me that they can’t pick up our holo feeds—something about the material the ship hull is made from.”
“We can fill him in later,” I said, then pulled the first Alon corpse from the pile. Its arm came off. I cast it away and pulled on the feet with better results.
“None of the bodies have weapons or armor, which I find curious. A salvage crew might take the weapons, but why would they remove armor and then put the bodies back in these uncomfortable looking positions,” X-37 said.
“Whoever these Alon were, they belong to the ship. The creature they killed was a boarder, trying to take control of the ship or just kill them all. I’m not sure which at this point,” I said. “If they had been the boarders, they would’ve been wearing void suits.”
“There is a very good possibility that the aggressors in this conflict considered killing all of their enemies part of taking control of the ship,” X-37 said. “I will need much more data to make a precise analysis, of course.”
“Okay, you can tell me more about the Alon later,” I said. “I’m going to see if this creature on the bottom of the pile is one of Ayers’s hybrid aliens.”
“I’ll stand guard,” Elise said, a hitch in her voice.
I worked at the grim task, taking the time to drag each body to one side and lay it out for later examination. I was anxious to see if the tentacles protruding from the scene belonged to an actual, true to life alien matching what Ayers had been trying to recreate.
I had my doubts because the tentacles I could see almost looked like they were covered with frost, which seemed unlikely because there was no moisture in this environment. Nothing, even damaged metal that had been ripped free of the ship, had any rust or corrosion.
More importantly, the tentacles almost looked beautiful. I passed this along to Elise.
“Are you kidding me?” she asked.
“You’re not looking at what I’m looking at,” I said, removing the last Alon defender that had died saving his ship. His sunken, skull like face didn’t give me many clues to his skin tones or whether or not he had hair. I was assuming some of the decomposition had happened before all atmosphere was lost from this vessel, but there wasn’t a good way to be sure without a lot more work. His own bacteria might have been enough to start the processes.
“I’m recording in the highest definition possible for future analysis,” X-37 said.
“Good call, because this isn’t anything like I expected,” I said.
Elise moved closer, still standing guard.
The body was nonhuman but hadn’t changed colors or decomposed as far as I could tell. It was the color of a white dwarf star with sky-blue highlights at the tip of what I had assumed were tentacles.
What I was looking at now was something very different from the murderous freaks stored in the Bright Lance cryo-pods. This creature had been almost as beautiful as it had been deadly. The multiple limbs were slim and smooth, covered with something that might have been short, snow white felt.
The tangle of limbs lacked the hooks I had seen on the worst of Ayers’s experiments. Instead, these were tipped with what looked like nine-inch bone razors—edged in blue like the watermark of swords I had seen on Heron XIII.
Overall, the alien was definitely humanoid, with two legs and two arms from which the tentacles had sprouted. The face was angular and graceful, the head wreathed in something like sharp edged feathers.
“That’s nothing like I expected,” Elise said.
“I am recording and taking measurements,” X-37 said. “There are enough similarities between the experiments in this corpse to suggest splicing the DNA of its species with humans resulted in something more grotesque than either.”
“Let’s recon what we can, and decide what to do with the alien corpse,” I said. “It doesn’t feel right to leave it here, but I’m nervous about putting it on our ship. We don’t know anything about it.”
“We could put it in cold storage, lock the door, and set a guard,” Elise said, not exactly sounding satisfied with the idea.
By the time we were done on the Alon ship, we’d counted over three hundred Alon and seven true alien bodies. We consulted with Tom and forwarded some of the images that couldn’t be relayed through the hull of the derelict ship in real time.
Omon sent two of his best salvage people to help us pack two Alon bodies—a male and a female—and one of the true aliens in preservation containers. These were like the cryo-pods but much simpler. No one put in these boxes would ever be revived.
“We will bring back a team to collect the rest of the bodies,” I said.
Elise agreed without speaking.
I was exhausted by the time the operation was done. Resting on the observation deck of the Jellybird, Elise, Tom, and I witnessed the arrival of the combined Wallach and Xad fleet.
“We’ve been busy,” Elise said.
“Nice of you to notice.” I sensed there was more to her statement.
“So busy that you haven’t spent much time with your mother and sister,” she said.
“They’re still recovering. Don’t worry about us. Now that they’re awake, there’s time to rebuild our relationships,” I said.
“Are you sure?”
“I get it. You think I’m a terrible son and brother.”
“That’s not what I said. Just don’t take anything for granted.”
“My analysis suggests that is excellent advice,” X-37 said.