The Lost Star Gate (Lost Starship Series Book 9) Page 26

  “That’s the point,” Nard said. “I will not lower my shield.”

  “Your paranoia does you no credit, sir,” Maddox said. “A highly suspicious man is usually that way because he knows himself, and he knows that he practices deceit. Your suspicion of us causes me to think you’re planning a deception against us.”

  “This has nothing to do with me. Our shield is our chief protection. I will not unilaterally drop it.”

  “I understand your reluctance,” Maddox said. “But come now, it isn’t fully rational. You can watch my starship and battleship with your sensors. They will show inert cannons. At the first sign the cannons are energizing, you simply raise your shield. I expect you to keep your shield generators online—that’s only rational. Besides, you can always detonate your vessel, killing our friends. We want to avoid that. I can clearly destroy your ship anytime I want. But I don’t want, and that’s why we’re talking instead of having you die like you deserve.”

  The big Bosk captain grew scarlet-faced as his features hardened. He clearly ground his teeth, but he also struggled to contain his anger. Finally, as his normal color returned, Nard hunched forward on his chair. “You’re…not being truthful. You desire the woman, as she is important to you.” The Bosk’s eyes narrowed as he sat back. “Very well. I demand the Dominant and the Draegar in exchange for her.”

  “The doctor and the marines,” Maddox countered.

  Nard obviously worked to keep the surprise off his brutal face even as he hunched forward again. “You will agree to the exchange?” he asked.

  Maddox nodded. “First, though, I need to assess the doctor and the marines, seeing that they are unharmed and worthy of trade.”

  The surprise faded as Nard stared at him. “I will let you know if this examination is acceptable within the hour.”

  “Fine,” Maddox said.

  It didn’t take an hour. Captain Nard reappeared thirty-four minutes later.

  “Yes,” the huge Bosk captain said. “I agree. Send your holoimage. Let it inspect the people. They are unharmed. Afterward, we can make the exchange.”

  “Do you wish to send over an officer to exam the Dominant and the Draegar?” Maddox asked.

  “No.”

  “When will you be ready to receive the holoimage?”

  “When will you be ready to send it?” Nard countered.

  “Ten minutes.”

  “So be it,” Nard said. “But know, Captain, that if you attempted any trickery, I shall detonate my ship, taking everybody with me.”

  “I understand,” Maddox said. “In ten minutes, we shall send our holoimage.”

  ***

  Galyan was uneasy as the minutes ticked down. He stood on the bridge near the captain, with Professor Ludendorff sitting at a panel specially installed for the Methuselah Man.

  “This is highly unusual,” Galyan said for the umpteenth time.

  “Now, now,” Ludendorff said from his location on the bridge. “There is absolutely nothing to worry about. You have always been able to speak, projecting sound from your holoimage. Maybe you don’t realize how unusual that is. I have merely modified you so you can do more than just speak. In fact, you have two new functions. One is to act as an emitter. The other—”

  Ludendorff chuckled nastily.

  “If this does not work…” Galyan said.

  “I don’t understand how you can possibly be worried,” Valerie said. “It’s a brilliant idea.”

  Ludendorff nodded.

  “I admit that I am happy to oblige by saving Dana,” Galyan said. “I am just unsure if any of this will work. What happens to me if they raise their shield?”

  “You’ll disappear,” Ludendorff said, “as that will cut off the signal.”

  “I understand that,” Galyan said. “What I mean is—”

  “Enough,” Maddox said, already agitated. “They’ve dropped their shield.”

  “They can raise it before we can warm up our disrupter cannon to fire,” Andros said.

  “Noted,” Maddox said. “Good luck, Galyan. Let’s see if this works.”

  “Oh my,” Galyan said, as he fidgeted nervously. Abruptly, the alien holoimage disappeared—and reappeared on the bridge of the Bernard Shaw.

  Galyan looked around. Huge Captain Nard with his knife tattoo sat in his captain’s chair. The Bosk kept his hand on the handle of a holstered gun as he eyed the holoimage.

  Other unsavory Bosk personnel sat at their stations, watching him, many with curled lips as if he was a contagious disease. Two giant Bosk marines aimed weapons at him, but that was senseless. Their beams would pass harmlessly through him. Surely, they knew that.

  “You’re the holoimage?” Nard demanded harshly.

  Galyan dipped his Adok head. “That is correct, Captain Nard. I am Driving Force Galyan, the former Commander of Starship—”

  “I’m not interested in your title,” Nard said, cutting him off while nodding toward one of his men. “You’re going to go with him and see the people. Do you understand that?”

  “I do, Captain, and I appreciate—”

  “That’s enough,” Nard said. “Get off my bridge. You’re…strange.”

  Galyan did not agree, but he wasn’t here to argue. He turned to the officer Nard had pointed out. The man headed for the hatch. Galyan floated after him.

  As Galyan left the bridge, he heard Nard muttering to himself in an almost superstitious manner.

  That was quite odd. Galyan had not believed the Bosks a superstitious race. Surely, Methuselah Man Strand would have bred that out of them.

  In any case, Galyan followed the officer down a ship corridor—and abruptly disappeared. The holoimage reappeared in a special chamber with many monitors. Ludendorff had remembered the Q-ship’s layout, and told him where this place would be. Two golden-skinned New Men sat behind the monitors. They were both tall and wearing silver suits, and neither turned around to peer at him as his appearance had been utterly silent.

  So far, everything was happening as the professor had predicted it would.

  “The holoimage is gone,” one of the New Men said.

  “Gone where?” the other asked.

  “I don’t know. Just gone.”

  “That is against our accepted protocol. Find him at once.”

  The searcher leaned forward and manipulated his board.

  At that point, Galyan cleared his throat. He did not need to clear it, as it wasn’t blocked, but he had watched several vid shows the last few days and had seen the hero do that many times.

  The two New Men whirled around, drawing holstered beamers.

  Galyan activated the special feature that Ludendorff had installed in his holoimage through working on the central unit aboard Victory. For a millisecond, Galyan buzzed. Then, instead of sound emitting from his mouth, a deadly electrical discharge blew from him. The discharge struck both New Men at the same instant. It did not simply shock the individuals, but sizzled them with high voltage electricity.

  Each New Man flopped backward, dead and burned, striking the deck at almost the same instant.

  Seconds later, a floating Galyan used his other new feature. He sent comm signals through his holoimage to switches on the panels. Those special switches activated interior ship systems.

  Throughout the Bernard Shaw, hidden gas capsules began to hiss. No one on the Q-ship was immune to the odorless and colorless gas. Men and women fell unconscious in the Engineering Sections, in sleep quarters, in cargo holds, in fighter bays, on the bridge, in the brigs—everywhere on the Bernard Shaw, except in the monitoring room where Galyan floated, observing the situation.

  As Galyan confirmed the successful completion of his mission, he moved his ropy arms. This was fascinating indeed. The professor had given him an ability to directly influence reality. He could do more than just talk and see. He could now eject killing volts of electricity and emit the right kind of comm signals that—

  “Galyan.”

  That was Captain Maddox
hailing him. It was time to leave the Bernard Shaw.

  In an instant, the little holoimage disappeared. He reappeared on Victory’s bridge, giving his report.

  Before he was through, the captain ordered strike fighters and shuttles to launch and head for the Q-ship.

  It was just in time, too.

  “Sir,” Valerie said from her board.

  Everyone, including Galyan, turned toward her. She’d become pale and had spoken the single word forcefully.

  “Report,” Maddox told her.

  “Star cruisers, sir,” Valerie said, while staring at her panel. “They’re appearing near the third planet. If I were to guess, they used star-drive jumps to reach there.”

  “A-ha!” Ludendorff cried. “I knew more New Men would show up. It looks like the real threat is finally beginning.”

  “Sir,” Valerie said. “The Spacer ships have begun accelerating. They’re heading toward us. Oh. Sir, someone calling herself Mako 21 wishes to talk to you.”

  Galyan turned to the captain.

  Maddox seemed to be brooding. Finally, though, the captain straightened. “Put her on the main screen, Lieutenant. Let’s see what the Spacer has to say.”

  -49-

  Mako 21 appeared on the main bridge screen aboard Victory. She seemed much like before, a small Spacer with petite features and the round goggles they all wore. She sat more stiffly than Maddox remembered, and there was something else that he couldn’t quite define. She seemed more…aware, although how he could tell that Maddox could not have explained. She sat differently, he supposed, and there was an air about her… She almost seemed…alien in a way. Yet, how did that make sense?

  “Captain Maddox,” Mako said.

  Their ships were over one hundred million kilometers apart, making a severe time delay between them.

  “Surveyor Mako,” he said.

  Minutes passed.

  “I must warn you about the star cruisers,” she said. “They are hostile, wishing you harm. I believe you hold something of value to them, something they intend to get.”

  Maddox glanced at Valerie before regarding the Spacer again. “Why would you care if they’re hostile to us?” he asked.

  It took several minutes again until Mako 21 gave him a predatory flash of teeth. “The star cruisers attacked a Spacer convoy earlier.”

  “Indeed,” Maddox said. “Could the Spacer convoy have held the Sulla 7 or been composed solely of the stolen Nerva hauler?”

  “That is immaterial to my warning.”

  Maddox drummed his fingers on an armrest. “Do the New Men have the Sulla 7 in their custody?” If so, maybe he could get it back.

  After the normal time delay, Mako said, “You must forget about the hauler, as it is already quite far from here. You will not see it again.”

  “I can’t forget it,” Maddox said. “You stole Usan crystals and varth elixir. You slaughtered innocent people and manipulated minds. If nothing else, you owe the people of Usan III a great deal of compensation. Before we continue our discussion, I want to know when and how you’re going to pay them for your crimes.”

  Minutes passed.

  “Captain,” Mako said, while continuing to hold her motionless pose. “I haven’t contacted you to discuss such mundane matters. The star cruisers are hostile to you. On all accounts, you mustn’t allow them to destroy your ship.”

  That was interesting. Why would the Spacer care what happened to Victory?

  “What’s going on here?” Maddox asked the others.

  “She has a hidden motive,” Ludendorff said.

  Maddox already knew that. “Any idea what it is?” he asked.

  The professor shook his head.

  “Hmm…” Maddox pressed the comm button. “How do you know what the New Men desire?”

  “That, also, is immaterial,” Mako said later. “I know. Let us leave it at that. These New Men have attacked a Spacer convoy. I wish to teach them a hard lesson, as I was the convoy leader. My desire to teach them—we have a common cause, Captain. That is the thing. Will you accept Spacer aid?”

  Maddox shrugged before pressing the comm button. “I will indeed. Now, you must excuse me. The New Men are hailing me.”

  Mako vanished from the main screen. A New Man appeared. He sat in a different sort of chair. He was tall, dark-haired and golden-skinned with a haughty manner and a half sneer on his lips. Like many New Men, he wore a silver garment. This one had a Star Nebula pinned at his left pectoral.

  The star cruiser—there were five of them all told—was much closer to Victory than the Spacer vessel. There was almost no time delay between the transmissions.

  “I recognize you,” the New Man said in a proud voice. “You are Captain Maddox of Starship Victory. I am Don Del Franco of the Resolute. I have monitored the Bernard Shaw. It is in distress. I am officially informing you that the Bosk homeworld is presently under Lord Drakos’s protection. We are his kinsmen and thus extend our protection to the Bosks and thus the Bernard Shaw.”

  “You will be happy to learn then that Professor Ludendorff had gained letters of Marque from the Commonwealth,” Maddox said. “The Bernard Shaw is an official Q-ship in a Star Watch flotilla. Thus, the vessel is under my protection and authority.”

  “You lead the flotilla?” Del Franco asked.

  “I am its spokesman.”

  “I want to address the flotilla leader.”

  “You can speak to me,” Maddox said.

  “No. You are an inferior. I want to speak to your superior.”

  Maddox stiffened at the words.

  “I am not referring to your genetic status,” Del Franco said. “I am referring to your inferior status within the flotilla hierarchy. Thus, you do not need to take any offense at my words, although reasonably you should not, as I have only spoken the truth regarding both your genetic and official ranking.”

  “It is my misfortune to inform you—”

  “Captain Maddox,” Del Franco said, interrupting. “Put Brigadier O’Hara on or let me address Commodore Tancred. What I have to say is too important for mere underlings.”

  “He is trying to bait you, sir,” Galyan said.

  Maddox nodded. Of course, the New Man was trying to bait him. Maddox was attempting to use that in order to manipulate the conversation. “Let me make this plain to you,” he told the New Man.

  “I have spoken,” Del Franco said, his voice hardening. “That means you will now—”

  The New Man’s image vanished from the main screen.

  The others stared in surprise at Maddox, as he had cut the connection with a click of a button on his armrest.

  Several seconds passed in silence.

  Valerie broke it by saying, “The star cruisers have begun accelerating toward us, sir. There are five altogether. According to my scans, the five have improved shields and disrupter cannons. I’m unsure Victory and the Moltke can defeat five improved star cruisers.”

  “They won’t attack just yet,” Ludendorff said, as he eyed Maddox. “They’re trying to rattle our esteemed captain with aggressive maneuvering.”

  Maddox pressed his fingertips against each other as he tapped his index fingers against his chin. “At this point, do we really need the Bernard Shaw anymore?”

  “Victory’s shuttles have launched from the Q-ship,” Galyan said. “They hold Dana and many of the rescued Moltke marines.”

  “Have all our shuttles launched from the Bernard Shaw?” Maddox asked.

  “The last two are getting ready to leave the Q-ship,” Galyan said.

  Maddox turned to Valerie. “Order the last shuttles to take the corpses of the New Men, but couch the message in code.”

  “Smart move,” Ludendorff said. “This Del Franco will undoubtedly intercept the messages. But what’s the point, my boy? The kinsmen will demand Tars Womack, the two dead New Men and likely the Draegar as well. If we give them corpses—”

  Maddox snapped his fingers as his features hardened, as if he’d tasted s
omething unpleasant. “We’re going to give them the Bernard Shaw. This isn’t a picnic. We’re agreed on that, right?”

  “What are you planning?” Ludendorff asked.

  “To give them a poison pill,” Maddox said. “We’ve delayed in the Usan System too long. We know our assignment, and yet, we aren’t getting any closer to achieving it. These New Men mean to capture my vessel. Maybe the Spacers are going to help them do that.”

  “You don’t trust Mako?” Ludendorff asked, “or accept any of her explanations?”

  “I do not,” Maddox said. “Five improved star cruisers and twelve saucer-shaped ships. The odds are heavily stacked against us if they attack us in concert. Normally, I would use the star drive and leave. But I can’t abandon the Moltke. It lacks a star drive. No. We’re going to play this down and dirty, clearing the board as much as we can. Afterward…let’s see what’s left and we can make our decisions then.”

  -50-

  Sometime later, the five star cruisers decelerated as the Moltke and Victory drifted away from the Bernard Shaw.

  At the same time, the twelve Spacer ships popped out of view, reappearing near the Q-ship. Each of the saucer-shaped vessels had used their star drive to jump directly into the fray.

  “That should make this interesting,” Valarie said.

  A few minutes later, she added, “I’m detecting a flurry of messages between the Spacers and the New Men. I can’t hack into the comm streams, though, so I don’t know what they’re saying.”

  “You don’t need to,” Ludendorff said. “I imagine Del Franco is threatening Mako. Maybe she’s threatening him back.”

  “Or this is a ruse on both their parts,” Maddox said.

  “Eh?” asked Ludendorff. “You really think the two of them are working together against us?”

  “It’s a possibility we can’t discount,” Maddox said.

  Ludendorff cocked his head, as he no doubt assessed the idea. “No… I don’t think so. This is something else, but damned if I can figure out what that something is.”