Chapter 4
“If you’re this unsure Trever you can go, but the rest of us are staying here, we’ve come too far to stop now.” Rin sat in the Captain’s office and watched as he spoke into the holo receiver on his desk. The other ships that were to be involved in the protest had been arriving more or less constantly for the last couple hours, and Pacius had spent most of that time in conference with the arriving ship’s captains, each of which seemed to have their own ideas about how events should go from here.
On Captain Pacius’ desk, along with the holo receiver were the miniature projected images of three people. though after the last few hours Rin could honestly no longer keep track of who was Captain of what. Pacius didn’t seem to have the same problem though, addressing every one of them by name, and seeming to know details of their situations that only a crew member would know or care about.
“It’s not that I’m unsure…” one of the miniature captains started, but Pacius cut him off.
“Trever, If you’re not completely with us, it is probably better you take the Heisenberg and head back. I know where we are right now, but I don’t pretend to know where we’re going from here. What I do know is I need everyone here to be certain of what we’re doing.” Pacius said.
“ No, I’m here.”
“Good, then if that’s everything Captains, I need to get back to my bridge. The show will be starting shortly. and I want to make sure everyone out there has time to get good seats.”
Rin watched as the miniature Captains winked out of existence one by one.
“Well that went well.” Captain Pacius said, once his office was free of holograms.
“But everyone just argued with you and each other, and three ships left. Is that what we call going well?” Rin asked.
“Three ships left, but twelve stayed, and while they may have spent the last two hours arguing with me, and even now probably are still arguing with each other, they are still here, and when the time comes, they’ll follow, even if it’s grudgingly.” Pacius said.
“You’re probably right.”
“It’s been known to happen. Now let’s get back to the bridge, who knows what’s come of it with only second and third mates in charge.” Captain Pacius joked trying to add some levity to the situation.
“I shudder to think, sir.”
The two stepped out of the small office and surveyed the Bridge of the Deviant rising. To Rin’s relief everyone was at their stations, nothing seemed to be on fire, and everything was still working.
“Navigation, is everyone in position?” Captain Pacius asked.
“Most are, sir. Though a few are still on their way.” Rin looked over at the mate at navigation and saw Carry doing his best to hide his excitement and nervousness. Rin wished there was time to have a quiet word with him before everything got started, but unfortunately there wasn’t. The Deviant Rising would just have to make due with a navigator who looked as if he was torn between doing a little happy dance and bolting from the bridge in abject terror.
“Very good, let me know when they are.” Captain Pacius ordered.
Suddenly the mate at communications spoke up; “Captain, we’re receiving a message from Archer’s Agony. They’re warning us that our course has us colliding with Ocassio Ultima and wish to know if we need assistance.”
“Inform them that everything is alright, and that we do not require any assistance at this time.”Pacius ordered, before continuing under his breath for himself and Rin, “That should make damn sure they’re looking our way when everything gets started.”
Rin smiled and looked up at the large view screen that dominated one wall of the bridge. An image of Archer’s Agony Space took up almost a third of it. The large space station that served as the first port on this side of Ocassio Ultima resembling nothing more than a junkyard slowly revolving in space with the aid of several almost circular rings. The most impressive feature of the station was that it had not yet broken into a thousand individual hunks of scrap a century ago, Somehow against all odds Archer’s Agony worked and held together and was now the permanent home for several thousand people, and temporary home for tens of thousands more.
The only other prominent thing on the display was the bright red mass of Ocassio Ultima, the gateway star. Ocassio Ultima was by all appearances a typical Red dwarf star, much like it’s twin Epsilon Eridani, it was the sort of star that would normally draw little if any attention, but neither star was what anyone considered normal. Due to a process that no one even came close to understanding, the two twin stars were linked. Linked over countless light years, and provided a bridge from one to the other for those who knew how to navigate it. Rin always thought that the stars should look different somehow, show some sign of their unique properties, but they didn’t. it was by simple chance that Captain Archer discovered the gate so long ago, and nothing short of a miracle that he was able to return to tell others of it, even if that return trip ultimately cost him his life.
“Sir, the last ships are in position.” Carry said from navigation.
“Very good, communications, inform the ships that dumping should start in one minute.”
Rin sat in silence with the rest of the bridge as the minute passed, and then one by one, the Deviant Rising and the other twelve ships blasted their cargo free, using the air in their cargo bays to give their loads that little bit of extra acceleration as they went.
It was almost a magical moment for Rin, They had done what they came to do and nothing had happened. Rin had not realized how tense she had been in the lead up to this, not until that tension was suddenly gone.
“That’s the last of it” a mate at one of the engineering stations said.
“Sir, we’ve got something coming in fast from the other side of Occasio Ultima.” the words came from Wessels at tactical.
“What is it?” Captain Pacius inquired.
“Can’t tell, the star is making it hard to see.”
“Put it up on the screen anyway.” Captain Pacius ordered.
At first all they saw was a small point of light, a blip where the sensors told them something was but rapidly it grew, becoming more and more massive, something enormous was coming their way and Rin had a sinking feeling she knew what it was going to be.
Suddenly the Deviant Rising’s entire front view port was blocked by an enormous shadow that seemed to emerge from the star itself. The shape was sharp and angular at first but as the vessel took up a position in front of them the full outline of this ship became visible against the backdrop of the star behind it.
The sharp angles and flat profile of the ship before them was clearly designed for speed as much as it was firepower. Rin thought the ship bore a striking resemblance to a giant squid. That is if a giant squid was made of knives and was eleven thousand meters long. It loomed above the Deviant Rising like a massive ocean predator sizing up its prey before it devouring it. A swift sensation of terror washed over Rin’s body causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end.
“My god…” Captain Pacius whispered, “Its the Enigma…”
“Captain we’re being hailed. Audio only.”
“Attention, Frontier vessels. This is Captain Shard of the U.P.E. Enigma. You are in violation of U.P.E. code 1773–1216. You’re ordered to stand down and surrender immediately.”
Rin’s stomach sank, she knew the Enigma by reputation. Everyone did and now that she could see it on the screen it all became all too real. Like every U.P.E. capital ship, it had enough firepower to turn a moon into glass, and enough troops to make sure even the cockroaches were gone. But the Enigma’s reputation went beyond that. The Enigma was a hell bringer, and it’s Captain took delight in flexing the muscles of his ship and people. The Enigma had been involved in more violent incidents than any other ship in the U.P.E. navy. Now it was here ordering them to stand down.
“Open a channel to the fleet!” Pacius ordered, “This is Captain Pacius on the Deviant Rising, continue to dump your cargoes. we’ve come too far to let the U.P.E. intimidate us now.”
“Sir, are you sure!?” Rin asked when he had finished addressing the other ships.
“The Enigma’s not going to push the issue, not this close to the station and all those witnesses, not for a protest that’s already over.” Captain Pacius said. Rin hoped he was right.
“Sir.” this time it was Wessels at tactical, “They’re targeting and firing on the other ships.
Rin watched in horror as one by one the ships that had joined them in the protest started taking damage. At first she hoped they were only firing to disable. But then the screen was overwhelmed by a pulse of light that could only be the drive core of one of the ships going critical.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen.” She heard Captain Pacius say beside her, “Most of those ships aren’t even armed. This wasn’t supposed to happen, no one was supposed to die.
“Sir! That was the Heisenberg.”
“Are you sure!?” Captain Pacius asked.
“Yes sir!”
“Okay... navigation, move us between the enigma and the other ships. Tactical, target any incoming ordnance you can and destroy it before it can reach us or the other ships, but prioritize the other ships over us. We can take a larger beating than they can. Communications, put me through to the fleet.” Pacius didn’t pause to check if his orders were being followed, and he didn’t need to, his crew might lack the discipline of a proper naval vessel, but Captain Pacius knew when it counted the Deviant Rising’s crew was just as skilled. “Attention fleet! Get out of here as fast as you can, we will do our best here to cover you, but get out of here while you still can!”
Rin watched as the view screen started showing little dots where their fire was destroying the incoming ordinance, but it was clear it wasn’t enough. Too much was still getting through to the other ships.
“Tactical! We need to get their attention. Divert some to the Enigma itself. We’ll not be able to hurt them, but we might piss them off enough to look our way.”
“Attention all crew, proceed to your nearest emergency escape locations. I am ordering a complete abandon ship.” Captain Pacius said before turning to Rin, “ that means you too Sara. get to an escape pod now.” If to punctuate the Captain’s statement, the ship started rocking and shuddering from impact after impact. Rin saw a ball of fire engulf tactical and heard a short piercing scream before second mate Wessels was simply not there anymore.
“Captain, with all due respect; fuck no! You need me here!” Rin yelled, shoving Carry out of his seat at navigation and ordering him into an escape pod.
“Okay Sara, guess it’s you and me then. I’m diverting weapons control to another station, you try and keep us in one peace as long as you can.
“Yes sir!” Rin barked, turning to the controls and realizing that simply keeping them in one place while under this kind of fire was going to be all she could do.
“Xander!” but Rin was cut off, as all the air was sucked from her lungs, and she felt an intense heat unlike anything she had ever experienced. There was a quick blinding pain, and then nothing, merciful nothing.
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