“Yeah. They don’t know Wheeler as well as they think,” said Philips. “His light duty armor is considered heavy by others. He never leaves home unprepared for a mini war, at least.”

  “Exactly,” said Leah.

  Detective Johnson said, “unfortunately we haven’t located the shooter yet. But we think he is still somewhere on this hub. We’ll catch him eventually.”

  “Have you secured all lifters and stopped all traffic on and off this hub?” asked Philips.

  “Standard procedure,” said Johnson. “And stopped all ships from departing, except for the Resolute, which is waiting for you.”

  “One more thing detective,” said Philips. “I suggest you get in touch with Ivy Township police. They are investigating an incident that happened over at Thinker’s Square. The shooter there was Marcus Lehman. I am positive there is a connection.”

  “We’re aware of that incident and are in touch with Ivy. We’ll be interviewing Mr. Lehman once we’re finished here.”

  Philips nodded. “Okay. We’ll be out of touch for a while. If there’s anything you need, I suggest you direct any requests to Fleet Admiral Graham’s office.”

  “Will do captain,” said Johnson. “Thank you for your cooperation.”

  Philips thanks Johnson and turned to Wheeler and Leah. “Let’s get aboard the Resolute. We’re only just going to make it.”

  He motioned for Resolute’s armed escorts to lead the way, and they all jogged off towards docking port 7, berth 12 to board the ship.

  Chapter 8

  The Resolute was a Nova-class battle carrier ship. As far as capital ships go, Nova-class ships were the largest in the Navy’s arsenal. The Resolute measured half mile in length and carried a formidable arsenal.

  Hundreds of fixed position plasma cannons dotted the length of its dorsal and ventral sides, which were supplemented by a mix of smaller and medium sized guns used for mid-range and close quarters combat. The smaller guns were especially useful for putting up dense screens of flak to protect against incoming fire as well as enemy fighter craft that ventured too close to the giant ship.

  However, the Resolute’s most versatile weapon was known as the Hornet’s Nest, the unofficial designation for the space fighter wing assigned to the carrier. The Hornet’s Nest consisted of two groups, Blue Hornet and Red Hornet, with each group consisting of three squadrons.

  All told, at full strength, the Resolute’s space fighter wing could field one hundred and fifty fighter craft, supported by twenty-four field repair and refueling vessels and eight search and rescue craft. When Marines were aboard, the Resolute could also accommodate a number of Marine assault and troop transport vessels, as needed.

  Captain Rutledge greeted Philips, Wheeler and Leah at the entrance to berth 19.

  “Captain Philips,” he said, “you’ve made it just in time. We’ll be leaving the dock in ten minutes. Petty Officer Nelson will show you to your quarters. Briefing will commence at 1900, my quarters.”

  “Understood captain,” said Philips. Wheeler and Leah nodded, and they all boarded the ship.

  --

  Petty Officer Nelson led them through a series of halls and passageways, indicating important points along the way.

  The ship was efficiently laid out and had helpful markings to indicate what section of the ship you were in and the location of the nearest lift or stairwell. In common areas and long stretches of hallway, comm stations were available about every 100 yards. These were useful in an emergency when in-ship communications might be down and personal comms may be lost, damaged or inoperative due to interference.

  Nelson escorted the trio into officer’s country and showed each of them to their staterooms. Philips’ quarters were on the starboard side of the hall while Leah’s and Wheeler’s were directly opposite his, on the port side.

  “These will be your quarters for the duration of the trip,” said Nelson. “I will be back at 1850 to escort you to captain Rutledge’s briefing room. Master Sergeant, your belongings are aboard and will be brought to you shortly. There’s a special storage locker down the hall, on your right, to store sensitive or potentially dangerous material.”

  Nelson handed him a key, saluted all three and left.

  “I suggest you put your nukes in that storage locker,” said Philips. “We don’t want to blow up the ship.”

  “They’re harmless,” said Wheeler with a wave of his hand. “They have no chance of going off without the key, detonator, and reaction codes. And I have those on me at all times.”

  “Give Leah the keys and I’ll take the reaction codes,” said Philips. “You hold the detonators. Then place those nukes in the storage locker. I’ll ask Rutledge to post a guard, just in case.”

  “You’re the boss,” said Wheeler, and handing over the keys and reaction codes.

  Glancing at his watch, Philips said “We’ve got less than forty minutes before our briefing with Rutledge. Let’s make good use of that time to prep, rest, freshen up…whatever you need. Let’s not be late. See you all right here at 1850.”

  Wheeler saluted while Leah smiled. “See you soon,” she said and went into her stateroom.

  When she had shut her door, Wheeler asked, “what do you know about Rutledge?”

  “Not a lot but I have had dealings with him before,” replied Philips. “I’ve heard good things about him, but I don’t know him as well as I know you. I’m sure Admiral Graham had a good reason for assigning him for this mission. And they’ve certainly spared no expense in terms of ship assignments. The Resolute is as good as it gets.”

  “She is a fine ship, isn’t she captain,” remarked Wheeler.

  “That she is my friend. I’ll see you at 1850, sharp.”

  Wheeler saluted and disappeared into their respective staterooms.

  --

  Petty Officer Nelson was right on time. At exactly 1850, he rounded the corner and stood patiently outside their stateroom doors.

  Philips was out just thirty seconds after Nelson’s arrival, while Leah was out nearly a minute later. Wheeler exited his stateroom about two minutes after Nelson’s arrival.

  “Sorry I’m late,” said Wheeler. “I was inventorying my equipment. You can never be too sure.”

  “Thank you, sir,” said Nelson. “Did you have any issues securing your equipment in the storage locker?”

  “None. That place is a fortress. I like it. Good security.”

  “Excellent,” said Philips. “Mr. Nelson, lead the way.”

  “Yes, sir”,” replied Nelson and escorted them down the hall.

  A few minutes later, they arrived at the captain’s briefing room. The door was closed, and Nelson knocked firmly but politely.

  A security protocol lit up on the console next to the door and said, “you are attempting to enter a secure area. Proper identification required.”

  Nelson reached into his breast pocket and retrieved a small flat card. Placing it against the console’s surface caused it to glow a deep green.

  “Identification acknowledged. Palm scan required.”

  Nelson looked at Philips and said, “sorry for the delay sir. I was not expecting the extra security protocols.”

  Philips shrugged. “No worries. I’m sure your captain has his reasons.”

  Nelson placed the palm of his left hand on the consol.

  “Palm scan acknowledged. Please enter your passcode.”

  Nelson entered a fourteen-digit alphanumeric code into the console’s display.

  “Passcode acknowledged. Identify confirmed. Petty Officer First Third Class Gordon Nelson. You may enter.”

  The door opened into a large but sparsely furnished room. Nelson moved aside to let the guests enter the room first.

  The space was dominated by a large, oak desk that could seat 14 people, while the perimeter was dotted with workstations and several control consoles.

  Captain Rutledge sat at the head of the table, facing the entrance.

  “Captain Philips, Doctor Thomson, Master Sergeant Wheeler…please, come in,” said Rutledge. “Mr. Nelson. Good work.”

  “Thank you, sir,” said Nelson.

  “You are dismissed,” replied Rutledge.

  Nelson saluted and gently backed out of the room, the door sliding closed behind him.

  “Have a seat,” said Rutledge, sweeping his hand across the table.

  Philips sat to Rutledge’s right, while Wheeler sat to his left; Leah took the chair to the left of Wheeler.

  “Lady and gentlemen,” began Rutledge. “We are on a tight schedule. We left the Lighthouse nearly an hour ago and are now just a few hours away before we can turn on our FTL drive. As you know, the FTL drives that we use on capital ships need a lot of flat space to operate.”

  “Marine captains never forgot that,” said Wheeler. “We had a little ditty to remind us:

  “There once was a captain, his speed he did press,

  Who wanted to go fast, his lady to impress,

  He flew by a star, as it was shining so bright,

  He thought himself strong, with invincible might,

  But its mass was too great, a grim story foretold,

  If only he remembered, mass makes you explode.”

  “Master Sergeant!” said Philips, while Leah laughed.

  “Forgive us, captain,” Philips said. “The Master Sergeant’s talents extend across many subjects, but poetry isn’t one of them.

  “Sam, I think that’s a great way to remember,” protested Leah.

  “I agree,” said Rutledge. “Mind if I use that Sergeant? I think I’ll have the new recruits put that to memory.”

  “It’s an old one but it still works.” said Wheeler. “I’d include it on their examinations too.”

  “Good idea,” said Rutledge, a smile on his face. “Now, I know you are eager to get this briefing done.

  “Admiral Graham gave me an initial briefing,” said Philips. “It was good but a bit sparse. I haven’t shared much with my colleagues yet, as I wanted us all together, in a secure location.”

  “Understandable,” said Rutledge. “Captain, I may be going over a few things you’ve already seen, but they are worth going over again.”

  Working his fingers over a command console located in front of him, Rutledge brought up an image of empty space, peppered with stars of varying magnitudes in the background.

  “Consider this image to represent time zero,” he said. “Now watch what happens as I let this run.”

  They all watched, as the original space scene began to twist, the light of the background stars spiraling to form a patchwork kaleidoscope, before the image began to coalesce into a swirling mass of nearly pitch-black waves, punctuated by patches of dim white light.

  Wheeler shook his head. “Is that an ocean we’re looking at?”

  “An ocean in space, perhaps,” said Rutledge.

  The image transformed again, with the waves turning inwards, pouring their matter into a central core that radiated with a hot, white light. It reminded Leah of a artist’s rendering of a black hole, only it couldn’t be that, because black holes didn’t actually look like that.

  “Black hole?” asked Wheeler.

  “Almost,” said Leah.

  “Then what is it?” asked Philips.

  Leah shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  Slowly, the image began to fade, leaving in its place the original scene Rutledge had started with.

  “Is that all,” asked Philips.

  Rutledge shook his head. “No, it’s still going. Watch.”

  Bright orange lights began winking on this time, randomly at first, but eventually began to cluster in recognizable patterns.

  “Look closely,” said Rutledge. “That formation looks very much like the constellation Draco as seen from earth.”

  “The dragon,” said Wheeler.

  “Exactly,” said Rutledge. “The dragon. An interesting aside, classified intelligence records from the Xanthu-Human war mention that the Xanthu used to refer to themselves as the “dragon people.”

  “In their native language,” said Leah.

  “I didn’t know that,” said Philips.

  “Nor did I,” added Rutledge.

  “So, what are you suggesting?” asked Wheeler. “That this is trying to tell us something about the Xanthu?”

  “No one knows,” said Rutledge. “But stranger things are possible.”

  “Let’s treat it as another datapoint,” said Leah. “Something to help our analysis, as it develops.”

  “Agreed,” said Philips. “I might add, I still don’t know what we are looking at.”

  “You are not alone captain,” said Rutledge, “I believe that’s why this mission has been organized. To gather useful intel about that” he said, pointing to the image of the Draco constellation.

  Philips nodded. “Admiral Graham said that these images we are seeing, whatever they are, are being created by an unknown device. We are to gather as much information about the device, its environs – everything we can – and if possible, retrieve it and bring it home.

  “Why us?” asked Wheeler. “Not that I don’t find this an exciting break from my teaching duties…”

  “Because we make a great team,” said Philips, smiling broadly. “Leah has the smarts and you have the brawn. A perfect balance.”

  “And what do you have?” asked Wheeler, also smiling.

  “Can’t you guess?” he said. “Leadership. Tactics.” Glancing at Leah, he added, “good looks?”

  Shaking her head no, she said “What we all bring to the table, besides the fact that we do work so wonderfully well together, is that we are all rated to fly Star Fighters.”

  Philips nodded, “Hopefully, you mean fifth generation Star Fighters.”

  “Yeah, I’m rated for those,” said Wheeler.

  “I’m rated for all generation Star Fighters,” said Leah. “I’ll be able to fly the sixth generation as soon as it comes out.”

  “Impressive,” Rutledge. “I’m rated for a fourth gen myself.”

  “She’s a Level Two planty,” said Philips.

  “I hate being called a planty,” Leah said.

  “Don’t sweat it,” replied Philips. “We’re all planties here. Your Lev Twos give you a huge advantage, and I think we’ll need every advantage we can get on this mission.”

  “Captain,” said Philips. “What else can you tell us?”

  “About this?” he asked, gesturing to the image still hanging between them in 3D. “Not too much.”

  “Does it to anything else,” said Wheeler. “Besides create those images?”

  “From what I’ve been told,” said Rutledge, “those aren’t just images. Those are real…real places, real things. Call them what you will.”

  “I think real in this instance is going to be a relative concept,” said Leah.

  “Agreed,” said Philips. “How many other scenes is that thing capable of? Do you have any idea?”

  “As far as anyone knows,” replied Rutledge, “it can generate an infinite number of scenes – or rather scenarios…or realities. I am not sure how best to define the things we’ve seen.”

  “They are all valid,” said Leah, “for now at least. Once we get close to this thing, we’ll have a better handle on all these questions.”

  “So, you’re saying I could sit and watch this all day long,” asked Wheeler, “and never see the same thing again?”

  “Exactly sergeant,” replied Rutledge. “Though I don’t recommend it. I had one officer who did just that. He became addicted to it and hasn’t been able to return to duty since.”

  “How long did he spend watching this?” Leah asked.

  “He had a few days off and spent them watching the scenes change,” Rutledge replied. “I had no idea he was doing that. No one did. When he didn’t show up for duty, he was eventually found in a stupor. Awake, physically in perfect health, but unresponsive. It’s as if his mind got itself lost in those shifting scenes.”

  “Is he still aboard the Resolute?” asked Leah.

  “We dropped him off at the Lighthouse,” replied Rutledge, “we’re hoping he can get better medical care planet side.”

  “I would have loved to try to communicate with him,” said Leah. “If not directly, perhaps via his implants.”

  “You can do that?” asked Philips. “Link directly into someone’s implants.”

  “It’s theoretically possible,” she replied. “If at least one of the two people involved has Level Two implants. Mine are actually ideally suited to such things. Not all Lev Twos would work.”

  “Let’s put that on our list of to-dos for once we get back to Foothold,” said Philips. “Might give us some insights into what that thing is, what it does and what it’s for.”

  “Good idea captain,” said Rutledge. “That might even bring me my officer back.”

  “We hope so too, captain,” replied Philips.

  “What about the tactical situation,” asked Wheeler. “What are we facing…wherever it is we are going?”

  “Good question sergeant,” said Rutledge. “The tactical situation – is a bit sketchy.”

  “That doesn’t sound good, “said Philips. “What are the knowns and unknowns?”

  “The knowns are the region of space you are headed into,” replied Rutledge. “The unknowns are everything else.”

  He keyed a few commands on his console, and a large schematic appeared to float in front of them. The schematic showed the Resolute in its current location, several light hours away from Footfall’s primary. Beyond, distances were compressed, with various areas color coded into special zones.

  “As you can see,” began Rutledge “we are about two thirds out of this system. Once we reach the turnover point, here, we’ll turn on our FTL. Our first stop will be in the area marked in blue. We’ll pick up the latest intelligence from operatives we’ve stationed on Saddle and Celeste. That should help us update our operational plan.”

  “How reliable are these operatives?” asked Philips. “Can we trust them?”

 

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