Space Corps Revelation Page 4

  Around the room, most of the staff looked confused. They knew the meeting had something to do with whatever destroyed the Tianjin, but the admiral acted as if something needed to happen quickly.

  Finally, Eric Holt broke the silence. “Admiral, what kind of threat are we looking at? Isn’t it just an asteroid?”

  Commander Hong spoke too fast for the translator to keep up. When he realized this, he slowed down.

  “I wish we were dealing with an asteroid,” said Hong. “Sadly, we’re dealing with something much more dangerous. We have been attacked by an alien force. Unless I’m wrong, this is not the first time, and it will not be the last.”

  Visibly upset, Reynolds said, “That’s not possible. If the Martian lander were attacked, we would see some residue from the explosives used. We scanned the area. There’s no residue on any of the debris.”

  “You are halfway correct, sir,” Hong replied. “You did not see any residue on the debris because we were not attacked using explosives.”

  “Even if they used a railgun, there would be some evidence of it.”

  Hong looked down at the top of the table. “Would there be residue if they used weapons made of energy?”

  Asher looked at Reynolds, who had a bewildered look on his face. She knew his education and military record. She knew in his work with the navy they’d tested energy weapons but could never make them viable.

  Asher said, “Reynolds, I know what you’re thinking, but you have to realize that whatever it was that attacked the lander was probably far more advanced than us. They may have unlocked the technology for energy based weapons. That would certainly explain the lack of residue from explosives and the lack of evidence of an asteroid.”

  “So, what are we going to do?” Ensign Tran asked.

  “First, we have to try and make contact.” Asher shifted uneasily in her seat. “We don’t know why they attacked the Tianjin. Maybe if we can make contact with them, we’ll be able to figure out why they attacked. It’s possible this all happened because of some misunderstanding.”

  “And if it’s not?”

  She wouldn’t admit it, but Asher was thinking the same thing.

  Gibbs jumped in. “If it’s not, then we have to be prepared to handle the threat. I’ll contact Central Command and see if they have any advice.”

  Asher nodded. “Very good. In the meantime, we need to figure out a way to track down the aliens. Reynolds, assist the sensor team in finding a way to do this. Don’t bother asking me for permission to do anything. If you need something to get the job done, then do it.”

  “Admiral,” Hong said, “I don’t know how much it will help, but on our ship’s computers, we had a scan of the alien energy signature. If you can recover any of our computers from the wreckage, you should be able to find the information on them.”

  Reynolds rushed out of the door of the conference room. “I’m on it.”

  “Helm,” Gibbs said, “take it slow. I don’t want any damage to the ship.”

  The pilot nodded.

  Looking at the Protector’s monitor, Reynolds could see the remains of the Tianjin in the distance.

  “You have a plan?” Gibbs asked.

  “We’ll do something similar to before. We’ll extend a tether to their ship and make our way onboard. Is your pilot good enough to hold the Protector steady while we cross over?”

  “He’s a good pilot. I wouldn’t count on him to fly the Explorer, but he can handle his own with the Protector. You don’t have anything to worry about.”

  At the helm, the pilot slowly pulled back on a lever and pressed several buttons. The thrusters on the front of the ship fired up slowed the vessel.

  “Commander,” the pilot said, “we’ll be in range of the Tianjin shortly.”

  “How long?”

  “ETA ten minutes.”

  Reynolds nodded to the crew and crawled down a chute to the lower level of the craft. He removed an environmental suit from the cabinet by the airlock and turned off his magnetic boots.

  Reynolds stripped to his thin jumpsuit and stepped into the first layer of the suit. Though bulky and difficult to move in, it protected him against the cold of space. That was the easy part. Adding the breathing apparatus wasn’t so easy.

  “Can I get some help, please?” Reynolds asked the Chinese commander and the translator.

  Both men stood to help, but only the translator knew what to do. The large chest piece slid over Reynolds’s head and strapped to his legs while tightening across his chest. After adding the gloves and boots, he taped the ends to the rest of the suit to prevent air leakage.

  With the helmet in place, the only thing left to do was turn it on.

  “Your turn, gentlemen,” Reynolds said.

  The translator suited up quickly with the help of the commander, but Hong seemed confused.

  “I’m going over there?” he asked.

  The translator did his job.

  Reynolds replied, “You’re the most important piece of this puzzle. I wouldn’t know how to access your computers if my life depended on it.”

  Soon, the three men stood ready to depart, and the Protector moved into place. The cargo hold sealed shut, and one end of the airlock opened. The men worked together to take in a long length of rope with a magnetic catch at the end. They tied the other end to one of the bars in the airlock.

  The back end of the airlock closed, and the other opened. All the oxygen shot out into space. Reynolds felt the urge to hold onto the bars for fear of flying out.

  Reynolds grabbed hold of the end of the tether and aimed carefully. While close, the Tianjin could become a difficult target if it moved. Once locked on, the chief engineer hit a button that made the tether shoot out into the hole in the wreckage of the Chinese ship. When it hit, the force of the impact caused the electromagnetic seal to activate. The tether was secure.

  Using the rope as a guide, the men dragged themselves into the ship. Once inside, they activated their boots and began to look around. Shrapnel flew about and damaged the inside of the craft even more. Even Commander Hong found it difficult to make his way around.

  “There,” Commander Hong said, pointing.

  Reynolds and the translator jumped. Sure enough, there sat a relatively intact computer, but as part of a much larger system, it couldn’t be removed.

  Reynolds grabbed a screwdriver from his tool belt and removed the computer’s casing. What he saw made his face fall. He knew computers well and knew that these parts weren’t compatible with the computers on the Explorer.

  “We can’t just take the hard drive, and we can’t take the computer. We need to turn it on here and pull the files,” he said.

  Commander Hong looked at Reynolds like a madman. “We can’t do that,” he said through the translator. “There’s nothing here to power it on.”

  “We can use power from the Protector. We’ll just have to run a line.”

  With the line run from the Protector to the remaining portion of the ship, Reynolds smiled as the lights flicked on.

  Turning the computer on, Reynolds and Commander Hong transferred the data files over to an external hard drive.

  “Reynolds, get out of there,” Gibbs said over the radio.

  “We’re almost done,” the chief engineer said.

  “Now.”

  The strain in the commander’s voice shook Reynolds. “What’s going on?”

  “When you powered on the ship, you triggered a power overload. All containment systems are offline. Get out of there, now!”

  The three men stuffed their gear in the packs and slung them over their shoulders. The ship lurched, straining their magnetic boots. They stomped to the opening in the hull with the connection for their harnesses in hand. After his companions began pulling themselves across, Reynolds slapped his carabiner onto the tether and pulled himself out into space. He moved one hand in front of the other as quickly as he could manage.

  With every pull, the tether to the Tianjin grew
thinner and tighter.

  “Go!” Reynolds shouted.

  The tether snapped in half. The sudden break in tension sent the team flying toward the Protector.

  Grabbing frantically at the tether, Reynolds twisted his arm around it and squeezed as hard as possible. “Hold on!”

  Hitting the hull of the Protector knocked the wind out of the Commander and he coughed as he forcibly blinked white spots from his eyes. He looked up to see Commander Hong flying toward him. His harness caught Reynolds in the shoulder, but stopped him from flying off. The reel inside the airlock spun and drew all of the men inside before slamming shut.

  “Gibbs, we’re clear!” Reynolds said.

  “Get us out of here!” Gibbs shouted.

  The remainder of the Tianjin emitted a pulse of white and fractured across its hull. The wreckage trembled and drew inward before bursting out and raining debris in all directions.

  “Is everyone all right?” Reynolds asked.

  The men nodded.

  Looking right at the Chinese Commander, Reynolds said, “I want to know what that was.”

  8

  The crew worked hard for hours analyzing the sensor logs from the Tianjin and crosschecked with data from the Explorer. They found an anomaly in a power reading and informed the Admiral.

  Asher moved to her chair and pulled out her microphone to address the crew. She pressed a button on her console that sent lines of red lights down every corner of the massive vessel. She let them flash for a few moments before clearing her throat and pressing the button to broadcast her voice.

  “General stations. This is not a drill. General stations. We have identified the alien threat. Until we know their intentions, we will treat them as hostile.”

  With a looming threat, no one was allowed time for recreation, and no one took time to sleep. The admiral insisted that if a threat to the United States existed, her crew would work around the clock.

  Reynolds checked the readings from the Explorer’s scanners. “No. No, no, no,” he muttered. He ran back to the bridge to report his findings to Admiral Asher.

  “Admiral.”

  Asher looked hard at the readout he offered to her, and her face fell. “Are you telling me that thing—?”

  “Is headed for Earth? Yes, sir.”

  “Has Central Command been informed?”

  “No, sir, not yet. I wanted to make sure you saw the same thing I did before I contacted them.”

  “Do it. Let command know exactly what we see here. Ask them to inform the Chinese government. I don’t know if they have any weaponry on the lunar colony, but if they do, I want them to be ready to use it.”

  Asher hit a few buttons on the console and sent the readout over to Harris and Gonzales. Once she sent it, she rushed over to talk to her pilot and co-pilot.

  “Harris, on that readout, we have the path of the alien vessel. We believe it’s headed for Earth.”

  “That’s odd,” Harris said. “It’s not taking a straight path. They may be trying to avoid detection.”

  Gonzales looked over the readout as well. “If we cut across its projected course, we may be able to catch up to it before it gets there.”

  “Maybe, but we’ll need engineering to keep a sharp eye on our hull integrity. We can cut across its path, but we’ll take a beating from any particles that get in our way. Without taking the time to chart a proper course, we’re running a pretty decent risk.”

  “Yes, but can it be done?” Asher asked.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Then do it. I’ll have the sensor team keep a sharp eye out for anything that may cause you any problems. How long will it take us to catch up with them?”

  Harris punched some numbers into his console. “If we go the maximum safe speed, we’ll intersect with their current path in about a week. Of course, we have one major risk.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Without knowing how fast they’re going, we have no way of knowing if we’ll beat them there.”

  “What if they get there before we do?” Gonzales asked.

  “I don’t know,” Asher said, “but let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”

  Asher made her way back to her seat and grabbed her radio. “Docking bay, this is the admiral. Please come in.”

  “Go ahead, Admiral.”

  “Call together the crew of the Protector. They need to be suit up and be ready to depart within thirty minutes. Begin pre-flight checks.”

  “Yes, sir. Consider it done. Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  “Absolutely. I want the crew of the Guardian ready at a moment’s notice.”

  When Asher finished talking, Gibbs stepped up to her. “Admiral, is it safe to assume you want me to captain the Protector?”

  “Would I trust anyone else?”

  Commander Gibbs smiled to show his appreciation.

  “You’ll find your flight path once you board the Protector. It will be like ours, but since the Protector is faster than us, you will be going out a little farther.”

  “May I ask why, sir?”

  “Because if we miss the alien vessel, I’m hoping that you don’t.”

  Gibbs twisted his face in concern. “Admiral, I don’t want to sound negative, but if the aliens prove to be hostile to us as well, wouldn’t you prefer to have the Protector here with the Explorer? I’d hate to leave you short any firepower.”

  Asher sat. “I’ve thought of that. I’m hoping it turns out to be a peaceful encounter. After all, we’ve never done anything against them and we don’t know that the Chinese might have provoked them.”

  “But—”

  “But nothing, Commander. We have to hope for the best.”

  “Sir, they attacked the Tianjin without cause.”

  “I’m fully aware of that. However, I’m hoping there was more to the story than what we’ve been told.”

  Gibbs turned toward the exit of the bridge. “As do I, but if there’s still a risk, I don’t want to leave you shorthanded.”

  “You have your orders, Commander. The Explorer has a great tactical team,” Asher nodded toward Holt and Tran, “and we’ll still have the Guardian.”

  “Admiral, I hope I’m not saying too much, but there’s something you’re not telling me.”

  Asher’s face flushed. She hated that he was right. “Fair enough, Commander. I have you go ahead of us because if the aliens are hostile and our ship is attacked and left helpless, I want you to come back for any survivors. The Martian lander was lucky we were in the area to assist as quickly as we did.”

  “And you’re afraid the Explorer won’t be as lucky?”

  Asher nodded.

  Gibbs snapped into a salute. “I hope it doesn’t come to that, but if it does, you can count on the Protector.”

  As the commander walked away, Asher heard a rumbling in her stomach. She neglected to eat for quite some time, and it finally caught up with her.

  “Cole, you have the bridge,” Asher said as she left.

  While she walked, Asher reached up to the top of her head and pulled a band from her hair. After giving her head a shake, her hair floated around her head, strands stuck up in every direction.

  On the way to the mess hall, she passed the barracks. Looking in, she saw that almost a third of the bags contained a sleeping crewmember. Asher didn’t want to disturb anyone, but she noticed one young man had his bag only half sealed. He lay awake with a picture in his hands.

  “Who is that?” Asher asked, walking over and pointing to the picture.

  Startled, the young man said, “My wife, sir.”

  “May I?”

  The corpsman placed the picture in Asher’s extended hand.

  “She’s pretty.”

  “She’s a gorgeous woman,” said the corpsman. “She was pregnant before I left. I got a message earlier today. Apparently, I’m a father.”

  Smiling, Asher said, “Congratulations.”

  “Thanks. I just wish I could have been the
re. It’s all right, I suppose,” the corpsman said, “but I’ll always regret not being there.”

  “That’s the life of a soldier. We go where we’re told when we’re told to go. We have a duty, and sometimes it gets in the way of our lives,” Asher said. “In the end, a soldier’s life is about sacrifice.” She paused a moment, looking at her hands. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Isn’t it worth it?”

  9

  “Admiral, we’re here.” Harris snapped Asher out of a daze.

  “Sensor team, I need to know if the aliens have been here.”

  After several minutes, one of the crewmen popped his head up from his console.

  “Admiral, the energy signature isn’t showing up.”

  “Are you saying they never came this way or that they haven’t arrived yet?”

  “We don’t know. We’re working to figure that out.”

  Another corpsman stood. “Admiral, it looks like the alien vessel did maintain its projected path, but hasn’t gotten here yet.”

  “And what makes you say that?”

  The corpsman pushed her console readout to the secondary monitor at the front of the room. The image showed the location of the Explorer, the projected path of the alien vessel, and the energy signature they followed.

  “Sir, if you look closely, you’ll see that the energy signature is very close to where we currently are, but it hasn’t reached this location yet. However, it’s steadily moving toward us.”

  “Are you telling me we can—?”

  “See them? Yes, sir. We’re trying to focus our cameras on them now.”

  The computer projected an empty image of space. Every few seconds, the image flickered slightly as the camera tried to focus. A dark gray outline formed out of nowhere in the middle of the screen.

  “Admiral, I present you with your aliens.”

  For a moment, Asher stood perfectly still. The alien ship showed an unremarkable and round base at the front but came to a bit of a point at the top. It stuck out as a disturbingly crafted black color. They’d designed it to blend in with the dark emptiness of space. If it didn’t block out some stars, they would not have noticed it at all.