Read Scourge: Book Two of the Starcrown Chronicles Page 35
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The GSS Valiant sat motionless at the edge of an uncharted star system deep within the galaxy. It had tracked its quarry for more than five days through hyperspace until the ship dropped to sublight several hours earlier. By using its stealth system and staying at the extreme range of its sensors the Valiant had been able to avoid detection. Via tight beam transmission it had relayed its progress to the other ships that were following behind it at the extreme range of their own sensors. The last message its captain had sent was that the ship they were tracking had reached its destination. Unfortunately, by the time the Valiant arrived at the system their quarry had down jumped into, the other ship had disappeared.
The star system they found themselves in was not like anything the crew had ever seen before. The system’s star was an M class red dwarf. Sensor readings revealed that it was cold by stellar standards, with a surface temperature of barely more than fifteen hundred degrees C. Fluctuating gravitational forces early in the history of the system had torn apart the few bodies that might have formed planets, leaving only scattered clusters of asteroids orbiting the star. Normally, one would expect that the space close to such a dim star would be dark, but this system was an exception. The system they had entered was so close to the center of the galaxy that the swirling galactic core formed a dazzling backdrop to the vista.
On the bridge of the Valiant, Captain Robert Owens was standing over the sensor officer’s station reviewing the data transmission they had just received from the Prometheus’ probe.
“There’s no question, sir,” the sensor operator said to his commanding officer as he pointed at the display on his console. “The coordinates their drone transmitted put them deep inside this asteroid field.”
“Of course they do,” Owens said. “I suppose we’re just going to have to go in there after them.” Captain Owens straightened and looked at the main screen. The asteroid field they were talking about was visible ahead as an indistinct blur on extreme magnification. “How long until the rest of the battle group gets here?”
The sensor officer glanced at his board. “ETA two minutes.”
The captain stepped back to his command chair and settled himself in place. “Helm, plot us a course to those coordinates.”
“Already plotted, sir,” the pilot replied.
Owens suppressed a smile as he acknowledged the response from his helmsman. He was always pleased by how well his crew functioned, half of the time even anticipating his orders. He glanced at his command board and saw their course trajectory and estimated travel time of two hours displayed on the left side his panel. After a moment he touched a control on the right edge of his board. “All hands to battle stations,” he said toward the pick-up. “This is not a drill. Full power to defensive systems. All gunnery teams stand by.”
For the next minute and a half the crew of the Valiant rushed to their battle stations throughout the ship.
“All battle stations manned and ready,” the first officer reported ninety-three seconds later.
“Thank you, Exec,” Owens said. “Helm, prepare to get us under way.”
“Battle group arriving in ten seconds,” the first officer said. “… three, two, one …”
The captain watched his board as the other 14 ships of their battle group flashed into existence around them.
“Raise the admiral’s ship,” Captain Owens said to his comm officer.
“I’ve got the Gulliver, sir,” the comm officer reported a moment later. “Admiral Saha is on the beam.”
“Put it on the main screen.”
The main screen shifted to show the interior of a bridge which was many times the size of the Valiant’s. Looking back at him from the command center of the nearby carrier was Rear Admiral Arun Saha, commander of the battle group Endeavor. Admiral Saha’s ebony features were drawn into a tight frown. “Talk to me, Captain.”
“We still haven’t been able to locate the Prometheus, sir, but we have pinpointed the coordinates we received from their probe.”
“Let me guess, they went into that asteroid field, didn’t they,” the admiral said.
“Aye, sir. We’ve plotted a course to their reported coordinates and are preparing to enter the field.”
“Very good, Captain. Send us your trajectory data and I’ll have the rest of the battle group plug it into their navsystems. Same drill as before. Your ship will take point and the rest of us will follow. I’m signaling the other ships to go to alert status. Remember, Captain, the Prometheus must be protected … at all costs.”
Admiral Saha watched Captain Owens’ expression tighten as he absorbed the full implications of his orders.
“Understood, Admiral.”
Owens was a good man, the admiral thought. He had been Saha’s executive officer for several years before he was promoted to admiral. In fact, Saha had been the one to recommend him for his own command. He was a man who could be counted on to get the job done. Because of that relationship Saha also felt honor bound to make him understand that he was not being asked to put his ship in harm’s way on a whim.
“I just want you to know, Captain,” Admiral Saha said, “that the same orders stand for every ship in this battle group. It is absolutely imperative that we protect the Prometheus, even if we have to sacrifice every last man we have to do so.”
Captain Owens was not usually given to betraying his feelings with his expressions but surprise registered on his features at the admiral’s comment. “Whoever is aboard that ship must be pretty important.”
“More than you know,” the admiral said soberly.
Owens nodded at the main screen. “Thank you, sir.”
“We’re going to be right there with you, Captain. You’ll have the firepower of an entire battle group backing you up. That means I’m expecting everyone to come back from this mission. Besides, I’m looking forward to being invited over again for another one of Maryann’s excellent Founder’s Day dinners.”
Owens smiled slightly. “I’ll have her set an extra place. Don’t worry, sir, we’ll find the Prometheus and we’ll make sure she gets back in one piece. Valiant out.”