Hunter's Oath, page 14
“I’m glad to hear it.”
“Which means we’re going to have to take a riskier option.”
Raising an eyebrow, Flanagan said, “I’m not going to like this.”
“I’m afraid not. What is the effective range of the proton cannons in atmosphere, specifically the atmosphere of Meridian?”
“No more than ten miles if you want to deliver that sort of blow.” His eyes widened, and he said, “Captain, I…”
“We’ll have to do down deeper than that, of course,” Kozak said, “as we can’t fire directly down, meaning it’ll have be nearer seven miles. Kim, this comes down to you. Can you fly this ship that low and get her back out into orbital space again?”
Rogers whistled, then said, “Nothing like this has ever been tried. If this were to go wrong…”
“Then we’re all dead.”
“I could modify the thrusters to give me finer control, use some of the programming from our shuttles to enhance our navigational subroutines.” She frowned, then said, “If you’re talking about whether I can fly this ship through that sort of maneuver, then I think it might be possible. I know that I’d love to give it a try, anyway.”
“Jim?” Kozak asked, turning to Flanagan.
“We went down to thirty-five miles, and that red-lined every stress sensor on the hull. You’re asking for, say, seven, with all of the impact of a re-entry procedure, to fire the weapons once we’re down low enough, then pull back out again and return to space, where two enemy ships are waiting.”
“That’s about it.”
“You’re crazy.” He paused, then said, “We’ll suffer damage. And I mean a lot of damage. It’s by no means certain that we’ll be able to get back into orbit, still less fight a battle when we get there. On paper, the book says no. In fact, at this stage, the book probably demands that you are considered for a psych evaluation.”
“Never mind the book. You know this ship. What do you say.”
He paused, looked around, then said, “I’ll need at least a day to get us ready for the dive. We’ll have to do some work on the outer hull, and I’ll set up some pressure zones. The flight path would have to be precisely calculated, and we couldn’t deviate by as much as a degree, not if we wanted to make this work.”
“Understood.”
“And I couldn’t guarantee anything. We could easily tumble out of control on our way down, end up crashing into the jungle a hundred miles off target.”
“Admitted.” Kozak leaned forward, then said, “And given that…”
The technician smiled, then said, “I’m with Kim. Let’s give it a try.”
Chapter 20
Jenson retreated to the elevator, talking with a pair of technicians who were working on the laser cutter, leaving Ortiz alone with Orlov, standing next to the hatch. She looked at him, unable to dismiss the scowl from her face, still finding it hard to believe that her father, her genetic father, was standing in front of her after all these long months.
“I’m not sure where to start,” Orlov began.
“Be grateful I’m not armed, or you wouldn’t have a chance.”
He smiled, then said, “I don’t know what you heard…”
“My mother fell in love with you, she gave birth to me, and you ran to the edges of the universe rather than come home to be with her. Her husband left her, and…”
Raising an eyebrow, Orlov interrupted, “That’s not how it happened.”
“I’ve seen all of mother’s letters. I know the truth.”
Taking a deep breath, he replied, “Are you going to give me a chance to talk, or am I to be the subject of a lecture?”
“Go on. I’ll listen. Not as though I have much choice.”
“Your father was one of my oldest friends. We were at school together, we went to the Academy together, we had our first assignment together. Hell, I stood for him at his wedding.” He looked at Ortiz, then said, “He wanted to be a father more than anything else. It wasn’t to be.”
“Because of you.”
“No, you can blame the Federation for that one. He was serving on a remote outpost, out on the fringes of Epsilon Eridani. A raiding party managed to break through the lines and launch an attack. He survived, but there were using nuclear weapons back then, good and dirty. A terror tactic they tried in the early days of the war.”
“There’s nothing about that on his medical file.”
With a thin smile, Orlov replied, “Of course not. The attack never made it to the official reports. That would have suggested weakness, and there was an election on. The survivors were all given compensation and promotions, but while your father, and he was your father, believe me, while he was able to stay in the fleet, the radiation exposure rendered him sterile.”
Orlov turned to the hatch, then said, “He asked me if I would help him. There was nothing physical involved. I contributed genetic material for your birth. That was it. The idea was that I’d stay involved in your life, I was to be your godfather, a sort of honorary uncle.”
“You sure as hell didn’t seem keen to take up that responsibility.”
“Blame your mother for that one. She got obsessed with me. Or about the idea of me. She resented your father because he was unable to give her a child, and the marriage collapsed. I’d left, largely to give your parents a chance. I’d hoped that if I was out of the picture, they might work things out, but I guess it didn’t end up that way.”
“I’m supposed to believe all this…”
“Your mother drove your father away, and when she wrote to me, I didn’t want to have anything to do with her either. She’d been in the fleet, so I knew that your grandparents would be doing most of the work raising you…”
“She cut them off,” Ortiz replied. “After they took your side.”
Orlov chuckled, then said, “I doubt that very much. Neither of them could stand me. I was starborn, you see, and that probably didn’t help as far as you were concerned, either. They still alive?”
“I’ve no idea. I hadn’t had any contact with them since I was a kid.”
“Figures.” He looked at her, smiled, then said, “I had reasons for doing what I did. I won’t try and defend myself here, because you wouldn’t listen to me anyway. I don’t really expect you to, I guess. You have a view of your folks, and I wouldn’t want…”
“I hated them both. My father died, then my mother, but even before that, we didn’t speak. I suppose I can’t blame you for that, but damn it, you left me all alone, and…”
“That wasn’t my idea. If I could have done things differently I could have, but there was a war on, and I was a serving officer in the Fleet, and I went where I was sent. It was as simple as that.”
“You were serving on freighters by then.”
He shrugged, then replied, “So I had a falling out with my superiors. It happens. You could have asked Jack Hunter if he was still alive. I knew him, back in the day, back before the Battle of Tau Ceti.” He shook his head, then said, “It was so damn different back then. We really thought that there was still a chance we could win that fight. I guess we were just young and stupid.”
“Don’t expect much of an argument from me on that score.”
“I did what I did. There’s nothing I can do about it now, unless there’s a time machine buried down there.”
“And now?” she asked. “You were an officer in the Republic Fleet. A veteran of the war, with decorations for valor. I looked up your record. I know more about you than you think…”
“You don’t know a damn thing about me.”
“So why did you change sides? How could you possibly end up working for the Guild, helping them excavate this? I know that you were the one who passed them the word that it was here. That’s obvious.”
“Is it?” he asked. “I suppose I should have covered my tracks better.”
“You should never have made them at all,” she replied. “Not if you wanted to get any sympathy from me. You’re not under duress, you’re in one if their uniforms. You tell me why I should listen to a word you say?”
“I heard a proposal I couldn’t disagree with. Ever since the war ended, everything’s gotten so damned dark back home. If there’s to be any sort of future out here, then everything depends on what we do on this world.” He gestured at the hatch, and said, “We’ll be cracking that open tomorrow. When we do, we’ll reveal wonders the likes of which we can’t even guess at, that will change the shape of the galaxy forever.”
She glared at him, then said, “And you’d just hand it over to the Guild without even a fight?”
“You tell me what the alternative might be? As far as I can see right now, the Guild is the best option. Hell, the only option. I know you’ve got a ship in orbit, but there’s nothing it can do from up there, nothing at all.” He looked at Ortiz, his eyes sad, heavy, and added, “I don’t want it to be this way. You’ve got to understand that.”
“All I understand is that you’re a coward and a traitor.”
“Let’s see what history says about that,” he replies. “Jenson, I think my daughter wants to go back topside now. We need to start work with the cutter anyway, and she’d only be in the way.”
Nodding, Jenson said, “If you’re sure.” He gestured at Ortiz, and said, “Come on, and keep still. This is all a little precarious, and it’s a long fall if you slip off the platform.”
“Is that a threat?”
“I told you that I needed you alive.” As the elevator started to rise, he said, “By now my counterpart in orbit will have relayed our request to Captain Kozak. I’m well aware of his somewhat unorthodox reputation, but you likely know him better than I do. How will he respond?”
“I’ve only known him for a couple of weeks, and frankly, we didn’t get on. You ought to talk to the others.”
“I have, I have, but aside from agreeing to give voice recordings to prove that they were still alive, they proved most uncooperative.” He frowned, then said, “If all of your people are going to act like that, we’re going to have a very difficult decision to make soon.”
“You could make it a lot easier if you really wanted to.”
“At this stage it would probably be wise for you to accept that we will not change our plans, no matter how badly you might wish us to do so. We’ve been preparing for this for a long time, and we’re not going to give up now, not when we’re on the threshold of victory.”
“And my father? Where does he fit in?”
“He saw reason after we arrived, offered to help us with the work. Not that we necessarily trust him, at least, not yet, but we’re willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and it appears that he is willing to extend the same to us. We can work with him.” As the elevator soared high over the pit, he added, “This is going to be. Accept it and you can have a role in the new order. If you don’t, then the tide of history will sweep you away as it has done to countless others, and I will personally regret that.”
“Will you?”
“I’m a trader turned archaeologist. Not a soldier. I don’t take glory in war. I wish I could say the same about your people.” The elevator reached the top, and Knox stood waiting, a pair of technicians standing next to her. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to go back down to help out with the cutting, and my people should come with me. I’m sure your friend will be able to show you where to eat. We have a good cook, and surprisingly good rations. Until later.”
Ortiz stepped off the platform, Knox heading off towards one of the tents on the perimeter, waiting for them to reach a safe distance before asking, “How did you reunion go?”
“You know?”
“Flynn told me.” Before Ortiz could reply, Knox said, “Come on, damn it, I needed to know, and you should have told us. You should have told us all before we came out here. What I need to know is just who’s side he is on.”
“Theirs,” she replied. “He’s sold out completely. He’s helping them to crack open the Vault, and they figure to have it done tomorrow. Which means that if we’re going to work some sort of miracle, we’ll have to find a way to do it within the next twenty-four hours.”
“That’s not going to be easy,” Knox said. “We’ve looked around the camp, and there are twenty-four of their people down here, all of them armed, half of them with evidence of some sort of military training. Sufficient that we’re not going to have an easy time of it. None of us have any of our weapons or any other supplies, and we have no way of contacting the ship.” She paused, then asked, “Castillo and Flynn. Have you seen them?”
“No. I was alone in my tent.”
“They claimed they didn’t kill anyone. I’ll believe them, which means that they’re still out there somewhere, and if I know Flynn, he’s on his way.”
“You don’t really think that they could make it that far in such a short time?”
“I think that Flynn will kill himself trying, but you’re right, we’re going to have to work out our own salvation.” She paused, then said, “Of course, we have no way of knowing just what will happen when they crack open the Vault. For all we know, there are some sort of internal defenses that will finish this little job for us, solve all our troubles.”
“We can’t count on that.”
“No, I guess not.” She paused, then said, “Did you get any sort of time, any projection of when they’re going to break in?”
“Twenty-four hours, as I said, but I don’t know how accurate that is, and I doubt they do, either.” Looking around, she continued, “We’re going to try and make our move then?”
“Can you think of a better time?”
“Not right now, but I guess I have that long to try.” She paused, then said, “I’m with you all the way, Ensign.”
“I’d expect nothing less. Let’s walk the perimeter again. There’s got to be a weak spot somewhere, and I intend to find it.”
Chapter 21
Flynn looked across at Castillo, the two men soaking wet, their clothes caked in mud, but at last close to their goal. It had been a long, hard march, day and night, the last twelve hours blighted by the early arrival of the rainy season, but somehow they had managed to push to their goal, winding through twisted, tortuous tracks between the trees, their path in the final miles smoothed by evident attempts on the part of the Guild to clear a way through the endless undergrowth.
They were standing atop a rise, sufficient gaps burned into the trees to allow them a look at the camp below, dozens of tents scattered around, a shuttle sitting on a hastily prepared pad, ready for launch. Castillo scanned the area through a pair of binoculars, then smiled.
“I see Ortiz,” he said. “She and Knox. They’re just heading into one of the tents. I can’t say I blame them in this weather.” He looked up at the sky, then said, “This all came early. My guess is that the heat from that blast messed everything up. One more problem to deal with.”
“Never mind that now,” Flynn replied. “They’re running some sort of jamming field from down there. Can you spot anything that might be making it, any sort of transmitting equipment?”
“I think so,” Castillo said, passing him the binoculars. “In between the two tents closest to the landing pad. That has to be it. Probably being used as a transmitter as well.”
“Good,” Flynn replied. “That’s going to make all of this a lot easier.” He pulled out his hitherto useless communicator and started to play with the controls, hunching over to protect the sensitive device from the rain as he worked his way up and down the frequencies, hunting for the one being used by the Guild installation.
Castillo frowned, then said, “Hey, wait a moment. You can’t use that here. Even if you could break through the interference, they’d be able to pick up the transmission in a matter of seconds. We’re too far forward for my liking as it is.”
Shaking his head, Flynn said, “Don’t worry about that. If I get this right, then they won’t know a thing about it. I think that I can piggyback a signal on their own distortion field. It’s a transmission of a type, and if I can just hook into the right frequency, the hacking systems I have built in should be able to do the rest.” He slid his finger up and down the touchscreen, then said, “I think I’m almost there.”
“You think?”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve done this, but they’re using some old Federation equipment down there, and this is meant to…got it.” He smiled, then said, “Keep watching out, and if anyone starts to do anything that even hints that they’re onto us, let me know.”
“No need to worry about that,” Castillo replied, taking the binoculars again, resuming his sweep of the camp below.
“Flynn to Samarkand,” he said, keeping his voice low, tugging out an earpiece and clipping it in place. “Flynn to Samarkand, come in, please.”
“Pat?” Kozak’s voice replied. “Pat, is that you? Report status.”
“I’m free and clear, Castillo’s with me, and right now I’m looking down on the campsite surrounding the Vault. Looks like about two dozen guards. I’ve seen Knox and Ortiz, both look fine, and appear to be under no restraint.”
“Show me,” Kozak pressed. “Camera pickup, full sweep.”
Flynn tapped a control, then swept the communicator around to show the jungle, making sure to catch both he and Castillo, pausing for a moment before returning the device to his face.
“As you can see, we’re free and clear.”
“Good. Now, how the hell did you manage to match forty-eight miles in twenty-four hours through that terrain?”
“Helps if you have an expert, helps even more if you overdose on pep pills. We’re going to have an entertaining time once this is over, so you might want to get Doc Miyasaki to stand-by with some of her pills and potions, but for now, we’re in position.”
“Can you see the Vault?”
Nodding, Flynn replied, “They’ve carved out a deep pit, must be at least a kilometer down, and there’s an elevator system running down, as well as a lot of other equipment. If I was to guess, I’d say they’re about finished with the actual excavation. We’d hear it from where we are.”
