Samir sat in the Captain’s chair, his eyes cast downward as he mulled over what had happened. Now that the moment of action had passed, the consequences were setting in. With the destroyed gravity core, none of them would be going back to the Free Exchange for the foreseeable future.

He had condemned his crew to evacuate to a vessel on the brink of falling apart—a vessel headed farther into the depths of space than any human had ever gone before. A derelict sought by monstrosities with no telling when more of their ships would arrive.

If there was one thing he regretted, it was jeopardizing his crew. It was a captain’s duty to protect his men, and he had now exiled them all to the unknown. But it was more than that. The choice was already costing lives. The twenty-three men injured in the medical wing would likely die without the Hyperion’s advanced stabilizing beds. That, or remained maimed from their injuries without the regeneration treatment.

He made the choice because it seemed the only way the Free Exchange wouldn’t get their hands on the Andromedans. Without advanced flight control, none of them could change where the ship went besides its original destination. Of course, it would only be a matter of time before such systems were mastered, but that was in the future. Samir was just trying to survive in the present.

And although he believed he did it for the right reasons, men often came up with good reasons for what they had done—even though it might not be the real one. Samir couldn’t discount that possibility that he acted to save his own neck. That he only wanted to delay the inevitable because a part of him still wanted to win.

He wished Father Soren could advise him. He had sent men down to the laboratory, but the priest was nowhere to be found. Either he had been killed or captured. It made little a difference which. Samir was on his own.

“Acknowledged, Captain. I’ll send the shuttles back.” Dr. Philip’s voice came back over the comm.

Samir took a deep breath as his broadcast was answered. Maybe they were lucky, maybe they weren’t too late—

“Negative! Negative, Captain! Tannis is in control of the derelict! I repeat! Tannis is in control of the derelict!” Miles Kieth’s voice shouted over the comm before there was an audible click and then silence.

He glanced around him on the bridge. Everyone looked at him for the next decision. Most of the marines had their faces held high, their resolve impenetrable. However, the few civilian crew there—willing or unwilling—held their faces in fear.

Samir Singh pressed a few buttons on his chair, contacting engineering. “Erika, I suspect you heard that as well?”

There was a second of silence before she responded. “I did.”

Engineering would’ve been listening on the broadcasts to make sure he kept his word. They still held control of life support, so they were not completely without cards to play. Not that Samir would’ve gone back on his word.

“Suppose we put our differences aside for the moment,” Captain Singh began. “Can we beat Tannis?”

If what was said was true, and Samir had no reason to doubt Miles Kieth, then it was Samir and Erika against Tannis. They would have to work together, although the thought was displeasing to him. But survival often meant unpleasant choices. He guessed he should now know that better than most.

“He holds the most advantageous position right now. Without the gravity core, the Hyperion has limited options. I wouldn’t bet on us, that’s for sure.”

“So why did he agree to dispatch the shuttles?” Captain Singh tugged at his beard.

“To keep us from doing anything drastic. The Hyperion still has some weapon systems available. He offered us the shuttles to buy time and make easy targets.”

Captain Singh nodded. The plan would be to draw them out on the shuttles, get as much personnel onboard the vulnerable craft. If Tannis had some access to the weapon systems of the derelict, and Samir knew they had made some progress on that front, the craft would make easy pickings. Best-case scenario would see either Samir or Erika dead and the Hyperion in disarray.

In a way, Tannis was forced to offer them this compromise. If he left the Hyperion entirely without options, then he was backing a wounded animal against a wall. There was no guarantee that animal would not fight to death. It would’ve been an engagement of cripples, both ships operating minimum capacity. Samir didn’t know Tannis’ perspective, but it seemed there was enough worry of mutual destruction that the bureaucrat’s hand was forced.

And so the better choice was to dispatch the shuttles. Give the Hyperion enough hope that it wouldn’t directly attack the derelict. Both sides had too much to lose from such an engagement. That was still true, even with Miles’ warning. So it did not surprise Singh when one of the crew turned from his station.

“Captain! All shuttles have been dispatched! They will be here in fifteen minutes!”

Captain Singh didn’t doubt that Tannis was forcing Samir’s men to pilot the shuttles, but he wondered if the bureaucrat held enough sway to make them engage in a suicide run. While their weapons couldn’t scratch the Hyperion—even operating under minimum capacity—the gravity cores on the vessels would make them more than viable weapons. Deactivating the safeties would allow their miniature black holes to destroy the Hyperion easily.

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“No.” Erika almost read Samir’s mind. “Tannis wouldn’t have predicted this. He’s improvising the only way he can. He just wants to push the battle in the space between the Hyperion and the Andromedan vessel, nothing more.”

“And how do you know that?” Samir asked as he watched the shuttle’s approach.

“Because I didn’t predict it. Believe me, Tannis didn’t expect the gravity core of the Hyperion to be destroyed either.”

Samir contacted the shuttle bay and ordered his men to open the bay doors. He watched as the shuttles silently flew to the Hyperion and began docking sequences. There’s only one question left now. He thought. There was no choice but to make a break for the derelict on the shuttles. The important matter would be who was going first.

Again, Erika seemed to know what he was thinking. “It seems we both ought to play our hands.”

She was right again. If Singh took his shuttles across first, which he certainly could’ve, then he was betting his men’s lives on making it across the gap. Samir only had the loyalty of the military—about one third of the total crew. Every loss of manpower statistically hurt him more. If Tannis had any tricks up his sleeve, that would be disastrous. And while although he could’ve let Erika try to cross the gap first, it meant she might get aboard the derelict first as well.

The only choice was to take a mitigated risk. Their men would have to race each other to the derelict, and he would have to pray that his side made it across.

“We do this my way.” Samir tapped on the comm. “Shuttle bay will be open to you after my men have launched. If we take the derelict, then we run relays. If I get so much as a word—“

“Captain, it’s in my best interest that your men get as much of their supplies to the derelict as possible. You have my word that I won’t interfere with that.”

“If only that meant anything to me.”

“Right now, you should be busying yourself with prepping the Hyperion for precision strikes against the derelict, not arguing with me. I hope that the hand of fate sees us through. Otherwise... well, it won’t matter, anyway.”

Samir snorted as he turned off the comm. While Tannis had extended them this hope, there wasn’t a chance they still wouldn’t use the Hyperion—albiet in a more limited regard. Some of Erika’s men would be necessary, but missile strikes against the derelict could take out a few the turrets. Although again, Samir only knew vague details about their capabilities.

He knew that the only protocol Tannis could have access to was an automatic one. And unfortunately, they had not deciphered it completely. It would turn on the turrets, that was certain. What was uncertain was how and where they would fire—and also if other weapons might turn on, too.

It was a roll of the dice, but it would buy plenty of time for Tannis. If the drive was repaired… we will just have to cross that bridge if it comes to it. Samir thought. Right now, he had to focus on the present, and that meant addressing one more issue.

Tapping the comm again, although instead selecting the speaker system of the ship, he cleared his throat. “I am sure many of you have questions about what has happened these past few hours.”

This was a strategic blunder on his part, but truth be told, he didn’t care. Even if he managed to gain control of the derelict, even if they beat Tannis, Erika would eventually win in the end. There was no question about that. She could manipulate events beyond his control—twist the human psyche in ways he couldn’t even conceive of. With just a third of the crew, he was fighting a lost war.

And so he didn’t care about the consequences of his actions. This was always a losing game. He just might as well lose as an honest man.

“I uncovered a Free Exchange plot aboard this ship. Commander Terese and several others were going to take the derelict and murder the Andromedans in cold blood,” he told the truth as best as he could, even though he left out details. “They would use the technology for their own ends. My goal was to activate the derelict’s FTL drive to save their civilization from extinction.”

He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “I destroyed the gravity core to stop the butchering of a civilization. In doing so, I recognize I also betrayed your trust. Your safety was my responsibility… and I failed in that task.” He took a deep breath. Samir might as well press forward. “I will not lead you against your will. A Captain is no more than his crew. And I am no exception.”

Captain Singh lowered his head. “If you believe that your fate best rests with the Free Exchange in light of this, then that choice is yours. Go and join Commander Terese. If not, then that choice is yours as well.”

He clicked off the comm and sunk into his seat. Samir couldn’t muster any heroic or inspirational speech this time. He didn’t have it in him anymore. If anyone stood with him, it would be because they were men who would do the right thing. And that was the only crew Captain Singh wanted to command.

“Captain!” a voice exclaimed behind him as new feet entered the bridge.

Samir turned in his chair. Sergeant Barnes stood in shock, staring wide eyed at the man who had before been walking to his death. Captain Singh observed the youth’s expression. He would’ve heard as any of the rest of the crew that Samir had destroyed the gravity core. I wonder if that will turn him against me. After all that he had done, maybe Captain Singh would finally stand alone.

Samir glanced around the rest of the bridge. He had purposefully been avoiding their direction. He didn’t want to see how they felt about what he had done. But as he returned his gaze to Sergeant Barnes, the youth didn’t show any anger or resentment. There wasn’t any newfound suspicion or distrust.

Instead, Sergeant Barnes gave a swift salute. “Good to have you back, sir.”

Samir again looked to the rest of the bridge. The soldiers all hid quiet smiles at the display. Even the few civilian crewmen held no doubts. Not many things could still move Samir’s heart, but this was one of them. I don’t deserve this loyalty. Captain Singh sadly thought.

He knew that part of it was engineered. The Free Exchange cynically placed people who would be most sympathetic to him—probably to better hide the coming betrayal. But they don’t get to own this. Samir realized. These men were standing with him in the face of death, and nothing changed that fact. Guided either by the hand of God or the Free Exchange, it didn’t matter how these things came to be.

What mattered was what happened now. They would stand together and fight together against impossible odds. No matter the Free Exchange’s grip on humanity, there was honor in these men. More than that, there was honor in their cause. And all the scheming in the world could never take that away from them.

Samir gratefully nodded to the young Sergeant. He turned and brought up the derelict on the viewscreen. They would embark on one final adventure. And Samir couldn’t have asked for a better crew.