Chapter 7

Superficial Damage

I had to end my training, and of course Frankie went on about how slow I was. She said I could have had time for a nap, before Uzik called us, if I’d been better at training.

Siam’s yellow mech soared beside me. It was detailed in gold and the legs were compressed up against its blocky body. Even the mech head was boxy. It was clear, just like Frankie’s, but instead of spherical, it was a perfect cube. IMINT brackets rapidly appeared and disappeared on every surface.

“Do you think something’s wrong?” I said.

“Nah,” Siam said. “Uzik would have told us right away that something was wrong. He’s pretty good about being upfront and honest about everything. He’s not one to hide the facts and details. That’s the only reason Dani and I have stuck with him for so long.”

“I’m surprised to hear that. There’s gotta be other reasons you guys make a good team.”

“Having a good commander is a trade off. Uzik’s the best we got, in our experience, so Dani and I have fought to stay with him, time and time again.”

“What’s the trade off?”

“He’s a stickler for the rules. Causes delays, and sometimes compromises safety because of that. The upside is that he involves the team in every decision making process.”

“So we have a say in what to do?”

Siam laughed. “No. We don’t have a say. When I say that we’re involved, I mean we get to speak our minds, and Uzik does what he thinks is best anyways. Believe it or not, that’s a blessing for a commander.”

Siam blasted ahead with a burst of speed and I leaned forward to put on my own burst of speed. Our speeds increased to extraordinary levels until I started to see the Solodon ship get bigger and bigger. We arrived within the hour.

The ship was gigantic. It looked like a geometric hand had been placed flat, the thumb tucked in, and then the whole thing folded in half to form the ship. The ship was obsidian black, and different angles revealed a mossy green sheen to it. From my first impression, it seemed larger than Mighty Edda.

We rounded the ship and spent a few minutes soaring around, looking for Uzik and Dani. We were now in Miconia’s orbit. The planet was a spectacular blend of pastel yellows and pastel blues. It looked like some parts of the planet were in for some rain.

“Up ahead,” Siam said, pointing to a pair of figures in the distance.

IMINT brackets popped up around Uzik’s gray mech that was easy to spot, and Dani’s black mech which I didn’t notice at first.

When we approached, Uzik gave a small wave with his mech and Dani gave a slight nod.

“Glad you’re here,” Uzik said. “You boys notice anything when you came around?”

“Aside from the fact that she isn’t moving, there’s nothing abnormal,” Siam said. “SIGINT is quiet, that’s all.”

“That’s what I find disturbing,” Uzik said.

“Disease? All members perished from a contagion?”

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“Wouldn’t happen to the Solodons,” Uzik said. “They’re advanced. They have protocols in place to handle such circumstances.”

Dani’s mech crossed her arms over her chest. Her mech's head was a black orb and I couldn’t see her face at all. I figured mine was the same, but entirely bone white.

Uzik was silent for a moment, contemplating. The rest of us patiently waited.

“Dani wants us to break in,” Uzik said. “On the other hand, I want to request permission from Solodon to enter Faktuus by any means.”

“That’ll take some time,” Siam said. “Time we may not have.”

“That’s what I’m thinking,” Uzik said. “However, we cannot appear to favor Miconia’s approach to solving this orbital conflict. If we damage the Solodon ship, invade without permission, then Solodon has every right to fear that we are not acting impartially.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Dani said. “The damage will be nominal.”

“Your input will be considered,” Uzik said. “Siam and Gnath, I need to hear your input as well.”

“I’m with Dani,” Siam said.

“Gnath?” Uzik said.

“If this is a peace process mission, I think we need to be careful how we approach the ship.”

Dani scoffed. “That’s not an answer, Cyborg. Toughen a bit and give it straight. You’re wasting our time.”

“That is my answer,” I said firmly. “I don’t know what being careful means. According to commander Uzik, Solodon could see our actions as breaking and entering an act of aggression, which Miconia might favor. On the other hand, I know that time is an issue.” Dani sighed and shook her head. I continued. “What’s the likelihood of Solodon accepting our request to enter by force?”

Uzik thought for a moment before saying, “Their response is very likely to be a green light. However, several things could arise from that. They could give us permission to enter by force ourselves, or they could also send out technicians to give us entry. The latter could take a month or more.”

“If they’re likely to say yes, what if we request permission to enter, and then just enter by force while we wait for a response?” I said.

Uzik once more fell into silence. Each of us hovered there until he came to his decision.

“Let’s take one look around at the ship,” Uzik said, “Then we’ll return to the FreeWheel, and I’ll send a request to enter. We’ll go from there.”

Uzik’s rocket engines flared to life and he soared off in a flash of speed. His gray mech streaked into the distance alongside the Solodon ship. Dani was the next to soar off. She went in the opposite direction as Uzik.

“Let’s stick together, Gnath,” Siam said. “Follow me. We’ll head up and over the ship and see what we can learn.”

His rocket engines roared and he flew off overhead. I followed him until we came over the top of the ship and hovered beside him.

“There’s several things to look for,” Siam said. “Damage is the most important thing. Residues are another, for signs of chemical warfare. Another thing to look out for are foreign attachments. Various races of intelligent life can attach to a ship and wait for the opportunity to attack. Look for discolored panels that seem out of place, or artificial extensions that don’t seem to belong to the design of the ship.”

“Are we all looking for the same thing?” I said.

“Yes. Except for Dani. She has a thermal imaging spec. None of us can see inside, obviously, but Dani will be able to see if any exposed ship mechanics have recently been used. If parts of the ship show high heat levels, then something wrong is happening internally.”

Siam and I floated slowly above the ship. We occasionally soared closer to make some inspections. Walking on the ship was quite the experience. I felt the large metallic thumps vibrate through my mech as we walked.

After a few hours, Uzik had us reconvene near the front of the ship. We hovered at the pane of the bridge, unable to see inside.

“Siam, Gnath?” Uzik said.

“Nothing sir,” Siam reported. Uzik looked at me and I nodded.

“Dani?”

“There’s a bit of superficial damage near the fuel chamber,” Dani said.

“How near, exactly?” Uzik said.

“Far from the engines. Closer to where I think the refinery might be located.”

“Could be due to colliding with fuel transports when they harvested fuel from CHX44,” Siam said.

“These scratches are smaller than what a transport fuel ship could deal,” Dani said.

“Will you share your IMINT data with me?” Uzik said, and Dani Nodded. “Thank you. Let’s head back to the FreeWheel.”