Dark Vengeance (33 page)

“Yes, Sir. I do.”

“Tell me, can you be absolutely certain there are no other devices?”

“Security has been all over the ship. They’ve even scanned one hundred percent of the exterior.”

“And about that empty shuttle apron. You were going to lose two of those shuttles anyway. They’re being replaced by shiny new short range space fighters fresh out of Lockheed Martin’s new Skunk Works. We’ll be sending up three pilots fully trained for them. You may want to get checked out in one of them in your spare time. They are really something.”

“Glad to hear it, Admiral. I’ve been missing pushing the buttons myself.”

“Ah yes, too much clerical, I’ll bet. But don’t get to antsy, Captain. You are just where we need you.”

“About that…”

“The main briefing will be held at the Pentagon as soon as the hoopla is concluded. They’ll send a special shuttle to pick you and Commander Smith up. Tell me something. Your gut instinct; they must know we’re coming, wouldn’t you say?”

“Can’t be sure, Admiral. On the Star Seven, before he took his own life, the assassin only indicated it was about revenge. It’s possible they think they’re just sending a message that we should stay out of XiTau’s affairs.”

“So, there may still be hope we still have the element of surprise. I have my doubts, though. Setting off a nuke in Earth orbit would have meant an awful lot of collateral damage just to send a warning.”

“True, but it doesn’t seem like a very smart thing to do, either way, Admiral.”

“Well, we’ll discuss this further when I see you. Let me know if you think of anything else. Good luck with the formalities, Adrian. Provose out.”

The comm barely had time to clock off when the next message came in. “Arnes to Captain.”

“Go ahead, Lieutenant.”

“Sir, we have a VIP shuttle entering the main hanger carrying delegates from Space Systems. Your presence is expected.”

“Heading your way now, Mr. Arnes. Thank you.”

And so began the horse and pony shows. It was that old familiar stage in the six phases of a project, the one that can be the most distasteful. Invariably new projects begin with Enthusiasm which quickly leads to Disillusionment. From there comes Panic, then an all out Search-for-the-Guilty, ending with Punishment-of-the-Innocent, and finally, invariably, Praise-and-Honors-for-the-Nonparticipants. I have seen these phases of a project so many times it seems unthinkable they still command most company project profiles. I have sat in an auditorium and watched another person receive a large award for a job he contributed five percent to and me ninety-five percent. I’ve seen problem employees transferred into a different group because of their negative effects on the group, and then the new group manager punished for lack of supervision over the problem employee. I’ve watched exceptional leaders burned at the stake for the sole purpose of making someone higher up look good, and I’ve watched other talented leaders tarred and feathered to shield those higher up from rightfully taking the blame. It happens so much it just doesn’t seem possible. So you learn to bend the rules, duck at the right time, not be there when it happens, and develop a special colloquial English that weaves a story beneficial to all when necessary. Up until now I had been able to remain outside that sordid little swamp, but now I again found myself in a position where the eloquent insulters and those seeking niches for personal gain were again visiting my world. To quote a great prophet as I have many times before, this would at times be a wretched hive of scum and villainy. I would need to be cautious.

So began the procession of pomp and circumstance; guided tours for very important people I had never heard of, some of whom were legends in their own minds, along with a few here and there who were genuine people. I passed R.J. several times with his own group in tow and had to envy the way he kept them all interested and appreciative of his comments. His gift had not been diluted by the relationship with Elachia. In fact, at times it seemed to me she was the one undergoing change, not him.

By the end of the day I had nearly lost track of who I was. I had abandoned my real self somewhere back in the main hanger bay. Finally in the protection of my quarters, I showered long and hot solely for the purpose of ridding myself of who I had been all day. On the couch, wrapped in a towel, I permitted myself a strong helping of Blue Culatta, enough to dispel any reminders that the carnival would resume tomorrow.

Then came sentiment within from Enuro. Fantasia wondering how things were going and sensing a distasteful stress. We exchanged heartfelt greetings but it was early morning for her so she went back to sleep. I wondered if there was a way the link could help get me through the next day.

But, day two was easier. There were breaks between shows. There was a lunch period. I made certain Ialia the reporter was nowhere around. It was of little consolation, however. On my table was a tablet someone had been reading. It showed the front page of the Electra Times which read;

BOMB FOUND ABOARD ELECTRA AND REMOVED

I gagged after reading the headline. The story was quite accurate but fortunately did not mention any prospective reasons such a thing had been placed aboard. It left the story open.

Our security shuttle arrived early the following morning. R.J. and I suited up in full dress, tugged at our uniform collars, and headed for Earth’s surface. There was peace and quiet during the descent, a lull we both seemed to appreciate.

It was our first trip to the Space Operations Wing of the Pentagon. If the place gets any bigger, they may petition for statehood. The special parking area was so full of shuttles and pilots it looked like an RV convention. We didn’t have to do a thing. We were led by guards the entire way. Badges were pinned to us. Scanners scanned us. Eye readers flashed us. In a very large room with well-spaced lighting, chairs at a giant horseshoe table were pulled out for us. There was a very fancy, gold lined tablet at each seat. Twenty or thirty other officers were already seated; captains and first officers all. A very large screen at the front of the room was filled with a security icon I had never seen before. A bird of prey and the word ‘FEDERATION’ mixed in with Latin surrounded by a Laurel cluster.

We did not wait long. A high ranking admiral nearly blinded by spotlights ascended the low stage and came to the glass podium. It took him a few moments to get his eyes to adjust. You could have cut the heavy silence with a knife. The air was a touch too cold and smelled like office. I glanced across the room and was stunned to see Captain Mako Hayashi seated opposite me, staring back with a smile. She and I had met in a less than ideal way during a period when she was commanding the Japanese research vessel Akuma. I smiled and nodded. She wiggled fingers at me as the speaker adjusted the microphone to his liking.

“Ladies and gentlemen, by now you should all have an idea of why you have been called to assembly. I will not go into the politics of it. Nor will this be a motivational speech. It is my understanding that such kowtowing is unnecessary with the individuals in this room. I’m here to lay out the strategy of the operation. Some elements may cause you concern. Please keep your reservations to yourself.”

“It is our intention to locate and rescue more than a thousand individuals taken against their will and sold into slavery by a conglomerate of criminals operating from the planet XiTau. Recently, we were able to acquire intelligence that gave us the names and locations of the all the victims bought and sold by slave traders there. That information also provided us a complete overview of XiTau’s defenses. Covert surveillance indicates XiTau is still unaware that we have this intelligence. One hundred and thirty-eight of the victims on XiTau are from Earth. Seventy-five others are from Enuro. The numbers of those from other worlds is too diverse to list here, but they are shown on the documentation that’s been provided in front of you. Six other planetary governments will be joining us in this campaign. Each of those has been assigned one of the outlying planets that have been doing slave trade business with XiTau. Earth has accepted the main target, XiTau. It will be up to us to secure, search, and recover all victims being held there. There will be an option to call for help from our allies, but only if absolutely necessary. Otherwise, we will be on our own in this endeavor. Perhaps I should say, you will be on your own.”

“Every detail of this engagement is listed and fully explained in the tablets in front of you. I will now outline the operation. The XiTau Campaign Tactical Map is shown on the viewer behind me as well as on your tablets.”

“As you can see, there is a substantial asteroid field 1.3 AU’s from XiTau. It will be used to set up command central. Admiral Provose, Admiral Decard, General Mays, and General Pacart will man that command outpost. Stealth relay substations will be placed to enhance communications.”

“Each of you will find you’ve been assigned space coordinates that will strategically place your ship 24 hours ahead of XiTau’s orbit. There will be no transmissions of any kind after entering the XiTau system. Because we will not first assemble beyond XiTau space, it is imperative you are at your designated station and ready, on time. We will not be verifying you. We will be assuming you are where you should be, when you should be. Each of your flight plans are designed to keep you well clear of the standard XiTau commerce corridors. There should be no chance of you being detected.”

“When complete, these deployments will form a net around XiTau as it approaches on its orbit. When XiTau has reached the proper position and is inside the net, the Electra, commanded by Captain Tarn, will initiate the operation. Electra will be holding near the central outer edge of the asteroid field near Base Command. At the designated time, Phase 1 will be initiated. Electra will make a point-two second jump to light, placing it in high orbit above XiTau. Electra will then move to low orbit, bring its main pulse cannon to bear and as it circles the planet it will stun pulse XiTau’s six security centers at various points on the surface. On its second orbit, Electra will destroy each of XiTau’s six surface to orbit defense installations.”

“When the Phase 1 operation is complete, Phase 2 will be executed. Alpha and Bravo surface assault ships will launch, make their accelerated descents, and set up a command base on either side of the planet. They will deploy their combat teams and vehicles, secure the area, and evaluate the situation. If all is as expected the Phase 3 go code will be issued and the main assault force will be launched. When those landings have been accomplished, and enough target areas secured, the Phase 4 armored carriers will land and begin receiving victims. The planet of origin for each victim will be of no concern to us at that time. We intend to rescue them all.”

“During these landings and recoveries, Electra will continue in its low, high speed orbit, ready to destroy any additional major threats that arise to our ground troops. When all ground targets have been fully searched and no additional victims can be located, all surface craft will depart and rejoin their ships. We will then regroup outside the XiTau system where the fleet will organize into separate formations for escort back to Earth.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the card you have all drawn. There may be some variations if any of our cooperating friends get into trouble with their assigned objectives. Generally speaking, however, what I’ve just described to you will happen. At your level, you are all fully aware of the Nasebian emissaries we use on deep space flights, emissaries that prevent us from inadvertently offending other civilizations. There will be no Nasebian emissaries on this mission. The Nasebians are fully aware of what is about to transpire, however. It is their intention to be neither for nor against this kind of discourse between worlds. But, I would suggest that given their sentiment toward all life forms, it seems likely they understand our deep commitment to family.”

“When you leave this room, you are not to discuss this mission with anyone except direct command personnel. Give all necessary orders to fulfill your responsibilities, but do not give explanations. You will need to study the amplified version of this mission as contained in those tablets until you know it backwards and forward. You must commit to memory all call signs and codes, as well. Captains and First Officers, I look forward to the repopulation of the hundreds of lost souls you will bring back with you. That is all.”

There was a long, silent pause. Chairs began to squeak against tile floor. Someone dropped a cup. It bounced on the floor but did not break. A low drone of conversations began to well up. Behind me I heard someone mumble to a friend, “A point-two light jump to high orbit, then a high speed ride around that ball until ops end? That ought to be interesting.”

R.J. stood and tucked his new tablet under his arm. He stared at the floor without looking up. We strolled back toward the exit, drawn along in the current created by the crowd.

“Well, this is where I usually say what’da you want to do now, but I’m just not up to it,” said R.J. still not looking up.

I searched for an appropriate reply, did not come up with one, but was saved by the tweeting of my wrist communicator. When I looked an image of Admiral Provose was staring back at me. “Adrian, would you come up to my office on the East wing, please? It’s 312.”

“On our way.” I glanced at R.J. “You should accompany me in case I need you to run interference. I’ve already signed on for way more than I ever agreed to.”