turned and began her descent back to her living quarters. Deep's voice followed her.
"Sixteen is three days away at hyperlight speed," he informed her.
112
"That's assuming that whatever attacked Sixteen can move at hyperspeed."
"Or faster," he added. "One more thing. Wait a minute.
There's a tagged transmission. Ready to hear it?"
She sat on the edge of the bed. "Hit me."
As Deep raised the volume on the signal, the room around her filled with the sound of small explosions, and the hiss and sizzle of something burning. Fire in space was more dangerous than it was on Earth. There was limited oxygen on a spacecraft or in a space station such as Outpost Sixteen.
Fire could suck up the available oxygen in no time, leaving the inhabitants to suffocate before they could burn to death.
"May Day! May Day!" The voice suddenly screaming was filled with sheer terror. "This is a Code Omega! We're being overwhelmed...send help! ...use extr— with extreme caution!... May Day! This is Co—"
Silence.
Lawn glanced over at where Deep normally appeared. At her silent beckoning, he came into view.
"That's it?"
The holo nodded. "All twelve seconds of it."
"Any way to identify the caller?"
"Voice print analysis identifies the man as Commander Graham Aman."
She hurried into her jumpsuit and rushed back up to the bridge. "Give me a map, Deep. I want to see what's between Sixteen and us."
An interspacial form slowly came into view in front of her—
a 3-D representation of their corner of the universe. Lawn 113
nodded her approval when a thin white line appeared between the two positions.
"How far are we from Sixteen with regards to radio contact?"
"Thirty-eight seconds."
"Try hailing them," she ordered.
opened the relay so she could listen in.
"This is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE calling Outpost Sixteen. Outpost Sixteen, this is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE. Please answer."
They waited a good two minutes to give the outpost time to receive the call and return it before Deep tried again. "This is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE calling Commander Graham Aman at Outpost Sixteen. Commander, this is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE. We are within three hyperlight days from you. Do you need our assistance?"
When nearly five minutes passed without an answer, Lawn ran her fingers through her hair. "What do you suggest we do now?"
"I meant to show you this earlier. You need to see it."
"See what?"
Her attention was drawn back to the 3-D representation, and the white, thread-thin line tying their position with the other outpost. Lawn watched, dumbfounded, as the line extended past Sixteen until it reached another position in space, which Deep lit with a tiny blue light.
"Don't...tell...me." It was almost as if she could read his mind. "The blue light."
"Are the two neighboring anomalies," he told her.
114
It was a perfectly straight line linking all three points.
If whatever happened to Sixteen had originated in the 4T8U area, Lawn, Deep, and Buoy R6Y6 were lying directly in its path.
And a few short light years past them, anchoring the other end of that same thin thread, lay Earth.
Communique 6B
To: G.E. Coordinator Millner
See attached tag. There is a direct correlation between the disturbances at 4T8U, Outpost Sixteen, buoy R6Y6, and Earth. Please advise.
Addendum: Now comes the trial by fire to see how well we fit together.
* * * *
115
Chapter 15
Filed Under "Preparation"
"Until we get official word from the bureau, what should we be doing? Want me to batten down the hatches over on the buoy?"
was rotating the ship, placing it directly behind the buoy to take advantage of the outpost's greater defensive shields. "I want you to go over there and plug me into the buoy's main brain," he told her. "That way I can control its weapons systems, as well as its shields."
Lawn nodded and hurried into her suit. Without needing to be reminded, she double-attached herself to the bulkhead and
"Sixteen is three days away at hyperlight speed," he informed her.
112
"That's assuming that whatever attacked Sixteen can move at hyperspeed."
"Or faster," he added. "One more thing. Wait a minute.
There's a tagged transmission. Ready to hear it?"
She sat on the edge of the bed. "Hit me."
As Deep raised the volume on the signal, the room around her filled with the sound of small explosions, and the hiss and sizzle of something burning. Fire in space was more dangerous than it was on Earth. There was limited oxygen on a spacecraft or in a space station such as Outpost Sixteen.
Fire could suck up the available oxygen in no time, leaving the inhabitants to suffocate before they could burn to death.
"May Day! May Day!" The voice suddenly screaming was filled with sheer terror. "This is a Code Omega! We're being overwhelmed...send help! ...use extr— with extreme caution!... May Day! This is Co—"
Silence.
Lawn glanced over at where Deep normally appeared. At her silent beckoning, he came into view.
"That's it?"
The holo nodded. "All twelve seconds of it."
"Any way to identify the caller?"
"Voice print analysis identifies the man as Commander Graham Aman."
She hurried into her jumpsuit and rushed back up to the bridge. "Give me a map, Deep. I want to see what's between Sixteen and us."
An interspacial form slowly came into view in front of her—
a 3-D representation of their corner of the universe. Lawn 113
nodded her approval when a thin white line appeared between the two positions.
"How far are we from Sixteen with regards to radio contact?"
"Thirty-eight seconds."
"Try hailing them," she ordered.
opened the relay so she could listen in.
"This is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE calling Outpost Sixteen. Outpost Sixteen, this is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE. Please answer."
They waited a good two minutes to give the outpost time to receive the call and return it before Deep tried again. "This is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE calling Commander Graham Aman at Outpost Sixteen. Commander, this is Vogt Twenty Twenty-three ACE. We are within three hyperlight days from you. Do you need our assistance?"
When nearly five minutes passed without an answer, Lawn ran her fingers through her hair. "What do you suggest we do now?"
"I meant to show you this earlier. You need to see it."
"See what?"
Her attention was drawn back to the 3-D representation, and the white, thread-thin line tying their position with the other outpost. Lawn watched, dumbfounded, as the line extended past Sixteen until it reached another position in space, which Deep lit with a tiny blue light.
"Don't...tell...me." It was almost as if she could read his mind. "The blue light."
"Are the two neighboring anomalies," he told her.
114
It was a perfectly straight line linking all three points.
If whatever happened to Sixteen had originated in the 4T8U area, Lawn, Deep, and Buoy R6Y6 were lying directly in its path.
And a few short light years past them, anchoring the other end of that same thin thread, lay Earth.
Communique 6B
To: G.E. Coordinator Millner
See attached tag. There is a direct correlation between the disturbances at 4T8U, Outpost Sixteen, buoy R6Y6, and Earth. Please advise.
Addendum: Now comes the trial by fire to see how well we fit together.
* * * *
115
Chapter 15
Filed Under "Preparation"
"Until we get official word from the bureau, what should we be doing? Want me to batten down the hatches over on the buoy?"
was rotating the ship, placing it directly behind the buoy to take advantage of the outpost's greater defensive shields. "I want you to go over there and plug me into the buoy's main brain," he told her. "That way I can control its weapons systems, as well as its shields."
Lawn nodded and hurried into her suit. Without needing to be reminded, she double-attached herself to the bulkhead and
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