imagine why. It ’ s
just a transport ship.”
“What do you want
to do? Abandon the search? Captain, if we abandon the search, and we ’ re wrong, and there are survivors aboard the Isaac Newton …”
“I know. I also know for a fact that there are people aboard that freighter, and people on Ares. No,
I ’ m not wasting any more time here.” She straightened up,
and raised her voice. “XO, retract the antennas, charge the Jump engines, and
plot a course to Ares, maximum speed.”
The
communications technician looked at her quizzically. “Shall I inform Fleet HQ,
Ma ’ am?”
Gante and her XO
exchanged a glance. “No, we will not inform the Fleet at this time. Keep
sending that message to Atlas Challenger , but I want you to modify the
message a bit-“
On Ace ’ s bridge, they had opened a medical kit, splinted Gina ’ s arm, and given her painkillers. For Vassily, there wasn ’ t as much they could do. The ship ’ s second
in command had lapsed into unconsciousness from a blow to the head. Seth and
Joy brought him to his cabin, strapped him to his bed, made him comfortable,
then hurried back to the bridge. As Schroeder had pointed out, their priority
had to be to get control of their own situation first.
Joy ’ s
face was looking pale, her eyes were slightly crossed. “I think I ’ m
going to be sick.” She wasn ’ t dealing well with the zero
gravity, on top of the emotional shock.
Schroeder himself
took a dose of anti-nausea medicine from the medical kit, brought it over to
Joy, and told her to rub it into the skin on the inside of her wrist. “This
acts fast. And don ’ t be embarrassed, I ’ ve
been on spaceships for over thirty years, and I still get queasy in zero Gee
sometimes. That ’ s why we invented artificial gravity.”
Joy held onto the
back of a chair, and concentrated on breathing, in and out, in and out, until
the nausea passed. “I ’ m better now, thank you.” The ache
in her heart remained.
“Why?” Gina
turned to Schroeder and asked the simple question that had been on all their
minds. “Captain? Why attack us?”
Seth spoke first.
“Maybe there ’ s something on Ares they don ’ t
want anyone to see.”
Schroeder shook
his head with a frown. “No. If they had something to hide, they wouldn ’ t have sent a distress call, no matter how bad their situation
was. The Tigershark said they were responding to another distress call,
I think that was also a fake, to draw the Navy away from here. And to make sure
we were the only ship that could respond in time. No, for some reason, they
wanted this ship here, and they set this whole thing up to get us here.”
“But, why didn ’ t… why didn ’ t they just intercept us in
hyperspace, when we were in the middle of nowhere?” Seth sputtered.
Schroeder ’ s brow furrowed as he thought back to his own Navy
service days, years ago. “I suspect it is because, while rocket-powered
missiles can be purchased on the black market, hyperspeed-capable missiles are
much harder to get. They needed to get us out of hyperspace, so they faked a
distress call. Now, thanks to us saying we could handle this rescue on our own,
the only Navy ship in the sector is lightyears away, and we have no way to
contact them. Somebody put a lot of effort into planning this operation.” He
said in disgust, as if he should have anticipated the attack on his defenseless
ship. He added, in a low tone that may have been intended only for himself.
“What I can ’ t answer is, what we have onboard that could
possibly be worth that effort, worth the risk, and the expense, to steal it?”
The bridge
speakers crackled, and Gina exchanged a look with Schroeder. He nodded.
“Audio only.”
Gina said, and gave her captain an OK sign when the channel was open.
It was the
now-familiar voice of ‘ Ted Miller ’ ,
the innocuous looking captain of the supposed medical research ship he had
insultingly called Nightengale . “ Atlas
Challenger , or
just a transport ship.”
“What do you want
to do? Abandon the search? Captain, if we abandon the search, and we ’ re wrong, and there are survivors aboard the Isaac Newton …”
“I know. I also know for a fact that there are people aboard that freighter, and people on Ares. No,
I ’ m not wasting any more time here.” She straightened up,
and raised her voice. “XO, retract the antennas, charge the Jump engines, and
plot a course to Ares, maximum speed.”
The
communications technician looked at her quizzically. “Shall I inform Fleet HQ,
Ma ’ am?”
Gante and her XO
exchanged a glance. “No, we will not inform the Fleet at this time. Keep
sending that message to Atlas Challenger , but I want you to modify the
message a bit-“
On Ace ’ s bridge, they had opened a medical kit, splinted Gina ’ s arm, and given her painkillers. For Vassily, there wasn ’ t as much they could do. The ship ’ s second
in command had lapsed into unconsciousness from a blow to the head. Seth and
Joy brought him to his cabin, strapped him to his bed, made him comfortable,
then hurried back to the bridge. As Schroeder had pointed out, their priority
had to be to get control of their own situation first.
Joy ’ s
face was looking pale, her eyes were slightly crossed. “I think I ’ m
going to be sick.” She wasn ’ t dealing well with the zero
gravity, on top of the emotional shock.
Schroeder himself
took a dose of anti-nausea medicine from the medical kit, brought it over to
Joy, and told her to rub it into the skin on the inside of her wrist. “This
acts fast. And don ’ t be embarrassed, I ’ ve
been on spaceships for over thirty years, and I still get queasy in zero Gee
sometimes. That ’ s why we invented artificial gravity.”
Joy held onto the
back of a chair, and concentrated on breathing, in and out, in and out, until
the nausea passed. “I ’ m better now, thank you.” The ache
in her heart remained.
“Why?” Gina
turned to Schroeder and asked the simple question that had been on all their
minds. “Captain? Why attack us?”
Seth spoke first.
“Maybe there ’ s something on Ares they don ’ t
want anyone to see.”
Schroeder shook
his head with a frown. “No. If they had something to hide, they wouldn ’ t have sent a distress call, no matter how bad their situation
was. The Tigershark said they were responding to another distress call,
I think that was also a fake, to draw the Navy away from here. And to make sure
we were the only ship that could respond in time. No, for some reason, they
wanted this ship here, and they set this whole thing up to get us here.”
“But, why didn ’ t… why didn ’ t they just intercept us in
hyperspace, when we were in the middle of nowhere?” Seth sputtered.
Schroeder ’ s brow furrowed as he thought back to his own Navy
service days, years ago. “I suspect it is because, while rocket-powered
missiles can be purchased on the black market, hyperspeed-capable missiles are
much harder to get. They needed to get us out of hyperspace, so they faked a
distress call. Now, thanks to us saying we could handle this rescue on our own,
the only Navy ship in the sector is lightyears away, and we have no way to
contact them. Somebody put a lot of effort into planning this operation.” He
said in disgust, as if he should have anticipated the attack on his defenseless
ship. He added, in a low tone that may have been intended only for himself.
“What I can ’ t answer is, what we have onboard that could
possibly be worth that effort, worth the risk, and the expense, to steal it?”
The bridge
speakers crackled, and Gina exchanged a look with Schroeder. He nodded.
“Audio only.”
Gina said, and gave her captain an OK sign when the channel was open.
It was the
now-familiar voice of ‘ Ted Miller ’ ,
the innocuous looking captain of the supposed medical research ship he had
insultingly called Nightengale . “ Atlas
Challenger , or
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