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The Blazer Explorer finally left the Sol solar system behind it later the next day. The airlock had been quickly installed, with the crew and the Blazer maintenance team working all night and well into the morning, and it was a tired crew who were finally allowed to grab a coffee in the ship`s galley. Their departure was not a moment too soon for the space port`s security personnel, or the Washington DC police department, who vowed that they wouldn`t like to travel on a ship with so many enemies ranged against it.
Richard Charlton wasn`t going to allow his crew to take too much of a rest, well not just yet, not after all the unpleasant interest taken in them.
“After all of the attempts that have been made to stop this voyage from happening, we can`t rule out that our unknown enemy didn`t manage to get something aboard without our knowledge, so until we have checked out the entire ship, none of us will be getting much sleep.”
It was eight hours later when Anderson appeared in the galley area yawning. “We can finally settle down to a peaceful seven days while we journey to on the mining colony on the large moon in the Pollux system.” Anderson said to a sleepy Rodriguez who had just finished his latest twelve-hour shift checking circuit after circuit to ensure that they were all ok. He would begin again in the morning.
“No you can`t Chris.” Richard Charlton said as he entered into the compact galley of the Explorer. “I want you on the computer, go over every ship`s system and ensure that we haven`t any surprises in store for us from your department.”
Anderson should have already done this work, but he had felt unwell just as they had moved away from Earth, and Millicent McIntosh had said he should lie down for a while and catch up on some of his sleep before he started any work. He had put in some long hours over the last week helping to get the ship ready for lift off, and it had taken its toll on him. In fact, they had all missed some sleep in their hurry to be away from Earth and all of their troubles, and the other members of the crew were looking forward to catching a few hours’ sleep when they entered hyperspace. As Anderson moved through the ship to his workstation up on the bridge, he gave a groan to Millicent who had just appeared in the galley and who smiled sympathetically at Anderson.
“Well you can’t expect to get a free ride to deepest space and beyond after all the trouble we had back at Washington, Chris. I have checked all my bandages and medicines twice.” She said laughing at his disappearing back.
Peter Reynolds and Bill Partridge had been working flat out to check out the engines and environmental systems with the help of Richard Charlton, soon they too would be able to get the rest that Anderson had just had. Richard Charlton now returned to the bridge.
“Is everything all right up here Alan?” he asked the Australian.
“Yes Richard, space hasn`t thrown any problems our way, and I am about to take us into hyperspace.” With that Alan Lee switched on the intercom and let the rest of the crew know so that they could ready themselves for the switch from sub light speed to light speed plus.
The work was finally completed and the crew able to rest, and by the time the Blazer Explorer entered the Pollux system they were all back to their normal selves.
“Contact the miners Chris, tell them that we have arrived with their medical supplies and spare parts, and ask them for the co-ordinates of the space port.” Charlton said.
“Ok Richard.” Moments later, he was speaking to the miner nominally in charge of the colony. Nominally because someone had to co-ordinate everything down on the moon, and he was the one chosen as no one else wanted to be bothered with it all.
The starship slowly came to rest on the moon with the system`s sun blazing down upon the ship and the barren rock that was the moons ‘space port,’ and walking towards them was the miner who Anderson had spoken to as they had entered the moons orbit. Richard Charlton exited the airlock and walked across the sun-baked ground towards the miner.
“Are you Captain Charlton? My name is Carter.” The tall gangly miner asked.
“Hello Mr Carter, yes I`m Captain Charlton, but call me Richard, it is a fine day here, you have arranged quite a welcome.” Charlton said looking up at the large orange sun that was high in the sky above them.
“Good to meet you Richard, I`m Joseph Carter, call me Joe, and I was happy to lay on such a day for you.” The miner replied with a broad smile coming to his craggy face.
“Where do you want your medical supplies and spare parts Joe?” Richard asked.
“Right here, my fellow miners all live a couple of hundred miles away or more around this central point, and they should all be on their way here by now, for I have told them of your arrival in our planetary system, we should see the first of their terrestrial shuttles within the hour.”
The miners of the colony all lived within the area of ground allotted to them by a draw, set up before they had left Earth. The moon had been surveyed by the Space Federation of Earth and found to be a likely source of minerals, all that was needed was some miners to find them and then extract them. A freighter called once a year to collect the minerals and deliver stores to the miners to see them through yet another year. The medical supplies delivered by the Blazer Explorer were a sudden need caused by an severe outbreak of influenza that had used up the colony`s entire of antibiotics. The outbreak occurring just after a visit by representatives from the Space Federation of Earth, they were hoping to increase the number of miners living and working on the moon.
While the Blazer explorer was on the moon a party was thrown by the miners, who hardly ever met one another except at their annual meeting, and used the delivery of their supplies as an excuse for one, the crew of the Explorer were also invited. As well as meeting the other miners the crew of the Blazer Explorer also met the wives and children who had also came along for the chance to meet new faces, and talk about Earth, the latest happenings, and of course the journey that they were embarked on. This was the last time the crew of the Blazer Explorer would enjoy themselves on this voyage.
The Blazer Explorer was soon on its way again and four uneventful days went by, and now the starship was well beyond explored space. They had entered a planetary system that had six planets in orbit around its white sun, it was as they approached the third planet out from the system`s sun, at sub space speed to allow them to carry out a quick scan of the planet, that three space craft appeared from behind them and moved quickly towards them.
“Richard we have company, and I am not too sure about their intentions.” Alan Lee called across to Richard Charlton, who was currently looking through the ship`s telescope at the surface of the planet.
Charlton looked up to see the three alien ships approaching their own starship, and swore as he then saw three powerful bolts of energy leaving the alien ships and tear through space towards his own craft.
“Evasive actions Alan, take us away from here fast.” Richard Charlton ordered, but even as they evaded two of the powerful bolts of destructive energy coming their way, the last of the Phaser bolts hit the engines of their ship causing massive damage to the rear of the starship and destroying their hyperspace engine. If the crew on the bridge hadn`t been sitting down they would have been thrown painfully to the floor as the explosions roared through the small starship and violently shook it, as it was they had to hang on to whatever was near to them. Alarms on the bridge screamed out their own messages of warning, they told Richard Charlton of those parts of his sleek starship that had suffered a violent decompression, but he didn`t have time to worry about this yet, because there was too much else going on at the moment to worry about.
“Swing us about Alan and head down through the atmosphere of that planet and find us somewhere to land.”
Alan Lee took the starship between two of the fast approaching alien ships, luckily their space normal engines were still working for the moment, and they were soon inside the atmosphere of the planet, the ship staggering a little as it entered the thicker part of its atmosphere at too greater sp
eed. The three men on the bridge could hear the scream of twisting metal as the badly damaged ship began to tear itself apart as the wind tore into the broken hull, making the damage all the more critical, they knew that their survival now depended on a good dose of luck and also Alan Lee’s piloting skills. However, Richard Charlton also said a quiet prayer for their survival.
“Engineering come in please, Peter are all you alright there?” Richard Charlton shouted into the intercom. He tried not to think of why no one answered him, he hung on to the hope that his friends were too occupied with other things to bother with the intercom.
The land below was fast approaching as Alan Lee attempted to fire the breaking motors to allow the starship to land safely upon the ground, at least they are operating Richard Charlton thought, then a bolt of energy screamed by the stricken ship to explode on the planet below them.
“Take evasive actions again, Alan.” Charlton screamed out over the noise of an explosion, another bolt of energy had hit them amidships violently shaking the ship, now it was a race against time to get the starship down before it broke up in the air above the planet, and with its valuable cargo of humanity still inside of it.
Up in space the admiral in charge of this small squadron of starships watched as two of his space cruisers moved in to finish the destruction of the stricken alien starship. He couldn`t help but feel sorry for the alien crew, who must have been proud of their sleek starship, just as he was of his own space cruiser. Maybe his feelings of sympathy were because of his own feelings of sorrow, his wife was dying and the doctors could do nothing to stop this from happening.
On board the Blazer Explorer, Alan Lee attempted to take the ship away from its attackers, but now it was not accepting his commands, the only commands it now recognised were those of gravity and physics. Thankfully their attackers now roared by them and they were safe from further attack until the alien ships could turn about to come back and then finish them off.
“We`re going in hard Richard, Chris, brace yourselves.” Lee shouted across to his friends on the bridge.
“Engineering, Millicent, we are crash landing in five seconds brace yourselves.” Charlton shouted into his intercom, although whether it was working he didn`t know, and he also didn`t know if there was anyone still alive back there to hear his warning.
On the space cruiser above the planet Admiral Stator looked at the tragic scene first unfolding beneath him in the planet`s atmosphere and then on the surface of the planet.
“Captain, would you please have the scout ship go down to the planet to see if there are any survivors, if there are please have them picked up. It is the least that we can do for them after just destroying their starship, for that planet is hardly the place to leave any shipwrecked astronauts, whatever their origin.” Admiral Stator ordered the captain of his flagship.
He then turned away and returned to his cabin. On the small bureau just inside of its door he stopped to look at a photograph, it was of his wife and daughter during much happier times. His hard eyes misted over as he thought of the unhappiness that had arrived so unexpectedly, first his daughter and then his wife.