transport shook violently, then suddenly it dropped hard into the deck and was still.
Ever so slightly it scraped along the landing strip towards the lock. Thom increased the throttle, edging them closer.
Just before he reached the lock, in the lee of the hull, Thom spun the craft around, and mated the rear of the sub with the lock. Diier and Tegit took turns patting him on the back as the lock cycled. They left the transport tired, hungry, smelly, and in all cases in need of some kind of medical attention. It would have to wait. Two young aides to two different council members near dragged them to a waiting cart which shot off down the narrow passageway that ran along the spine of the ship. After a few minutes, they were shuffled down a side access tunnel.
What followed was a blur of staircases and corridors that ultimately led them to the main Command Bunker, one level below the bridge. It was a long space, but not very wide. Thom had never seen so much new tech in once place. It was as if the entire room had been taken out of some vid and brought to life. There was a pair of rectangular tables positioned longitudinally, each with embedded screens and terminals. Along the walls were stations with more screens, terminals, and controls. At each station sat a busy crew member. The room was dark, lit mostly blue and red by the glow of the terminals and the tables Even if he was a more hands-on kind of guy, each station was clearly just a newer version of equipment he'd used before. Thom identified his unease as not so much intimidation, but more the complete lack of a place to sit.
Everyone in the room was busy enough not to have looked up when Thom, Diier, and Tegit entered. Gathered around the closest table were several council members that Thom recognized, but whose names he couldn’t remember. Closest to him were Larr and Jills. Across the table, standing rigidly like every picture he had ever seen of him, was Captain Sarras. The two marines next to Thom stood up a little more erect. Sarras nodded to Diier, who rattled off a report of what had happened. Tegit filled in where Diier was either unconscious or had a lapse in memory. Thom shuffled on his feet, growing uncomfortable as important people did important things around him. The only one to notice was Larr, who said nothing.
Before he could finish, Diier was interrupted as everyone’s attention focused on the door behind him. Leaning heavily on a cane, Councilman Gattley filled the entrance of the bunker. He stepped inside and made his way haltingly to the table. Despite his obvious illness, he still carried a quiet power that commanded the respect of everyone in the room, including the Captain.
“The marines here were just telling us...” Larr started, but Gattley waved him silent.
“It doesn’t matter. Captain?”
“Councilman Gattley, we are currently running at flank speed due to the skirmishes with the enemy corvettes.”
“Show me,” he said, moving around the corner of the table, forcing Larr to concede his space. Thom looked at the marines, who were clearly just as puzzled as he was. The portion of the table closest to Gattley changed to a map of the seafloor around them. It showed the Uni in the center. It zoomed out, showing a smaller version of the ship and larger area. It zoomed out again, and showed a red silhouette of a small ship.
“This is where we made contact,” the Captain said, motioning towards the red shape. “Then again here, here, and here,” as he said it, three more silhouettes appeared. Each was staggered, with the Uni seeming to follow a zig-zag pattern bouncing between the enemy ships. The captain looked quizzically at the display, as if seeing it for the first time. Gattley stared at him.
“You see it now, don’t you?” Gattley asked. The other Councilmembers saw it as well. “Captain, I spend a lot of time in bed. More than I should. We all are so used to the way the ship feels. How it vibrates, how it moves.
Ever so slightly it scraped along the landing strip towards the lock. Thom increased the throttle, edging them closer.
Just before he reached the lock, in the lee of the hull, Thom spun the craft around, and mated the rear of the sub with the lock. Diier and Tegit took turns patting him on the back as the lock cycled. They left the transport tired, hungry, smelly, and in all cases in need of some kind of medical attention. It would have to wait. Two young aides to two different council members near dragged them to a waiting cart which shot off down the narrow passageway that ran along the spine of the ship. After a few minutes, they were shuffled down a side access tunnel.
What followed was a blur of staircases and corridors that ultimately led them to the main Command Bunker, one level below the bridge. It was a long space, but not very wide. Thom had never seen so much new tech in once place. It was as if the entire room had been taken out of some vid and brought to life. There was a pair of rectangular tables positioned longitudinally, each with embedded screens and terminals. Along the walls were stations with more screens, terminals, and controls. At each station sat a busy crew member. The room was dark, lit mostly blue and red by the glow of the terminals and the tables Even if he was a more hands-on kind of guy, each station was clearly just a newer version of equipment he'd used before. Thom identified his unease as not so much intimidation, but more the complete lack of a place to sit.
Everyone in the room was busy enough not to have looked up when Thom, Diier, and Tegit entered. Gathered around the closest table were several council members that Thom recognized, but whose names he couldn’t remember. Closest to him were Larr and Jills. Across the table, standing rigidly like every picture he had ever seen of him, was Captain Sarras. The two marines next to Thom stood up a little more erect. Sarras nodded to Diier, who rattled off a report of what had happened. Tegit filled in where Diier was either unconscious or had a lapse in memory. Thom shuffled on his feet, growing uncomfortable as important people did important things around him. The only one to notice was Larr, who said nothing.
Before he could finish, Diier was interrupted as everyone’s attention focused on the door behind him. Leaning heavily on a cane, Councilman Gattley filled the entrance of the bunker. He stepped inside and made his way haltingly to the table. Despite his obvious illness, he still carried a quiet power that commanded the respect of everyone in the room, including the Captain.
“The marines here were just telling us...” Larr started, but Gattley waved him silent.
“It doesn’t matter. Captain?”
“Councilman Gattley, we are currently running at flank speed due to the skirmishes with the enemy corvettes.”
“Show me,” he said, moving around the corner of the table, forcing Larr to concede his space. Thom looked at the marines, who were clearly just as puzzled as he was. The portion of the table closest to Gattley changed to a map of the seafloor around them. It showed the Uni in the center. It zoomed out, showing a smaller version of the ship and larger area. It zoomed out again, and showed a red silhouette of a small ship.
“This is where we made contact,” the Captain said, motioning towards the red shape. “Then again here, here, and here,” as he said it, three more silhouettes appeared. Each was staggered, with the Uni seeming to follow a zig-zag pattern bouncing between the enemy ships. The captain looked quizzically at the display, as if seeing it for the first time. Gattley stared at him.
“You see it now, don’t you?” Gattley asked. The other Councilmembers saw it as well. “Captain, I spend a lot of time in bed. More than I should. We all are so used to the way the ship feels. How it vibrates, how it moves.
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