The Epherium Chronicles: Embrace (6 page)

Becker leaned back in her chair and smiled. “As luck would have it, there is one that comes to mind, and he’s on the station right now. Lieutenant Commander Hugh Walsh is on leave, and his transport to Earth has been delayed for a few days. The rumor going around is he plans to transfer off the Vincennes in the next few months. He might be right up your alley, but I hear he can be a real hard ass.”

“Where’s he staying?” Hood asked.

“He was put up in the apartment wing. I can get you his room if you want to look him up.”

“I will, but I need to get his file and forward that on to Admiral Grant first.”

Becker picked up the rest of her sandwich and stuffed it in her mouth. “Going out there to protect those colonists is going to require ground forces. Who do you plan to command them?” she asked as she chewed.

“I was pondering that on the way over here from the meeting. I had a small list of potentials for troop commanders anyway, but those are usually assigned by EDF Marine command. I did find one of interest.” He took back his data pad from Becker and sorted the files to the one he was looking for. “Here it is. Major Arlen McGregor.”

Becker started to choke. She coughed for few more seconds, until she caught her breath and looked at Hood with an expression of utter shock. “You’re not serious?”

“He has an impressive record against the Cilik’ti and is a veteran of the Mars invasion. He knows how to fight them and how to survive. We are going to need both if we have to help defend the colonists.”

“Trust me, you don’t want him. He’s a good marine, but he’s arrogant, self-centered, bossy and prone to drinking.”

“Sounds like you know him?” Hood asked.

“Know him? I was married to him for six years!” Becker exclaimed.

Hood mumbled under his breath, “Sounds like you two had a lot in common.”

“What?” Becker asked rather irritated.

Hood shook his head. “Nothing.”

“Keep your opinions to yourself, Captain. As for Arlen, I suggest you look at another candidate, because he’s currently unavailable.”

“I noticed that. He was thrown in the brig for assaulting his superior officer.” Hood wiped his mouth again with his napkin. “I reviewed the case file, and I’m not sure I would have done anything different,” he stated bluntly.

Becker calmed herself and leaned forward until her nose was only a few centimeters from Hood’s. “Listen. I don’t know what you have heard, but it wasn’t the real story about Arlen’s ‘incident.’ Command assigned a new CO for his brigade that came straight out of logistics. The man had no field experience, so my guess he was a political appointment.”

Becker relaxed slightly. “Arlen’s troops were searching a series of caves near Tarsus Base on Mars for some neutronium pirates that were hitting the mines. The whole place was booby trapped, and that fool Colonel ordered them right into it against every suggestion Arlen gave him to properly recon the place. Arlen lost over half his Marines and one of his oldest buddies in the Corps in the resulting cave-ins. You can imagine that it didn’t sit too well with him.”

“So that’s when he punched him?”

“No, he went and got drunk first. Blasted Scot. He should have brought the issue up through the chain of command and not gone off all half-cocked and assaulted him.”

“I’ll talk to Admiral Tramp and see if we can work something out. I understand the seriousness of the charges, but there are mitigating circumstances that we can state.”

Becker shook her head. “Be careful. That Colonel had cover and besides, Arlen is trouble. You sure you want him?”

“I’ve dealt with worse. Besides, I have a feeling I’m going to need him.”

Chapter Four

EDF Armstrong
Wednesday
,
January 15
Earth Year 2155

Hood concluded his first log entry since taking command of the
Armstrong
and turned off the recorder on his cabin’s desk. He turned around and looked out the viewport. Mars Station hung in silence, and he could see several smaller shuttles and transports moving back and forth from the ship and the station.

EDF Command had already ordered the modifications of the
Armstrong
to begin, and parts for the new particle cannon were starting to arrive. Admiral Tramp informed him a few hours earlier that the first of the gunships to be assigned to the
Armstrong
would arrive in the morning, a full day ahead of schedule. Hood was eager to see how the gunships would attach and deploy and was grateful that their added firepower and defensive capabilities would be coming along. He had seen the effectiveness that Cilik’ti drones had in combat. During those engagements, fighter and point defense screens were just not enough to deter them.

The communication panel of the terminal in his desk chirped with a short trill sound. Hood reached over and opened the comm channel. “Hood here.”

A young female voice came over the speaker. “Captain. Admiral Tramp’s shuttle is about to arrive. You asked to be notified.”

“Yes, thank you. Tell the admiral I will meet him in the docking bay. Hood out.”

Hood grabbed his uniform jacket from his bed and quickly put it on. He opened his cabin door and had to duck as a technician carrying a large conduit nearly struck him in the forehead. The tall burly technician looked back and offered a quick apology as he continued down the hall.

Hood just politely waved him on and turned the other way toward the elevator lift. As he approached the lift, the door hissed open, and Hood walked inside.

A rather bland feminine voice asked, “Destination please?” EDF Command had spent tremendous resources on system interaction with ship crews to improve efficiency. The system name was codenamed “Vicki” by EDF R&D and was short for Voice Interactive Computer and Knowledge Interface. Hood often wondered whose voice was the model for the system, but the same voice could speak every known human language with no regional accent.

“Docking bay three,” Hood responded to the computer’s question.

Hood felt the momentum of the elevator immediately shift and grasped the rail to compensate for the change. The lift car moved quickly and smoothly through the decks and soon arrived at the primary docking bay level. The doors opened, and Hood stepped out into the main docking bay corridor which was extremely crowded with various types of technicians and several crates of equipment.

The walls of the corridor next to each docking bay were transparent, and Hood saw that Admiral Tramp’s shuttle had already landed, and that the main exterior doors of the bay had closed for re-pressurization.

The EDF shuttle had evolved greatly over the last twenty years, but their function for carrying passengers and smaller cargo loads hadn’t changed. The new Icon class shuttle that delivered Admiral Tramp to the
Armstrong
sported many of the same modifications that were added to shuttles after the start of the Cilik’ti invasion, but with some distinct upgrades. The Icon shuttles were fitted with light neutronium armor, and a point defense cannon mounted in a revolving turret for fighter/drone deterrence was added to the bottom of the craft.

Hood remembered the weapon upgrade. The shuttle pilots on his ship raved about it. During the war, the Icon shuttles were the primary rescue/recovery craft for pilots. The older versions of the shuttles only had a cannon mounted on the top and more often than not, it wasn’t a strong enough deterrent for Cilik’ti fighter drones.

The
Armstrong’s
new captain was happy to see the tractor beam mounted near the lower pressure hatch. Getting to downed pilots fast in a firefight saved lives. If the shuttles could pull them in faster, it made their rescue success rate even better. He had recommended that upgrade to EDF Command and the change had thrust the shuttle into a new role: salvaging. Salvage operations had reclaimed a tremendous amount of equipment over the years, and during the war, gave the EDF access to some Cilik’ti technology as well.

Hood knew the admiral would be traveling alone and was surprised to see such a large shuttle arrive. He understood the desire for security and protection for the admiral, but there were smaller personnel shuttles available. The Icons were the largest shuttles in the fleet and were built to carry up to ten passengers and four crew members, but Hood quickly remembered Admiral Tramp’s repeated record of grand standing. He certainly wouldn’t miss an opportunity to fly around in a huge armored shuttle as the only passenger. It would be the perfect opportunity to show off.

After navigating through the obstructed walkway, Hood arrived at the access door to the docking bay just as the pressure door condition light changed to green, indicating re-pressurization was complete and it was safe for entry. Hood pulled down on the large metal handle that was across the door then pulled backward to open it. He could feel a quick rush of air hit his face when the door opened. Even with the bay’s re-pressurization, there was still a slight pressure difference between the bay and the corridor.

Hood stepped through the door and noticed that the ramp of the shuttle had already lowered, and the docking bay began to echo with the sounds of footsteps. Hood caught sight of Admiral Tramp descending the metallic ramp and waited for him by the door. The admiral nearly tripped at the end of the ramp and tried to mask it with a quick jog. He approached Hood and his face was all a smile. “That was embarrassing, James. How would I explain to the grandkids that Gramps broke a hip falling off a shuttle ramp?”

“I’m sure you could spin it into an injury in the line of duty, Admiral.” Hood laughed.

Admiral Tramp laughed with him and handed Hood a sealed package. “True. I could spin it, but it would still hurt like hell. Here is your staffing response from Command. I thought it would be best if I came here and presented it myself. Go ahead and open it.”

Hood gestured for the admiral to take a seat at one of the benches along the back wall of the docking bay near the cargo access doors. Both men sat down. Hood began to unseal the package then removed the data pad inside.

“You made some real convincing arguments for your requests, James. It was difficult to find fault for any of them.” Admiral Tramp chuckled. “Raf Sanchez, your new XO, is a good fit, but I bet you ruffled your buddy Styles’ feathers by stealing away his right hand on the Cestus.”

Hood shook his head. “I spoke with Styles beforehand and he recommended him. If Styles trained him, I’m sure he and I can work together.”

“I’m sure you will,” Tramp said reassuringly. The admiral looked down at his feet for a moment and his pause made Hood feel a bit uneasy. “However, there are some consequences with a few of your selections, I’m afraid.”

Hood leafed through the files on the data pad and looked back at the admiral. “What kind of consequences?”

“Epherium ones for example. Asking for Whitaker set off a firestorm back home. It took some real wrangling, but we came to an agreement with their executives. You got him, but a team of Epherium corporate types are coming along.”

“Why?”

“Well they believe that the colony ships are their investment, and they should be involved on the trip. Plus, I’m certain Epherium wants to keep tabs on their ‘Golden Boy’ engineer.”

“I figured as much. Who are they sending?”

Tramp stretched his arms over his head and rolled his head from side to side. Hood could hear a few pops from his neck. The admiral issued a gasp of relief and sat back on the bench. “Those shuttle seats are just too uncomfortable. Anyway, Epherium says they are sending no more than four, but McCraken asked to be included.”

“McCraken? Why would he want to come along? I know that the Akitas were his project, but this trip presents a lot of risk for hostile confrontation.” Hood shook his head. “Something else is in play here, I don’t like it.”

“Your concern is noted, Captain,” Tramp said. “But, there is another issue. Your request for Major McGregor made waves all the way to the Chancellery. Admiral Grant had to spend a lot of his clout to get the charges dismissed and have him assigned to you. Now there is a lot more political pressure on the brass that this mission is a success. Are you absolutely sure he is the right guy for this mission? His record against the Cilik’ti is exemplary, but the baggage could be detrimental.”

Hood watched two technicians approach the admiral’s shuttle and begin their systematic checks of the exterior before refueling and routine maintenance. “Tell Admiral Grant I am fully aware of the situation with our troubled Major, but I strongly believe that he’s the right person here. We might find ourselves in a real pickle defending the colonists, and his experience and rapport with the Marines under him are what I need. I can sort out the baggage. Do you have anything else?”

“Just one more item, James. Due to the issues with Epherium and the advent of some political intrigue, Admiral Grant and I decided to assign you a different Chief Security Officer. We feel you need someone who has unique skills in investigation as well as enforcement.”

Hood gave Admiral Tramp a puzzled look. “I felt Lieutenant Nakamura was very capable for what we need onboard, but who do you have in mind?”

Tramp reached over and tapped another file on the data pad and Hood quickly began to review it. “Her name is Lieutenant Maya Greywalker.”

Hood stopped and tried to think. “Wait a minute, sir. You’re not saying that she is one of Julian Greywalker’s ‘children’ are you?”

“Yes, Captain. That is exactly what I am saying.”

“I didn’t think there were any of them still alive.”

Admiral Tramp took a deep breath, held it for a moment then it let out. “The project Julian Greywalker conducted was an unsanctioned genetics experiment. Frankly, I was amazed that he was able to keep it a secret for so long.”

“He had a remote facility on Mars near Cydonia Labryrinthus, didn’t he?” Hood asked.

Admiral Tramp nodded. “Evidently, he felt his project needed absolute seclusion.”

“I always wondered about their augmented abilities. I heard stories, but never really followed them,” Hood said. “Don’t they all have the same strange eye color? Bright blue, if I’m not mistaken.”

“Almost luminescent would be a better description, James. Damn creepy if you ask me.”

Tramp leaned closer and pointed to a location on Maya’s file. “Maya possesses tremendous skills in deductive reasoning and was a natural at criminal investigation. She also is very adept at hand-to-hand combat and has mastered several martial arts techniques. She comes highly recommended and has excelled in every security posting that she’s been assigned.”

Hood’s grin echoed his approval. “I like what I see here and her commendations file is jammed. It would be great if we can get her. Where is she now?”

Jupiter Station
Wednesday
,
January 15
Earth Year 2155

Maya Greywalker bent her lean, nearly two meter frame down to the ground gracefully, grasped her Browning IP9 sidearm from the ground and carefully placed it back into its holster at her hip. She looked over at the gathering of her security team which was huddled around a man lying on the dusty cargo room floor. The man groaned in obvious pain, but Maya had no sympathy for him.

The man was nothing but a two-bit arms smuggler who crossed the wrong people and sparked a gun battle on her station. When the situation turned bad, he ran and hid, but not before taking a hostage—a little girl. It didn’t take long for Maya and her team to track him down. When they did, she went in alone.

No gun, just her.

She offered him a chance to let the girl go. A simple gesture of good faith and she would work to reduce the charges already mounting against him. Instead, he pressed his gun to the girl’s head. Everything from his mannerisms, his body temperature, and his heart rate echoing in Maya’s ears from across the metal room told her that he was not only serious, but stupid enough to actually pull the trigger.

Maya stepped back out of the way to let the medical team that just arrived tend the injured man. The man screamed the first time when the medics tried to touch the throwing knife still embedded in his right shoulder. His cries were louder as they moved him to a stretcher and bumped his severely dislocated knee. It took only a matter of seconds for Maya to subdue the man and free the girl. Painful seconds Maya believed the man wished he had back.

Maya looked over at the room’s entrance and the little girl clinging to one of her security team. Gracefully, Maya walked over and bent down beside the girl. Maya’s blue eyes scanned the her for any sign of injury. The girl was scared, but to Maya’s relief, unharmed. The only thing out of place was the girl’s previously well groomed hair, now sagged on one side. The barrette that once held her hair was missing.

The little girl nearly jumped into Maya’s arms. “Thank you... Thank you,” she said, still sniffling as she looked up at Maya’s face.

Maya could almost see her reflection in the girl’s teary eyes. She smiled and produced the girl’s missing barrette from her pocket.

The little girl beamed as Maya fluffed her hair and placed the barrette neatly back into place on the right side of her head. “There, that’s better.”

“Thank you, pretty lady.”

“I’m just glad you’re unharmed.” Maya stood and looked at her security officer, who was watching Maya’s exchange with the little girl. “Get her topside, Private, and find her parents. Let’s get her home.” The girl hugged Maya one last time, grasped the officer’s hand, and they walked out of the room and down the hallway.

The security team leader called over to Maya. “Boss, Control says you got a call from some EDF brass. They need you topside.”

“Tell them I’ll be there in five. I’ll take it in my office,” she answered.