Quietly, a rift severs space, warbling for a moment on the edge
of reality, undecided. Suddenly it blossoms in size to reveal--for a
brief moment--a void of chaos, color and light. A spacecraft screams
through the void, tendrils of searing fire clinging to her iced hull,
her tail nearly being clipped by the collapsing anomaly behind
her.
Light from a distant star glistens across the ship's
chiseled form as it gently rolls in the quiet of space. Aft engines
fire in a brief course adjustment, bringing the stylized name Target
One into view.
Silence.
Portals scrape open, shedding
ice. Sensors extend and focus on the distant hulk.
Towards the
rear of the ship a panel slowly draws back, revealing the stark black
and white Jolly Roger skull and crossbones. The universal pirate signal of
"Surrender, or Die".
Shouted orders and noise rule aboard
Target One's bridge, as the crew and computers adjust for
conditions in this new area of space. Slowly the activity drops as
everybody focuses on the sensor's console.
After a moment,
information on the distant hulk starts to flow in, "We
definitely have a drifter Captain."
Ace Kincade leans
forward in his command chair, "Lets be see'n her."
A
digitized form of the distant hulk blinks into reality in the center
of the bridge, slowly increasing in resolution as more information is
received.
Ace has always hated this moment; the time when nobody
was sure if a run would pay off, or if it would be a loss. If his
sources were correct this drifter should be worth the effort, but his
sources have been wrong before--and this time the origin of the
information was sketchy, unknown.
Nervously watching the display
he is pleased to note the sensors detect no signs of activity or
energy sources.
This had better pay off, he thought, we
are getting a little too close to Tanthian space for comfort.
From
across the bridge a tech yells the affirmative, "Target
Verified!" Flying into a renewed frenzy of activity, the crew
resumes yelling orders.
Amidst it all Ace lifts a small receiver,
"Cho, we have positive verification. Take a Storm Squad to the
boarding unit, we are preparing for insertion."
The receiver
crackles in response, "Aye Captain, Storm Squad forming."
Damnit curses Cho Bosca to himself. I have more green
squad boys than a dog has fleas, why did we have to pickup so many at
the last stop?. Unconsciously, Cho clenches the sculpted pistol
grip of his Redhawk.
Frustrated, he points to a nearby soldier, "YEU!
Dropem and give me a hunr't!"
The soldier, half suited up
stands dazed, "...the Storm Squad..."
Veins burst from
Cho's forhead, "I don't geeve a ratz flyin ass about the Storm
Squad, DO IT!"
Spinning on his heels, Cho heads to the port
side link. Behind him the soldier's power suit rattles against the
bulkhead.
Damn sonofabitch greenboay soldiers.
Arriving
at the boarding unit he begins pacing the armored chamber as Storm
Squad forms. The unit shudders as it extends armored lance arm's, all
the while announcing an impending collision.
"OK!", Cho
yells, stuffing a large cigar into his mouth, "lineUUP BOAYZ!
ImmPACT in THREE MINUTES!"
Power armor clicks shut and seals
with a hiss as the soldiers moved into position. Another neutral
announcement on the boarding unit computer's behalf and the lights
strobe red. Somewhere a klaxon blares. Cho flips a small switch and
clasps emerge from the floor, clamping around the ironclad feet of
his Storm Squad in a hiss and click, followed by a slightly queasy
feeling as the boarding unit disengages from Target One, and
separates from its null gravity field.
Boosters flare and the
computer spins a countdown to collision on a large display at the
front of the chamber. As it reaches one an impact rips through the
unit. Somebody grunts over the intercom. Even with gravity
compensation Cho can deeply feel the collision. Squeals and the
cracking of torn metal echo over the suit's external sensors.
As
the weight lifts from their shoulders everybody can hear a grinding
of torqued machinery. A widening fissure of darkness appears before
them. Cho quickly disengages external audio, waiting for the corridor
to be passable.
"All right BoAYS, you know the Drill. Move
quickly when we exit; nobody knows what could be on this drifter."
A
heads up display appears at Cho's urging, outlining their path
through the hulk, "it looks as if insertion was 98.3%
successful, we are only a small jaunt from the target. This should be
no harder than a walk in the park with your hometown ladies."
A
few chuckles can be heard over the com. channel, Cho is glad--he
needs the levitity.
The opening quickly widens enough to admit
the squad, and they flow into the hulk. Cho is somewhat impressed as
the squad moved with ease, they are remembering their Drills.
He follows the last soldier into the hulk and scans the area as it is
illuminated in washed-out colors from their shoulder mounted
floodlights.
Cho's nerves calm down a touch and he examines the
passing structure. Records claim it was owned by an ancient Mahrgravian
Magi. It only takes him a moment to validate the claim. A passing
overhead support is molded and formed into intricate organic looking
shapes interwoven with arcane symbols. A shudder caresses Cho's
spine.
His suit's link crackles, "Sergeant, I believe we
have reached the chamber."
Cho maneuvers his bulky armor
around those clustered by the door. Before them is a metal bulkhead
with arcane runes engraved upon it. After a moment of staring at the
intricate runes he realizes it forms the pattern of a
skull.
Somebody can be heard muttering to the gods over the
link.
"Cut it."
Cho points to a soldier, "You.", then points to the door,
"Now."
The soldier's eyes widened and he hesitates. Cho
clenches his jaw, "...Go AROUND the ward, but do it
NOW!"
Leaping into action the soldier points his suit's arm
at the wall and a torch extends. Light and molten metal flares
from where it cuts the edges of the door.
Cho's link crackles
again, this time on a private line, "Cho, Ace here, do be fast
at your activities. Our dear and loved friend of Tanth is in the
vicinity."
"There are 12 smaller craft and one frigate on our starboard
side!" shouts somebody from across the bridge.
Flickering to
life, a display in the center of the bridge projects the Tanthian
patrol, showing various details about each ship in sub detail. Lights
blossom across the console Ace Kincade is glaring at as the computer
evaluates the patrol's offensive capability. Sweat rolls down his
forehead and along his clenched jaw, "Very well, abort
mission. Fire up the engines"
A shudder runs through
Target One as it shifted in
its grip with the hulk, tossing crew members off balance. Glancing
around the bridge Ace speaks into the link, "Cho, fall back
immediately, begin emergency extraction."
Cho listens over his receiver, shifting the cigar about between
his teeth, "I understand sir, Cho Bosca out." Switching to
the squad channel, Cho spits, "Men, this mission is terminated,
fall--"
Molten metal spins from the last weld on the blast
door. Air hisses through the gap for a moment when it suddenly
ignites, blowing the cut steel plate out in a wall of flame.
Before
he is hurled down the corridor Cho catches a glimpse of the projected
plate as it bisects a soldier. Moments later the
flames dissipate, burning out in wisps. Cho finds himself wedged
against a support strut. As his vision clears he focuses down the
corridor on the opened door. Shadows writhe about, bleeding around
the edges of the weld. To his left a reflex cannon chatters to life
as a soldier opens fire.
Ace alternates between glaring at the stylistically worn face of
his chrono and leaning heavily upon his chair. Storm Squad has not
yet exited the hulk. He leans forward to his console and selects the
squad's com channel.
Static.
Suddenly the grinding chatter of
a reflex cannon could be heard.
"MOVE IT!", shouts
Cho.
More firing.
"WHERE IS IT?"
"IT
ISN'T," Cho coughs, "NOW GET OUT OF HERE, FALL
BACK!"
Static.
Darkness washes over the Storm Squad. Cho could not remember all
of the details of what happened after the explosion and had already
decided he never wanted to. There have always been horror stories
with guardians of the grave--he had even seen a few--but this was
more than that. Something was locked in that room--in the hulk--and
should never have been released.
Dragging one of his soldiers
towards the gaping entrance wound carved by Target One he curses
about the bulkiness of the Power Armor, the least they could do is
put a fraggn handle on it.
Most of his squad was decimated in
the initial onslaught, varying in deaths from simply collapsing while
gibbering inanities to being ripped and gored as claws emerged from
the shadows, or worse. Cho resists gagging as he briefly remembers a
soldier's indistinguishable twisted body when he popped his suit and
stumbled out.
He quickly
moves his thoughts onto other things, like getting out.
Two more
of his men were behind him although he could only hear one reflex
cannon now. The only consolation Cho could find in even firing was
the reflex cannon seemed to slow the liquid shadow's attack.
His
external link began picking up a quiet low pounding coming from deep
within the hulk. Cho barks the command to silence the external relay,
damn that's
unnerving.
Stepping over a twisted steel girder he tosses the
unconscious soldier into the acceleration chamber. Glancing over his
squad control panel he grimaces. Most entries were blacked
out--canceled--and those which were not showed minor life signs.
Another flickered into death as he watched.
Cho turns external
audio back on.
Silence.
He leans forward, as if somehow this
will help him hear better. He can still make out the pounding, but
its volume is diminished inside Target One.
There were no
sounds of combat.
One more glance at the control panel and he
watches as the lights representing his last soldier still inside the
hulk blink into death.
The soldier on the ground moans over the
squad channel. Leaning down Cho wipes grime from the nameplate on the
soldier's armor: O'Connor. Bale, Cho remembers him from
training exercises.
He peers into O'Connor's faceplate and
triggers the internal light. Bale's face is contorted as he writhes
in pain. There is nothing Cho can do until later, the suit already
has him wired sky high on who knows what type of dope. Probably
better than anything he tried back on the farm.
A scrap of
metal skitters across the passageway back in the hulk. Cho spins
around, but nothing registers on his scanners. Cursing he lunges
forward and punches the maglock seal release.
Grindingly slow, the
chamber entrance closes. At the last moment the floodlights erected
inside the drifter explode into darkness with a shower of sparks, followed by
a resounding clang of steel parts as the entrance is sealed.
"Cho
here Ace, Target One is free to disengage. A'm preparing for
immediate fold sequence, from current position."
Ace could only register his
acknowledgment with a grunt as he works with the computer. It had
already disengaged Target One when the acceleration chamber
was sealed, trailing bits of metal and hull from the derelict on it's
lance arms.
Spinning, Target One accelerates to skip fold
speed. The distance scanners register the Tanthian squad as they
vector onto them. The navigation computer spins, busily at work to
find a proper skip-fold engagement sequence. In a normal situation it
would spend the long preparation hours before a jump generating the
most optimal coordinates. This is not a normal situation.
Target
One accelerates towards an escape.
The bridge slows to a
tense gaze on the Navigation console. Without coordinates Target
One is unable to fold and the Tanthian squad will pick them
apart.
The ship lurches as secondary plasma overdrives are
engaged, and their speed increases even more. Ace flips another
switch, initializing skip-fold Drives. The deck rumbles and Target
One twitches as they come to life.
The Navigation computer
flashes, skip-fold engagement coordinates acquired.
Cho was leaning against the wall catching his breath, and jumps
up, cursing as his suit's scanners flicker to life, painting unknown
activity. He begins to pace in circles around O'Connor, gazing
intently at the room held in flashing contrast by the emergency
lights. With each flash into darkness he can see the shadows move.
Reality shifts as the skip-fold drives engage.
I am awake.