The Captain

By L. Carey

In the farthest corner of the Union territory, a dishonored starship captain, Grant Slocolm serves out his last tour of duty aboard a small, insignificant ship. Grant suddenly finds that his ship and crew are all that stand between a deadly invasion force and certain annihilation of the Union and billions of lives. On Earth, Ken, a typical teenager is just starting high school. Ken's biggest concerns are winning the football game on Friday night, and having the nerve to ask Maria, the girl who is always on his mind, out on a date. Ken’s has dreams that make him question what life is about as he senses an ominous threat coming. He soon learns he will need to rely on the captain’s experience to help him with a mission he must accept. They both fear their actions will determine whether their civilizations live or die.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Oct 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781483584010

Book preview

Epilogue

Chapter 01

The commander studied Captain Slocolm as he sat in the dead silence of the command deck. The ship was on full alert and the commander knew his captain. He was waiting for permission to approach the captain while he and the crew were focused on their tasks. Captain? said the commander. Captain, may I approach?

The captain sent a mental communication to his alpha commander. Hold! appeared on his commander’s mind screen. A chip embedded in their skulls just behind their left ears interfaced to the central computer. It sent and received a frequency along the bone’s surface that eventually reached their optic nerve. The frequency was interpreted as optic signals and overlaid images that transferred to the brain as a merged image. The overlaid words Hold! shown in the mind of his commander in the lower left corner of his range of sight. It was essentially computer aided telepathy. Normally the captain discouraged private mental conversations on the command deck but this situation was critical and he didn’t want to distract the rest of the crew. Without looking up the captain put his finger to his lips to reinforce his command. The captain was viewing a virtual screen projected on his optic nerve. To the captain the screen looked as real to him as though it were physically in front of him only a few inches away. The central computer displayed millions of stars that would automatically center on the first sign of movement from any direction. Commander Holme continued to stare at the captain making the captain lose focus. The captain finally surrendered to his commanders need for a vocal discussion. What is it Commander Holme? The captain said in a hushed voice.

The commander released his chair force field and walked over to him to make the conversation personal. We need not whisper. There is no sound in space. He said in the same hushed tone.

Concentration. I don’t want to distract the crew when the slightest interruption could mean the difference between success or failure.

Our veil conceals us and we’ve been playing dead for over four hours. How much longer will we continue with this?

As long as it takes commander. Keep visual scanners on full. The sensor glitch we received was awfully coincidental and I don’t… like… coincidences. We’ll remain in full stealth mode a little while longer.

We can’t use our active sensors while veiled and there may be survivors out there who need us to come to their rescue. The longer we wait the less the chances are they can survive.

The captain looked pained by his commander’s words. They were words he had already struggled with a dozen times within himself. Hearing them out loud made them harder to ignore but his gut told him something was wrong. He hadn’t made captain by ignoring his instincts. They had always served him well. Look commander, we’ve lost two ships in this sector in as many weeks.

So you’re confident there IS an enemy out here? asked the commander.

Odds are there is. Had it been some kind of natural disaster we should have received a homing beacon from one of the missing ships and my ship is not going to become the third mystery. At least not without taking some damn careful precautions Ryan. The captain lowered his mind screen and looked around his command deck taking in the status of every station.

The command deck was arranged in a large semi-circular design with two levels separated by two steps. When the captain faced his command crew his back was to the front of the ship and a solid wall. The captain had been proud to have received such an impressive ship for his first command. He had been assigned to it just over six months ago. He’d seen a lot of command decks and couldn’t think of one that was more impressive. All the stations were smooth with coal black granite like surfaces. Each station faced towards him. On each station he could see what appeared like sheets of micro thin electrons hovering over the surfaces in layers of windows that lit up when ever a hand or object came close to specific area. A copy of each crewman’s current screen faced the captain so he could see what each crewman was currently looking at. The captain new these were his crews mind screens that appeared via his implanted chip. All the screens could be controlled mentally but when used in conjunction with the hand they could manipulate the screens with lightning speed and accuracy. The captain could also instantly lock on to any of the screens and immediately pull the view in front of him to see what the crewperson was viewing in more detail. In addition to the visual signals the computer could also transmit via the auditory vestibular nerve to simulate sounds and voices. The captain and commanders had access to all mentally displayed screens but rarely used it during an alert status. Currently all displays showed various representations of empty space sprinkled with stars. The captain sat in the front of the room in a chair that could pivot a full 360 degrees. Five of his nine commanders had stations spaced evenly around the semi-circle. His other four commanders manned an auxiliary command deck in the opposite end of the ship. Each commander had support staff manning stations on either side of them. Each station had a specific task to perform as well as providing backup for multiple other stations. Redundancy was critical for battle cruisers of this class.

All stations seemed normal and the captain could no longer hold out hopes the enemy would make a mistake if they were indeed out there.

Okay commander, you win. It’s time to make a move.

Commander Holme walked back to his chair and activated his chair force field. Shoulder extensions extended out of the back of his chair and rolled over his shoulders. A blue glow enveloped his body signaling the force field was in effect.

If there are veiled vessels out there and they are moving around we should have seen some kind of anomaly by now. Even the best veiled ship leaves residuals in their wake. The captain then addressed the entire command deck. Everyone stand ready, we are about to drop our veil. If there is an enemy out there we should know pretty damn quick. Be ready for anything. Sensors and force fields ready to come up to full strength on my command. Ready. Drop veil. Sensors and fields full.

We have movement captain, three targets, two aft and one dead ahead! came an urgent report from tactical.

Captain Slocolm knew he had seconds to perform his maneuver and there was no chance he could relay the information to his helmsman and have him execute it in time.

He leaned forward looking his helmsman in the eyes and said. Stand down. His helmsman obediently leaned back in his chair and offered his panel to the captain. They continued to stare at each other.

Attention all hands, prepare for impact and then prepare to abandon ship. The captain communicated mentally to the entire crew. A shock wave moved through the command crew as they received the captain’s comm. At the same time the captain looked down at his panel and transferred the helm to his display. From this point on it all seemed to move in slow motion. The captain began adjusting the helm panel. He set fields to 75% forward and 25% back. Punched the engines straight ahead at full speed. He then ejected both engines, waited a second, and then fired his weapons in a 360 degree pattern. The captain looked at the clock and estimated he had performed the maneuver in about 2.5 seconds. That surprised even him.

When the captain looked up at his helmsman he saw horror in his eyes. The captain knew taking the helm had been the right thing to do. He doubted whether his helmsman would have carried out his orders even if the young man had understood him. The next 2 seconds gave him time to reflect. He knew he would soon feel the explosion of the unshielded engines from the weapons he fired. Hopefully the engine explosions would take out the two targets aft. Soon there after the forward momentum would send his ship into the target dead ahead and with any luck disable it. He also realized he’d just killed his engine crews and at least half the crew in the main body of his ship. He closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable violent impact. An explosion rocked the crew to the stern and then suddenly crashed to a stop at the bow. It sent several of the command deck crew flying forward through the air despite their restraints. Their chairs had snapped off at the base as debris from behind came crashing forward. Their bodies crumpled like rag dolls as they hit the forward wall. Fire and chaos erupted all around him. The captain blacked out as the ship came to a bone jarring halt. During moments of consciousness the captain became aware of his surroundings which meant they had been very lucky. The survivors will at least have a chance, he thought. The walls and decking were crumpled in jagged pieces. The fact that he was still breathing meant there had not been a total failure in the force fields and the void of space was still being kept at bay. There was very little left of the new command deck the captain could recognize. Explosions and small fires enveloped the entire deck. He struggled to retain consciousness. The captain in the total destruction of his command deck was still in his restraints. Other than the sounds of small explosions being suppressed from behind the decks and walls it was quiet. Suddenly the captain saw a hand emerge from the debris. He recognized it to be the hand of his helm officer. The captain released his chair force field and started to crawl his way through the rubble.

Twenty three years later.

The captain’s computer alarm went off in his mind signaling one a.m. in the morning. He shut off the alarm and rolled out of his bunk in his quarters. He always found it advantageous to pull a surprise visit to the night shift. He placed his bare feet on the cold hard deck. He had come accustomed to the cold deck but not the size of his quarters / office. On ships this small the captain’s quarters had to perform two functions. After his shower he quickly grabbed a shirt and pair of slacks from his closet and threw them on. As he buttoned the same style dress shirt he had worn for the last thirty plus years he felt comforted. His uniform had changed very little during that time. The plain subdued colors had varied slightly but the style was still the same and that suited him just fine. It was comforting to have something in his life that never changed because change always seemed to be on the horizon and he was tired of it. He ran his fingers through his gray and thinning hair and mentally activated the sensor to stow his bunk into the wall. He then headed for the door to the command deck. It dematerialized just before he reached it and then rematerialized behind him as he exited. He entered the small rectangular command deck on the ship he had been assigned to just one week earlier. He’d had personal quarters larger than this deck and he still wasn’t used to it.

The captain saw the helmsman, Lieutenant Larry Clark, sitting in the command chair. Commander Lessley was nowhere to be seen. Where’s Commander Lessley? asked the captain.

He headed down to the mess hall awhile ago to get something to eat captain, said his helmsman.

Kind of an early lunch isn’t it? asked the captain.

I suppose it is sir.

The captain considered sending a mental comm to his current and only commander but decided against it. The commander was completing his last shift before he was to transfer out. What’s the point? He thought. It would only make an uncomfortable situation worse. I’ll take command for now. You can return to your station Larry.

Yes sir. Larry jumped out of the command chair and into his own just in front of the captain’s. We are on schedule to rendezvous with the Orion shuttle at 14 hundred sir.

The captain nodded in recognition of the helmsman’s report. Any chance we can get a cup of coffee up here? The captain asked the yeoman on duty.

Yes sir. Here it is. The crewman handed him a steaming cup of coffee with cream and sugar already stirred in.

The captain realized the young man had the computer notify him when he woke. It was the sign of a good yeoman and he recognized it. Damn Mark. You must be looking for a field promotion. The captain said with as much appreciation as he could muster.

Why yes I am sir, he said.

The captain raised the cup to his lips and almost took a sip when he saw and felt the steam rising. Hot, hot, hot! he thought and pulled the cup away but not before spilling a few drops on his stomach and deck. As the captain looked down the drops of coffee on the deck were already moving to the deck’s edge to be disposed of. The captain knew a force field that covered every surface of the ship was responsible for the collection and disposal of any foreign material that was deposited. It kept the ship as clean and pristine as the first day it left the shipyard. Unfortunately there was no such technology for his uniform. The captain looked down and saw the fresh stain right next to a similar stain from his last shift. Damnit! The captain swore to himself. He was mad at himself for not throwing his uniform in the laundry at the end of his previous shift. He had always relied on his personal steward to keep his closet orderly. Something else he was trying to get used to going without on this ship. He hated looking sloppy even if it was the night shift. He looked down a second time and saw a soft bulge where hard abs once were. Ah crap, this is getting ridiculous. The captain poked his stomach with his finger to measure the depth of the fat. He then pulled his finger out quickly to see how fast the bulge popped back. After a couple of repetitions of the exercise he turned his attention to his cup of coffee and blew on it to cool it as fast as possible. He sent two reminders to his personal calendar to make sure his uniform was properly cleaned and pressed and the second to schedule workout at least 5 days a week in the gym. With his right hand the captain tapped his middle finger to his thumb twice and activated his computer. A small white rectangular mental display of a simulated page appeared and hung between his thumb and finger. He grabbed it with his left hand and tapped the frame twice to maximize it in front of him with a fifteen degree tilt backwards. He could create multiple frames and stack them front to back in multiple layers as he needed. Right now the current window was sufficient as he checked the duty roster for the next shift. He wanted to make sure he had the right command crew to receive some special members on the shuttle they were scheduled to meet.

This was an important day. The captain was anxious to receive his new commanders. They were due to arrive this afternoon. One of the commanders in particular was on his mind. She was no ordinary commander. Their history went way back and he held many fond memories of her. He’d been thinking a lot about her lately even before she accepted the offer to serve on his ship. They had parted as lovers a very long time ago and he was shocked when she called him out of the blue about the opening for his alpha commander position. She had given up her captaincy on a science vessel to serve with him. The video conference when they spoke seemed almost cryptic and he wasn’t sure why she had accepted however he wasn’t in any position to second guess. If he could get anyone with actual command experience to come out to this god forsaken corner of nowhere he’d better grab while the grabbing was good. Plus, as a side benefit, she was not hard to look at and a part of him fantasized about re-igniting their love affair. His better judgment told him that fire had probably long since burned out for her. Looking down at his current physical condition dashed any hope he had of her being attracted to him. At the very least he looked forward to having the company of an old and trusted friend.

Just then the door to the command deck dematerialized and Commander Lessley paused at the opening catching sight of Captain Slocolm sitting in the command chair. He rolled his eyes with irritation and the captain pretended not to notice. The captain continued to stare forward as though he was unaware of the commander. The captain did notice the commander was wearing a loose fitting off duty shirt which was definitely not part of his command uniform. Ignoring a commander taking an unauthorized break was one thing but being out of uniform was something the captain could not ignore, transferring or not. As the commander tried to quietly make his way to his primary station the captain spoke. Commander, can I have a moment?

The commander stopped in his tracks, hesitated, and then walked towards the captain’s right side. Commander. Captain Slocolm said in a lowered tone so no one else on the command deck could hear. That doesn’t appear to be the duty uniform issued to you unless I’m mistaken. Am I mistaken? The captain was still looking forward intentionally not making eye contact.

No sir. The commander answered in a low disappointed tone.

Please put yourself on report and then go to your quarters and put on a fresh uniform.

Yes sir. The commander fumed. He hesitated at the captain’s side as if he wanted to say something.

Is there anything else commander? the captain still speaking in a lowered voice.

May I speak freely sir?

By all means, commander.

With all due respect sir do you think my shirt is going to score any points for you with the admiral at central command?

Whoa! The captain thought. I gotta hand it to the kid, he has balls. Commander would you please come to my office?

The commander knew he had made a mistake. His chin dropped down to his chest and he quietly answered, Yes sir. He followed the captain as he jumped down from his chair in a brisk walk to his quarters.

Larry, you have command, said the captain.

Yes, sir, answered Clark.

The captain walked into his quarters and headed around the corner of his desk to sit in his office chair. The force field door of his office materialized solid behind them.

Sir, I’d like to apologize for my outburst. It was disrespectful and I wasn’t thinking, said Commander Lessley. He was trying to mitigate what he expected to be a dress down by the captain.

At ease commander. I didn’t call you in here to yell at you. But I don’t get it. Have I done something to anger you, perhaps kicked your dog, slept with your mother? Please tell me.

The commander fought back a smile at the captain’s sarcasm. No sir, at least not that I’m aware of.

Then why? I’ve only known you for a week and it seems my very presence just pisses you off.

Sir, I must apologize. It has nothing to do with you personally but it’s what you represent.

And what would that be?

Are you sure you want to hear this?

That’s why were here.

"Sir, look where we are. It’s not the end of the universe but you can see it from here. You come in here and start running combat drills for God knows why. The last significant battle in the Union fleet was a single ship that was lost before I was born. Anyone involved in that engagement is no longer in the service or has died of old age.

The captain’s memory flashed back to that day when he lost the ship his commander spoke of and half his crew. He knew the commander had not connected him to that ancient event.

The commander continued. What is the purpose of preparing this crew for a battle on a ship that is never going to be in one? Even in the million to one chance we encountered a hostile force out here our orders would be to back off until a battle cruiser could arrive. I just don’t see how dragging this crew through pointless exercises makes sense.

I see, said the captain.

That’s not all. With all due respect I’m a commander on the last ship in the union. There is no more insignificant ship in the service than this one. To say my career is going in the wrong direction is an understatement. And quite frankly if you’re here you’re just another button pusher who’s going to make my life difficult.

The captain let the commanders words sink in while he raised his eyebrows. Thank you for your honesty.

I’m sorry sir. As you’ve probably noticed I have a problem with my mouth. It moves before I think. I meant no offense.

No. That’s quite alright. I think I see where this has all been coming from. I’m the one who should apologize. We should have had this talk our very first day. I would like to think we could at least be friends. Someday if our lives should depend on each other at least we could say we have mutual respect for each other. Though I must say your assessment of this situation is completely wrong. It’s probably true that our chances of seeing combat is one in a million but we are commanders in perhaps the greatest fleet in the galaxy. We both had to beat out hundreds of thousands of people to get where we are. You were what, 7th in your class? The captain had pulled up the commander’s service record on a view above his desk. That’s no small feat. The commander’s body language changed. It was though he had forgotten that accomplishment and now stood a little taller.

You know my record sir. May I ask how you ranked in your class?

Well actually, I was second in my class. That damn Admiral Walmsley just barely aced me out of the number one spot. My point is we have two top ten commanders on this ship. There should not be anything the two of us can’t accomplish. And I would like to disagree with your assessment of this ship and its importance. Granted, this is not the most prestigious assignment in the fleet but I’ve been in this service a very long time and I’ve come to learn there is no insignificant ship. Every ship and every crew in the fleet is vital and serves an important mission. If not, they decommission it and send it to the grave yard. And I can tell you that it’s not the ship that matters. The ship is just an empty shell but in the right hands it can accomplish anything no matter what its size. If there’s anything you take away from our time together I hope it’s that statement.

The commander paused in thought. He hadn’t expected the captain to come across as genuinely concerned about him personally. I’ll remember that. Thank you.

Is it too late? Would you reconsider your transfer? asked the captain.

Events are pretty much in motion. You have my replacement arriving today.

You can have the third shift. I don’t need the experience. I’m sure I could convince the admiral to let me keep you.

The commander thought about the request. The captain could see he was struggling with his decision. Finally he broke the struggle. I think it would be best for everyone if I made a new start somewhere else. I’ve burned some bridges with a few of the crew this last week. You don’t need that liability.

The captain’s disappointment showed on his face. Well then I understand and wish you luck. I hope you find what you are searching for. The captain stood and extended his hand towards the commander. The commander stepped forward and grasped it firmly.

Thank you sir.

The night, or ‘C’ shift, was manned by a minimum crew. The captain had decided not to change the crew’s shifts until he had his commanders in place. A lot of captains allowed this to happen and the captain never understood why. In space it was always night so what difference did it make what shift you had. He suspected it was their last attempt to hold on to the link of a planetary life. The cycle of a night and day was genetically buried into the psyche of every human aboard but the captain had been out in space so long the pull of a planetary cycle had lessened to being almost non-existent.

With a minimum crew it sometimes became a challenge to keep your focus. The captain looked around the command deck and took stock of his surroundings. The command deck was rectangular room with a sloping floor towards the captain’s chair. Two rows of leveled command crew stations starting at opposite walls were staggered inwards so each person had a direct view of the captain. A twenty foot ceiling sloped parallel to the floor and was made of transparent zirconium. Ten feet after the ceiling passed beyond the captain it quickly curved forty-five degrees to the floor. To those not used to it the room appeared to be open to the airless vacuum of space and was quiet discerning until you got used to it. The layout of the command deck created an open space forward that allowed for a screen to be projected for a variety of uses. The transparent zirconium was almost indestructible. It could take a direct weapons blast and not even be scratched. The captain wished the entire ship could be made of the stuff but it was way too expensive. If they did build ships completely out of the material then they would have to cut the number of ships in the fleet in half. They stopped using transparent zirconium many decades ago because it was a dead give away to where the command deck was located. The enemy couldn’t attack it head on but they could concentrate their fire around the edges and from the side to take out the ships commanders. It was such an obvious design error the captain could hardly believe the tacticians and engineers of that day didn’t see it. The captain’s chair was located in the front of the room. Facing the front his 1st or alpha commander was located to his right. The alpha commander’s job was to supply assessment and scientific analysis to what ever situation the ship faced. The Alpha was also prepared to take command of the ship in case anything happened to the captain. To his left was his 2nd commander. His job was tactics. He evaluated situations and provided solutions to combat scenarios, fired weapons, and among other duties scheduled crew teams and kept track of personnel issues. He was also third in line to command the ship. Immediately in the front and within arms reach of the captain was the helmsman. He or she flew the ship. He needed to be close to the captain so orders could be quickly and easily heard. All of these stations had a direct and unobstructed view of the captain and the front view of the ships forward path. Behind each of the commanders were their support staffs. Of course larger ships had more stations and more commanders but this configuration covered the basics of every ship in the fleet. This was the first time Captain Slocolm had ever commanded this small of a ship but he found it serviceable and well designed. The classics always were.

The captain’s eyes next fell on the ships placard mounted on the wall forward and to the right just outside his quarters. Every ship had one. It was usually an artist’s rendition of the ship cast in brass. The more important ships had their placards created by very famous artists. Captain Slocolm didn’t recognize the artist who had signed this one. It was about two feet tall and three feet wide which made it easily visible from his vantage point. The image of the ship was rectangular with a sloped front end. Captain Slocolm and most everyone else had called this configuration the ‘Flying Brick’. It was never very esthetically pleasing to Slocolm’s eye. The title at the center bottom of the placard read ‘SS Randall’. Naming ships after people had long since fallen out of vogue but when they did, they usually named ships after famous captains, admirals, or the occasional politician. Captain Slocolm hoped it wasn’t named after an admiral. He had never met an admiral he liked. As a matter of fact, he considered them deceitful, conniving, manipulative, and self-centered ego maniacs. Slocolm felt the fleet would be better off to put them all in a single ship and take it out and blow it up. Looking back at the image of the ship on the placard he could see the elongated oval engines located in the back third of the ship. Even though the placard was solid brass he knew the engines to be silver in color inlaid into a black structure of the ship’s main body. They looked inlaid because they in fact were. They were designed to be held to the ship’s side by a series of explosive bolts and thrusters so they could be ejected in case the engine developed a catastrophic problem. It also made it easier to replace engines that were no longer serviceable. The captain rotated his chair towards the forward view of the ship through the zirconium. There he saw a normal rhythmic progression of stars, they would move slightly upwards and then faded to black for a few seconds and then they re-appeared. The captain was often mesmerized by the cycle that felt normal, familiar, and soothing. It represented the normal trajectory through space as the ships engines pulled a fold of space, passed through the layer of sub-space, and then released the fold moving the ship forward and then repeated the process over and over again. It was a well timed ballet of engines and systems that propelled the ship forward.

Captain, we are receiving a general distress call from the Targill.

The alert from the helm snapped the captain’s attention back to the present.

They say they were hit by a gamma burst about thirty hours ago and had lost communications and both their engines. Looks like they need to hitch a ride, said the helmsman.

The captain knew gamma bursts were rare but deadly. They were normally caused by a supernova explosion in a directed beam that can travel undetected through space for a long time. Even he had been clipped by a gamma burst but luckily his ship had only caught the edge of it. How far away are they? asked the captain.

They are only about twenty minute’s away sir, replied his helmsman.

Well that’s convenient. Tell them we are on our way.

Yes sir.

Well looks like this shift won’t turn out to be completely boring after all, thought the captain.

The twenty minutes passed quickly and the captain managed to get a refill on his coffee in an attempt to keep himself alert through the remainder of the shift. The USS Targill was the sister ship and exact twin to the Randall. They both just happened to be patrolling the same edge of their sectors which was a rare occurrence. The captain felt it was lucky to be this close when the Targill was hit. Gamma bursts can completely destroy a ship if it is intense enough but luckily they were able to use both their engines to shield themselves from the deadly radiation. Unfortunately it completely destroyed their engines as it taxed them past their limits. Had they gone another 24 hours without engines it could have been a serious situation for the crew.

Captain, the captain of the Targill is on comm, announced the helmsman. Captain Slocolm pulled up a window for the comm link and watched the image of the captain of the Targill appear. He was a relatively young captain. Slocolm guessed in his early thirties.

He must be good to be that young and a captain, thought Slocolm.

The captain of the Targill spoke. Captain, I don’t believe we’ve met. My name is John Meriweather. I want to thank you for answering our call. I’m afraid I’m a little embarrassed to find myself in this situation, said the young captain.

Nonsense captain. I’m Grant Slocolm and it’s a pleasure to meet you. If you fly out here long enough you are eventually going to get hit by a gamma burst. Just count yourself lucky to have survived, said Captain Slocolm sharing his many years of experience with his junior counterpart. Do you need any spare parts or supplies to assist you in your repairs? he asked.

I’m afraid our damage is too great. We need completely new engines. You may as well save your parts inventory. If you don’t mind giving us a ride to the nearest shuttle point it would be greatly appreciated.

No problem at all, as a matter of fact, we were on our way to a rendezvous with a shuttle to receive two new transfers. We are just a few hours away. We’ll mate our B to your A and get on our way.

Thank you captain, answered Captain Meriweather.

Larry, prepare to mate our B side to their A. Proceed, ordered Captain Slocolm.

Uh, yes sir. The helmsman didn’t sound very confident.

The captain sat back in his chair and waited for the routine maneuver to be completed. Mating their B side, the bottom of their ship, to the A side, or top, of the other ship was a simple procedure. The captain sipped his coffee while he watched the view of the two ships as they approached each other. The captain tilted his head trying to correct the orientation of the two ships as they got closer.

Mag locks, The captain said.

The helmsman looked at the captain and asked Sir?

The captain looking at the view screen could see the tilt of the screen deepen and knew bad things were about to happen. Mag locks! Mag locks! he yelled and then threw his coffee in the direction of his cup holder spilling scalding hot liquid down his arm and the back of his hand. He dove for the helmsman’s panel and activated the magnetic lock setting. Hold on! he yelled to the other captain viewing the same angles. A loud bang shook the ship and a screech began to reverberate through both ships. The screech seemed to last forever as the captain closed both eyes and muttered a swear word to himself. Finally the screech stopped at the end of a very rough clang and bang that rung through both ships like a bell. The captain looked down at his feet and thanked God no serious damaged had occurred.

Sorry about that captain, said Slocolm to his view screen hanging a foot in front of him.

The captain at the other end looking greatly relieved managed a smile and said Nothing a little paint won’t fix. Thank you captain. The screen then went blank.

The captain turned to his helmsman with a stern look that made the helmsman look down and away. Sorry captain. I haven’t done that maneuver in a long time. Guess I’m a little rusty.

The mating ship must set magnetic locks first to orient both ships and at the same time create a buffer between both until they are centered and ready to mate. There are about 30 simulations in the computer that if you master will prepare you for any mating situation. I suggest you bone up on them sometime in the near future, said the captain.

Yes sir, I will, he said sheepishly.

And by the way, never, ever take your eyes off your panel when you are that close to another ship, he instructed sternly. He saw devastation in the young lieutenant’s eyes. He wondered if he might have come on a little too strong with his reprimand. Seeing the look in the young lieutenant’s eyes he said Shake it off. We’ll get there. It’s just a matter of some training. The captain hoped the lieutenant sensed his attempt to help him. Notify the Targill we will be getting under way for the rendezvous with the shuttle Orion.

Yes sir, answered the helmsman.

Commander Lessley you’re in command. Get us under way and on course to meet up with the Orion. The captain turned towards his quarters, with the burn on his arm still stinging, he went to take a shower and get a fresh uniform.

Chapter 02

Earth, roughly current day.

Stan walked out Dave’s front door and onto the porch. Dave followed him to say goodbye. You were on tonight Stan. Couldn’t have asked for a better teammate to watch my back.

You held up your end. I just got lucky in a couple of situations. Stan was not your typical gamer. Most of his time was spent playing real games like basketball or baseball. He had an athletic build but most did not consider him overly muscular. Stan’s physic was built for speed and he preferred to out maneuver his opponents rather than take them on physically. He played his video games much the same way using speed and decisive action.

Dave on the other had personified video gaming. Slightly overweight, his friends considered him pudgy. He always preferred a simulation on a PC over the real thing. The two shared a unique bond as they had been best friends since the 2nd grade and would probably remain life long friends. Both of them had become addicted to the game of war, strategy, death, and destruction. There were only 3 days left in the school year and they had very little homework but it was still a school night. Stan had to get home before his parents went ballistic. Dave was standing on his front porch and Stan was about to head home.

Awesome sessions tonight, I can’t wait to pick up where we left off tomorrow, said Dave. The evening was unusually cool even for this small town in the Pacific Northwest. The crickets and frogs were caucusing at a level that forced Dave to talk louder than normal.

I’ll catch you in the morning, said Stan as he made his way down the steps. Suddenly a brilliant white spotlight popped in front of Stan at the base of the steps. What the Hell! Stan shouted as he jumped back up to the top of the stairs in one giant leap. It was suddenly quiet. The crickets and frogs had all stopped and it was eerily silent. The light had a distinct low hum with an edge to it and it didn’t look like any type of spotlight they had ever seen before. Both Dave and Stan stood motionless looking at the light and then Dave stepped forward to the edge of the porch trying to get a glimpse of the source. He couldn’t see much due to the blinding light and he raised his arm up in front of his face as he tried to peer upward to see where the light was coming from. Stan was shaking as adrenalin flowed through his arteries and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He would have run back into the house if it hadn’t been for Dave’s motion forward. In a moment of confusion he became frozen in place not knowing what to do next. They both stood there not uttering a word for what seemed like an eternity. In reality the light only lasted about 10 seconds but that was a lot longer than either of them needed. Suddenly the light popped silently to black as quickly as it came. Their eyes struggled to adjust as the silence remained. They stood motionless. Dave could have sworn he saw an outline of something high in the night slowing disappearing in a silent upward trajectory. His eyes strained to adjust from the light that had all but blinded him. Now that it was gone it was difficult to see anything. He could not make out the object’s shape but he could see stars disappear and re-appear from a silhouette of something solid as it moved. Slowly the crickets and frogs resumed their courting sounds until they reached their normal deafening level.

Stan and Dave stood there looking up for a long time until finally Dave said, What the Hell just happened?

Stan struggled to find moisture in his mouth to speak. All he could do was turn to Dave and stare at him still visibly shaking. Eventually Stan said Oh shiiiiiit!

I second that! said Dave

Was that what I think it was? said Stan.

I think so but nobody is going to believe this.

Absolutely nobody, said Stan I don’t think it would be a good idea to tell anyone about this.

Agreed, said Dave in a trance as they both stood there trying to get a grip on the reality of the moment. That wasn’t a helicopter was it?

If it was it was the quietest one I’ve ever heard. It wasn’t an airplane and there’s no satellite that can shine a spotlight that far. What else could it be? said Stan.

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