there was that ship. It was just...creepy looking. When I asked a guard what kind of ship it was, he had no idea what I was talking about. I knew I had to say something even though I was pretty sure no one would believe me.”
Tristan opened the door into the control room and they all filed inside. He went straight to his vid terminal and sensor control panel in front of the viewport and began tapping on the keyboard while Gray and Jon led Faith to the viewport.
“Do you see it?” Tristan asked. “It should be straight out there in front of us.”
“Yes, I see it,” she said. “This one’s as big as the last one, and it’s ragged around the edges, too. And there’s something else, but I can’t quite see it. Can you move the ship a little so we’re facing it at an angle?”
“An angle?” Tristan asked. “How do you mean?”
“Imagine you’re looking down a tube straight on. You can only see what’s directly in front of the opposite end. But if you shift to the side, and the tube isn’t too long, you can see a bit more on one side.”
“Oh yes, I see what you mean,” Tristan said. “One moment, please.” He picked up a vox from the panel in front of him and put it on, then spoke quietly to the Captain. A moment later the ship turned just slightly.
“Yes, there,” Faith said. Tristan spoke into his vox again and the ship stopped. “Wow, I see a ship that looks a lot like the one I saw outside the Skyport the other day. There’s one of those Door things nearby.”
“What’s it doing?” Gray asked.
“It looks like it’s just sitting there to me,” Faith said with a shrug.
“Can you see enough to tell us where it leads?” Tristan asked.
“Yes, I think so,” Faith replied.
Gray went to the panel on the wall and a moment later the room was filled with planets and stars again. It took Faith just a few moments to identify the location on the far side of the jump point as Terien.
“Excellent,” Tristan said. “Gray, send a message to Jackson, high level encryption. Let him know that we have a new jump point to Terien, and that they have a Door, and a Xanti ship in their space. He can decide whether or not to let the Teriens know.”
“Aye, Admiral,” Gray said.
“Sensors indicate what may be another Door,” Jon said.
“Set course for it,” Tristan said. “ETA?”
“Twenty minutes,” Jon replied.
“I’ll keep watch for more jump points,” Faith said.
“All right,” Jon said, “but let me get you a chair. There’s no reason you need to stand there the whole time.”
“I thought everything was bolted to the floor around here,” Faith said.
“Not everything,” Jon replied with a brief smile. Faith stilled as she watched Jon walk away, stunned by her physical reaction to his smile. She’d never felt anything like the rush of heat that raced through her body, and wasn’t altogether sure how to react to it. She wondered why she hadn’t felt it before. Probably because she’d been so tense and worried, she decided. She was suddenly glad that the Falcorans weren’t prone to smiling on a regular basis. It took the full two minutes before Jon returned with a chair for her to compose herself.
“I suggest we plot a new route to Onddo making use of the Sheara 3 jump point,” Gray said, hiding his reaction to Faith’s response to Jon. She was obviously uncomfortable and, he thought, confused by her body’s reactions. She probably wouldn’t be happy to know how clearly they could read her responses.
Tristan glanced up, met Gray’s eyes, then looked away and cleared his throat. “Agreed,” he said. “When its ready, send it to High Prince Garen. Some political maneuvering with Sheara 3 will certainly be necessary before they’ll agree to allow our military task force to pass through their space, so sooner is better.”
Chapter Nine
Darlene Flowers left her
Tristan opened the door into the control room and they all filed inside. He went straight to his vid terminal and sensor control panel in front of the viewport and began tapping on the keyboard while Gray and Jon led Faith to the viewport.
“Do you see it?” Tristan asked. “It should be straight out there in front of us.”
“Yes, I see it,” she said. “This one’s as big as the last one, and it’s ragged around the edges, too. And there’s something else, but I can’t quite see it. Can you move the ship a little so we’re facing it at an angle?”
“An angle?” Tristan asked. “How do you mean?”
“Imagine you’re looking down a tube straight on. You can only see what’s directly in front of the opposite end. But if you shift to the side, and the tube isn’t too long, you can see a bit more on one side.”
“Oh yes, I see what you mean,” Tristan said. “One moment, please.” He picked up a vox from the panel in front of him and put it on, then spoke quietly to the Captain. A moment later the ship turned just slightly.
“Yes, there,” Faith said. Tristan spoke into his vox again and the ship stopped. “Wow, I see a ship that looks a lot like the one I saw outside the Skyport the other day. There’s one of those Door things nearby.”
“What’s it doing?” Gray asked.
“It looks like it’s just sitting there to me,” Faith said with a shrug.
“Can you see enough to tell us where it leads?” Tristan asked.
“Yes, I think so,” Faith replied.
Gray went to the panel on the wall and a moment later the room was filled with planets and stars again. It took Faith just a few moments to identify the location on the far side of the jump point as Terien.
“Excellent,” Tristan said. “Gray, send a message to Jackson, high level encryption. Let him know that we have a new jump point to Terien, and that they have a Door, and a Xanti ship in their space. He can decide whether or not to let the Teriens know.”
“Aye, Admiral,” Gray said.
“Sensors indicate what may be another Door,” Jon said.
“Set course for it,” Tristan said. “ETA?”
“Twenty minutes,” Jon replied.
“I’ll keep watch for more jump points,” Faith said.
“All right,” Jon said, “but let me get you a chair. There’s no reason you need to stand there the whole time.”
“I thought everything was bolted to the floor around here,” Faith said.
“Not everything,” Jon replied with a brief smile. Faith stilled as she watched Jon walk away, stunned by her physical reaction to his smile. She’d never felt anything like the rush of heat that raced through her body, and wasn’t altogether sure how to react to it. She wondered why she hadn’t felt it before. Probably because she’d been so tense and worried, she decided. She was suddenly glad that the Falcorans weren’t prone to smiling on a regular basis. It took the full two minutes before Jon returned with a chair for her to compose herself.
“I suggest we plot a new route to Onddo making use of the Sheara 3 jump point,” Gray said, hiding his reaction to Faith’s response to Jon. She was obviously uncomfortable and, he thought, confused by her body’s reactions. She probably wouldn’t be happy to know how clearly they could read her responses.
Tristan glanced up, met Gray’s eyes, then looked away and cleared his throat. “Agreed,” he said. “When its ready, send it to High Prince Garen. Some political maneuvering with Sheara 3 will certainly be necessary before they’ll agree to allow our military task force to pass through their space, so sooner is better.”
Chapter Nine
Darlene Flowers left her
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