Star runners, p.19
Star Runners, page 19
“Would you guys shut up?” Nubern asked. “You sound like lunatics. Is that how you’ll act when we walk through the hangar? Or when flight training starts? You are going to embarrass yourselves right out of flight school.”
Something hissed from the front of the cabin. The Trident had remained close for two more minutes before it backed off. A monstrous space station came into view with four other star freighters docked on different sides. The station itself reminded Austin of the building sets he had as a child. Metal pieces linked circular pods together and surrounded a larger section in the center. Tridents buzzed around the station like flies on a trash can. Other than the nearby nebula, the station provided the only light moving against the blackness of space. He found it hard to sit still as the freighter orbited the station and moved closer.
The steel of the installation soon blocked the view outside the window. A chorus of hissing gasses and screeching metal filled the cabin. The freighter jolted.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we are now docked at Tarton’s Junction. The safety restraint light will stay on for another two minutes as gravity normalizes.”
A soft force pressed down on Austin. Skylar’s hair fell back to her shoulders, and his pen fell to his lap. The main cabin lights came on.
“All right, let’s go!” Nubern yanked off his straps and stood.
Other passengers stood and collected their belongings while the rest remained in their seats. Nubern urged them out into the aisle. Austin stretched and followed Bear into the elevator. As the elevator moved down, Skylar glanced at Austin, her eyebrows raised in a question. He smiled as the elevator droned on..
The door opened with the release of gasses and Nubern bolted through before the door had stopped moving.
“Where are we going, sir?” Skylar asked.
“From here on, my rank is captain.”
Austin sighed. “Where are we going, Captain?”
“Like I said, Orientation.”
A blue cylindrical hallway awaited them outside the elevator. Austin allowed his eyes to adjust to the low lighting of the new, tube-like hallway. Their footsteps echoed on the steel floor. The air tasted metallic and cool. At the end of the hallway, a woman stood next to a black box the size of a golf bag. She wore a one-piece black uniform with her dark brown hair tucked in a tight bun. She smiled as they approached. Austin noticed she had a Bluetooth device sticking out of her ear, and he wondered what sort of cell phone reception she could receive while in the middle of space.
The woman nodded as Nubern halted in front of her. He paused to slip a device into his ear. “Good morning.”
“Sveiki,” she said.
Austin frowned. What did she say?
“Right,” Nubern said. “Here we are.”
The women pulled a black case from the box and touched the surface. The container’s cover slid out of place. Dozens of similar Bluetooth devices sat in a straight line on top of dark foam.
“Take that one,” Nubern ordered.
“But I don’t have—”
“Just take it.”
The three of them each grabbed a wireless device. It felt softer and lighter than the one Austin used in his car back home. He slipped it into his left ear. The speaker pinged, and he flinched at the ringing.
“English,” a female, robotic voice said.
“Welcome to Tarton’s Junction,” the woman said.
Austin blinked and stared at the woman’s lips. Her voice did not match her lip movements. It was like watching a foreign film dubbed in English on late night TV.
“Excuse me?” he asked.
“You are required to have a translator before going into Orientation,” she said, her lips still not matching what she spoke. “Seven different countries and four languages from your planet will be represented here today. All of them are new recruits like you.” She outstretched her hand. “Please enter.”
He touched his earpiece. A translator. He didn’t know such a technology existed. And now he had one, tucked into his ear.
They walked down a tight hallway wide enough for two people. Lights beamed from beyond. A dull drone of voices emitted like the sound of a full auditorium. When they reached the end of the hall, Nubern turned and stepped to the side, revealing the vast chamber beyond.
Several dozen seats circled the room and sloped downward in the three-hundred-sixty-degree auditorium. The center of the room glowed a pure white light. Dozens of other recruits, all wearing similar uniforms in style but differing in color, conversed throughout the room. Some glanced in their direction when they entered.
“Find a seat,” Nubern said. “I’ll find you after.”
And with that, he hustled down the stairs, motioning to another officer.
Skylar brushed against Austin’s shoulder. “Are all these people pilots?”
Austin looked at the different recruits. While they all had one-piece uniforms like Tizona, they did have different colors. Of course, that might mean they were from a different school.
The lights dimmed.
A hush fell over the crowd.
“Please be seated,” a voice called over the speakers. “The Galactic Transition Orientation will begin in a moment.”
Those who remained standing hurried to find a seat. The hum of electricity filled the air. The room darkened to the point Austin just saw the details on the other side of the auditorium. The circular stage in the center illuminated the first rows in a bright white light.
Footsteps had echoed in the room before a man entered to his left. A middle-aged black man strolled to the stage, looking around as if he took in every detail. His large, brown eyes met Austin’s for a brief moment. Unlike the rest of the staff on board this space station, this man wore a loose-fitting powder-blue tunic. He surveyed the crowd, a pleasant expression on his face.
He paused in the center of the circle and placed a black device into his ear. As he spoke, Austin noted that his words did not match the movements of his mouth, just like the woman at the auditorium’s entrance.
“Welcome to Tarton’s Junction,” he said in a deep voice. “I am Admiral Tolan Gist. I am in charge of this station and the surrounding Quadrant Eight.” He gazed around the room. “It is a great pleasure to see you all here today. You are the brightest candidates in your respective fields and will serve the Legion well. All of the recruits in this room hail from different planets. Some of you will remain here to train as pilots. Others will take their skills far from here to aid the Legion wherever it needs you.”
He paced across the stage as he spoke. “All of you have questions, I know. Your mentors have been assigned to you to answer these questions. Most of you have met your designated mentors as they were the ones who recruited you.”
Austin grinned. Nubern.
“However, you should know basic information to help ease the transition. Your respective planets are just worlds in a vast field of stars. Your homes lie in Legion space, and, therefore, you were recruited into our services.”
Recruits around the room glanced at one another, some whispering in lifted tones.
“In the known galaxy, there are countless factions and governments. Most of the galaxy’s inhabitants live under the jurisdiction of one of two factions: The Galactic Legion and the Zahl Empire. The two have been at war in the past, but now exist under a fragile peace. The greatest current threat to our civilization is the lawless piracy harassing our space lanes.”
He interlocked his fingers and paused again. “You have completed your basic training, but you still have a great deal to do before you are enrolled as an officer in the Legion Navy. I wish you all good fortune.”
The lights came back on as Gist walked off the stage.
“Pilots will remain in their seats for another presentation,” the voice announced on the speakers. “The rest of you may exit and return to your freighters for immediate departure to your intended destinations.”
The majority of the recruits in the room stood and filed toward the exits.
“What do all those people do?” Austin asked to no one in particular.
“Who knows,” Bear grumbled.
“Probably scientists or engineers,” Skylar said. “You know, people recruited for a better reason than playing a video game.”
He heard the unease in her voice. “What’s up? Thought you were excited.”
“Not anymore. I played a game, Austin.”
“One you were very good at playing.”
“So? This,” she gestured at her surroundings, “this is too real. When I was playing the game, it was for fun. I didn’t think about it. But everyone else in here got recruited for something real.”
“What do you mean?” Bear asked.
She lowered her gaze. “Scientists. Engineers. Chemists. Us? Gamers?”
“It takes some skill,” Austin said. “Same ballpark.”
“Umm, hmm. Sure. Same ballpark. Let me know how you feel when Nubern plops you in a fighter and they expect you to stay cool when someone is shooting at you.”
“Relax. They’re going to train us.”
Her words lingered as he watched the room empty. She was right. It hadn’t occurred to him before, the reality of the situation. The Legion expected him to fly an interstellar fighter, which by its very definition meant dogfighting and possibly being killed or being forced to kill. For the first time, his surroundings loomed. He shivered as a chill crept down his neck.
When the room cleared out, only a dozen students remained. A red-haired girl near the top of the room coughed, and the sound echoed in the empty room.
Nubern entered the auditorium and stepped into the circle. “The rest of you should come down to the front of the room. I’m not going to yell.”
Once the recruits relocated, he continued, “Some of you know who I am. I am Captain Jonathan Nubern of the 32nd Tizona Squadron. I am the commanding officer responsible for your training. You will spend the next two years learning all there is to know about the Bren-8 X4 Trident. It is my duty to ensure training is safe. You all will do everything–HEY!”
Two students, a dark-haired guy and a blonde girl, jolted back after whispering to one another.
“Is your translator working?” Nubern asked. “It is? Then shut your mouth when I’m talking. Do it again and your first night will be spent cleaning urine filters with your tongues.”
He placed his fists on his hips. “Now that we’ve got that clear, you’re here to take orders and carry out tasks to the best of your ability. I’m here to train you and ensure you are safe. You are going to do everything possible to make me fail. You’re going to screw up, mess around during class, and generally be stupid. If you are still alive after you make your mistakes, you will wash out and be sent home. Got it?”
He stared at each of them as he turned. “Good. You will have access to communications with your family. You must not speak of where you are or what you’re doing. Break this rule once and your communications will be terminated for one month. Break it again, and you are gone.
“It is natural to want to talk about what you are doing and what you have seen but let me give you another reason to keep your mouth shut. You’ve heard we are in a ‘fragile peace’ with the Zahl, but in reality, it is a cold war. Quadrant Eight is only minimally safe from Imperial agents because it is a backwater planet so far away that they don’t want it...yet. But do you want your friends, your family, your girlfriends and boyfriends back home, to be targeted by Imperial agents? The Empire would like nothing more than to give you reasons to wash out and deplete our supply of pilots. So, bottom line: Shut up and eyes forward. Clear?”
Nubern surveyed the room and then nodded. “Good. You are the best of our new class of fighter pilots for the Tizona Squadron. You hail from different planets, but you will learn to fight as one unit. We are all on the same team now.”
Austin glanced around. The other students also wore Tizona uniforms, but if he understood Nubern correctly, they all came from other planets. He shook his head in disbelief.
“All right,” Nubern said, clearing his throat. “We don’t have much time so let me give you the situation briefing. Since your planets are still anchored, you all, well, don’t know squat.” He clicked his tablet, and a hologram appeared over their heads. A cloud of blue filled one section of the holographic star field and a larger red cloud bumped up against it. As he spoke, Nubern highlighted the clouds with a laser pointer.
“As you’ve already heard, the Galactic Legion and Zahl Empire are the two largest governments in the known galaxy. The Legion has expanded from its original four quadrants to eight. The Empire, however, owns a vastly superior territory spanning countless stars. There have been countless smaller conflicts over thousands of years between us and one major war, but things are now, for the most part, peaceful. Tensions are always high at the border, so we must always remain vigilant. That is why you are here.”
A student with his back to Austin raised his hand. “This might be a stupid question.”
“No such thing during training. What is it?”
“Well, are the Zahlians made up of aliens?”
Nubern sighed. “Maybe there are stupid questions. Forget anything you may have seen or read from your planet about aliens or adventures in the stars. This is not science fiction or fantasy or Saturday morning cartoons. This is for real.
“Right now, you are all going to be dismissed to your quarters. Your room assignments are in the packet being handed out to you now. Chow’s in one hour so don’t be late. The first week you’re here will be spent in classrooms and becoming acquainted with the realities of the Trident craft. After that will be time in sims, the trainers, which are two-seat versions of the X4, and the Rockshot competition. These classes and competitions will earn you points. Earn enough, and you will get your wings. If you can earn your wings and become a Star Runner, you will be among the greatest warriors in the galaxy.
“Most of you here are from Earth and Dizon. I believe one of you is from Pacar?”
A sheepish girl in the back raised her hand.
“So you are the only one who’s done more than the sim,” he said. “Actual flight experience. Impressive.”
Nubern glanced back to his tablet. “There will be time for more questions later. I want to see our class sitting together at meal times, people. You are a team now. That is all. Class dismissed.”
Austin stood as the students around him grabbed their packets and spoke to one another, but he dragged his feet as they moved up the stairs and toward the exit.
“Austin, Bear and I have been assigned Pod B for living quarters.” Skylar flipped through her packet. “Where are you?”
“Pod C.”
She frowned. “Well, I guess we’ll see you at chow.”
“Sound good.”
She tilted her head to the right. “You okay?”
“Fine. Just taking it all in. It’s all a little weird.”
Bear laughed. “Another understatement.”
With a smile and wave, his friends exited the auditorium.
He passed through the door at the top of the stairs, took a right, and walked down the corridor buzzing with activity. Another recruit jostled against his shoulder. He moved against the wall and glanced at the first page of his packet.
“I guess they’re letting anyone in here these days.”
Austin turned and blinked. “Wha—what?” His mouth dropped open. “How?”
Josh stood there wearing a hunter-green uniform, his arms crossed over his chest. He was leaner and his hair shorter, but it was definitely his best friend.
* * *
“I still can’t believe you’re here.”
Austin twirled what looked like mashed potatoes around on his plate. Josh scarfed down his bread and potatoes like he hadn’t eaten in weeks. The space station’s mess hall was like any other cafeteria. The students lined up like animals in a feeding trough. But the sight to their left was much different. Like a living mural on the wall, a view port revealed the freighters that were gathering in a line as they departed the space station. The freighters would carry the other recruits to quadrants across Legion space. Beyond, glowing red and purple like a fresh bruise, loomed the nebula.
“I could say the same about you,” Josh said, his mouth full of food. “I’ve felt bad ever since that last message.”
Austin remembered the lost connection when Josh had leaned into the camera. “Yeah, what was that all about?”
He snorted and swallowed his food. “They cut me off. There’s a delay on all outbound transmissions so they can monitor them. I was about to tell you about all of this. I sent that message from my room here on Tarton’s Junction. I lost communication privileges for a month after that.”
“Oh.” Austin thought of how mad he had been at Josh. “I’m sorry, man, I thought you were just being a jerk.”
“There’s always the possibility.” He grinned. “No, I really wanted you to know about all this.”
Austin watched the massive freighters disappear into their individual curves in space. A brief flash and the freighters left one by one.
“How can messages travel back to Earth that fast?” Austin asked.
“There’s a slight delay, but I think the military has some kind of accelerator and uses a communications curve to increase the message speed or something. I think it works like the tubes back home, you know the one they sent us to Atlantis on?”
He remembered his stomach twisting in the tube. “I won’t forget anytime soon.”
“I think they have a tube technology for audio and video images.” Josh shrugged. “Besides, Earth is only a couple light years away.”
“So let me get all this straight; you went to San Francisco?”
“Yes, the Lobera School. I’m in the Lobera Squadron.” Josh flicked the sword patch on his bicep.
“So you’re a pilot?”
“I’m an officer. Almost have enough points to be a second lieutenant and get my wings. I technically can fly the Trident solo, but it will be another year before that happens. I’m still training, learning advanced dogfighting tactics, things like that. Word has it I’ll be shipping home in a couple months to visit Mom and Dad. How are they?”
