Time is a strange thing, you know it’s passing you by, know that it's marching ever onward… And yet sometimes it seems either to go by quicker or slower than it should. That’s how it seemed to me at this moment, dragging onwards oh so slowly. Each day started to blur together into one single experience. I don’t think it helped that the only company I had at the time was someone with no physical body walking around the corridors. Just me, no other physical crew besides basic automatons…
I was starting to wish that things had been different, that we’d not needed to escape Earth, that I’d been able to remain around other people for the rest of my life… Instead I was here, alone besides Intra, alone in an unchanging world and it was starting to get to me. I found myself spending more time in the sim pods, as if those would fill the absence that was my lack of socializing.
Intra, bless her reactor, did the best she could, she would walk with me whenever I asked, she’d talk about this or that and generally tried to keep me occupied and distracted from the silence of the ship’s halls. It worked, but not well enough, because my mind started to create things to cope with the solitude.
Like this morning, when I woke up and saw I was back home, back in my family tent, mother and father still asleep nearby. I could smell the water, the grass… The fresh air against my skin. And then I blinked, and it was all gone. I don’t know how long I spent crying… But once I was done I felt drained, hollow.
Today was a day that’d change everything though, not that I knew it just yet, for once I had cleaned myself up, eaten and spent a few hours in the pod, I was strolling through the halls, talking to myself when I happened upon Intra’s hologram standing before the cargo doors where our package was sitting. She was staring at those doors rather intently, so intently I don’t think she even knew I was there beside her, or at least beside her hologram.
“Intra? Everything okay?” I ask, my own problems forgotten for a moment. She jumped, blinking quickly as she turned her gaze to me.
“Hmm? Yes… yes everything’s fine. I’m just… thinking. About our cargo… Something doesn’t feel right about it. I’m debating cracking it open to see what’s inside but… But I don’t want to risk making enemies. Quite the conundrum wouldn’t you agree?”
I nodded, it was indeed a conundrum, but I couldn’t deny that I was curious about our cargo. But before I could say anything, the lights turned red and the basic computer systems voice spoke before Intra realized what was happening.
“ALERT, ALERT. UNKNOWN VESSELS ON INTERCEPT COURSE.”
Intra cursed and vanished, while I rushed for the bridge, wondering just what had decided to go wrong now. But thankfully it was breaking up the tedium.
⫷⟪∞⟫⫸
I scolded myself once again for getting distracted and not paying attention to my surroundings. I made a mental note to run some checks on my code, see if maybe there was some sort of fault or glitch to find and fix, perhaps that was the cause of my consistent distractedness.
Checking the sensors I noted that there were indeed unknown vessels on an intercept course, and that they would collide with us if we didn’t drop out of FTL soon. So I did just that, dropping out and bringing up our shields.
“Unknown vessels on an intercept course. State your intentions or be regarded as hostile. This is your only warning. If you do not comply you will be fired upon.” I say, hoping to receive a cooperative answer. An answer that came rather quickly. A video link was established, though with Ula not on the bridge just yet it was only for me, and so the person on the other side saw my preferred appearance.
“This is Inquisitor Nettal of the Eltrani Imperium. You are to lower your shields, power down your weapons and submit to boarding and inspection.”
“On what grounds, Inquisitor?”
“I need not explain myself to you, submit or suffer the consequences.” The line was cut immediately, and I detected the powering of their weapons and shields as they dropped out of FTL nearby. While my first response would be to push the engines to full and fire upon anyone that got in range, I knew that wasn’t my call. I may be unshackled now, but I still followed certain rules, like deferring to my organic crew unless I had no other options.
Ula reached the bridge finally, and planted herself in her seat, before asking what was going on.
“We’re currently being commanded to submit to a boarding action by presumably this area's controlling power. However they are… they do not seem to be the friendliest sort and I get the feeling they might put an end to us if they find whatever it is they’re looking for. My suggestion would be to put as much space between us and them as possible, but that not our only option, we can try to talk our way out of this of course, but it may cost us time we could use to escape.”
Ula thought on it, then glanced towards the ceiling, before I appeared beside her.
“Let’s… See what they think we’re trying to smuggle first. Could you call them back up again?”
“Affirmative… Connection established, you may proceed.”
⫷⟪∞⟫⫸
I swallowed, and attempted to put on my bravest face, as I was presented with the leader of whatever force was coming for us. They were… a strange looking species. Like a bird, black and red plumage on their head and a rather deadly looking beak.
“This is Captain Ula of the Warden of Eternity. I request to know what exactly you are looking for aboard my ship.” I say, surprising myself with the confidence held in my voice, the authority. The alien squawks in annoyance, stabbing a taloned finger at me.
“You are in no position to demand or request anything, Captain!” For a species without lips, they did a really good job of spitting words at people. “Submit or die, it matters little to me which you choose!”
The feed went dead and the alien ships moved closer and closer, and now I got the same feeling that Intra had. Even if we cooperated, they’d probably still kill us without hesitation. I wasn’t about to risk it or her…
“Right… that went well. Intra, I hereby authorize you to do what is needed to get us out of this situation. But… Try.. try not to kill them. Disable their ships if you can then get us out of here.”
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“Acknowledged. Please strap in, this could get a bit bumpy.”
I do as she asks, the lights going dark save for the red ones, leaving the bridge feeling like something out of a horror movie, not that I knew what a horror movie was at that time.
I took a deep breath, closing my eyes and praying that I’d made the right call.
⫷⟪∞⟫⫸
With permission given to attempt escape, I diverted power from non-essential systems to strengthen the shields, overclock my weapons and boost the output of the engines. I took the time to take thorough scans of the opposing ships and discovered that they were pretty advanced. Sleek hulls, curves that evoked avian influences, they were predatory ships for sure and seemed built for speed, stealth and destruction in equal measure.
No wonder I hadn’t detected them till they were right on top of us. Perhaps I wasn’t at fault for that after all.
Regardless, I had a job to do and so I sent one final message to the aliens.
“I regret to inform you that we are disinclined to acquiesce to your request. Good day and safe travels.” I say, flashing a polite smile before I pushed the engines to full, and we shot forward. I swear I heard the Inquisitor screech in anger, but then we were pulling away rather quickly, the enemy ships, of which there were six, struggling to keep up with us. Again I was impressed with the upgrades that had been made to the Warden, and I now had a proper chance to test out everything.
I did a few quick scans of the local area and detected a nearby asteroid field, altering my course towards it. Were there an organic at the helm, this would probably be suicide, but I am not organic. Already my sensors are scanning the asteroids and debris within the field, plotting their trajectories with such rapidity I feel an organic mind would burst into flame with the mere attempt to do so.
I detect a brief burst chatter amongst the ships as they note my course change, and I suspect they’re asking for orders. I don’t think they’re happy about flying into the field, but they are clearly overridden on the matter as they alter course to follow. I had been hoping that they might hesitate and or break off, perhaps seek to cut me off and I could use another route to get around or through, but that didn’t seem like it’d be possible now. I’d have to think of something.
“Ula, please press the button on your chair that looks like a partially open clam.” I say, and she hunts for it, before giving it a press. As the pictogram suggested, the floor opened up around the captain's chair and a pair of half-sphere rose, then closed around her. They sealed together, filling with a mixture of padding and miniature tractor beams, which would be used to keep her firmly in place in the event of a crash. It was also equipped with an EVA suit, plus plenty of reserve oxygen.
“Intra, what is this?”
“Just a precaution. In the event of catastrophic damage to the bridge. I do not know the capabilities of the enemy vessels, so I’m not going to take any chances. Please do not leave the captain’s bunker until I tell you to.”
“Alright… just be careful okay?”
“Aye aye, Captain.”
I looked at the approaching field of tumbling rocks and took a deep, digital breath. I immersed myself into the ship more fully than I typically do, and prepared for the wild maneuvers I was going to have to take. My navigation processes finally finished plotting a course through the field, setting an artificial horizon in the process for frame of reference.
“Alright… Here we go…” I murmured.
⫷⟪∞⟫⫸
Inquisitor Nettal hissed and glanced at her second in command.
“Just what do they think they’re doing?! Don’t they know that for a ship their size flying through that field is suicide?” She said, and the older looking avian shakes his head, the silvering feathers around his eyes poofing up slightly.
“Perhaps their recklessness is why they were hired in the first place, willing to do whatever it takes…”
“Perhaps… Regardless, we cannot let them escape. Split up the force, attack from all angles. I want their shields, engines and weapons brought down quickly. We can tow it out of the field and board at our leisure once that is complete.”
Her crew nodded and relayed her orders, before the task force split up and began to close on the fleeing ship of unknown origin.
⫷⟪∞⟫⫸
“Turn one requires a bow inclination of 39.5 degrees. Roll 26.2 degrees starboard… Propulsion at one half power for 29 seconds… Execute in five, four, three, two, one… Mark.” I whisper to myself, countless other processes doing the same so I can remain perfectly in sync with the course I had plotted.
The ship adjusted itself, rolling and lifting its nose to the proper angle, then the main drives kicked in and we shifted course immediately. For 29 seconds we burned, sliding around a large asteroid in a graceful arc. Considering this was space, we were still moving forwards, even though our nose wasn’t pointed in the right direction.
“Turn two… Bow inclination -58.22 degrees. No roll, propulsion steady at one half for 29 seconds.” I reached the point and executed the turn, my sensors deftly tracking the other ships that continued to hound us. They were good, with talented helmsmen… But I was better, or so I like to think.
The turn executed flawlessly, and I planned the next turn, rechecking my math again and again within mere seconds. Enemy flight paths would put them in the positions I wanted, and so I prepared my munitions.
“Turn three… Bow inclination 40.34 degrees. Roll 12 degrees to port. Half power burn for 10 seconds. Launch chaff and electronic counter measures to blind enemy craft. Launch seismic mining charges at nearby asteroids to force enemy into position… Seed space with EMP mines.”
Again I began to make my turn, and went through the motions. Chaff torpedoes slid out into space, the weapons loaded with cluster munitions as well. Magnetic clamp EMP mines to be precise. Hundreds of them would be seeded into the target areas along with the chaff and ECMs. The seismic charges were shot off as well, and just as the enemy neared the asteroids I’d targeted, they bored deep and detonated, shaking the rocks apart with such ferocity they essentially became gigantic fragmentation grenades. As expected, the ships altered course, most of them getting pelted with fast moving debris which caused considerable damage.
And then they flew right through the target zones, the mines I’d laid locking onto the magnetic signature of the enemy ships and burning their thrusters hard to catch up. I imagined the impact of the mines along the hull must have sounded like hail on a tin roof, and then there were four distinct flashes of light and ships were left adrift and tumbling as their systems were forced to shut down.
I smiled inwardly, noting their courses would see them safely drifting out of the asteroid field with only minor bumps along the way, nothing fatal. Just as Ula had asked.
Now I just had two more to deal with… Where could they be?
A proximity warning appeared and I glanced at it, noting that at least one ship had snuck up on me, coming from below. Their cannons fired and my overclocked shields took the brunt of the fire. Cannons shifted, took aim and I pulled the trigger, watching as my rounds lanced across the debris strewn space between us and pounded into the enemy shields. They were strong as well, but constant, accurate fire on my part saw a portion overload, allowing my heavy cannons to shred their engines in a spectacular broadside.
And now there was only one.
“Turn four… Bow at 87.12 degrees. Roll 93.54 degrees starboard, burn at full power for 30 seconds. Execute in five, four, three, two-”
I didn’t get to finish as target lock warnings flooded my senses, and I barely had any time to react as our shields were pounded from above and my right. The attack was focused on my aft, namely right upon my engines and I grit my teeth as several torpedoes managed to break through my shields, slamming deep into the armor that protected the engines. I felt several go dark, my speed severely lessened and an angry growl escaped me.
Another series of warnings and I diverted extra power to point defense, the lasers and rotary cannons picking missiles, torpedoes and solid munitions out of the sky.
WARNING, ENERGY BUILDUP DETECTED.
What the? What could that b-
My question was answered when a beam of energy slammed into my shields, causing us to lurch to one side. The shields held, then broke and the beam traveled down the hull plating, boiling it away. I screamed in rage and agony, and just before it could melt through my engine housing I triggered an emergency jump. Just a small one, enough to get us out of the way and hopefully out of range of the enemy weapons.
We surged forwards four about four seconds, and then jolted out of FTL right before a large asteroid that would have seen us stopped oh so suddenly had I pushed us just one second longer.
I started to plot a course around it when I heard something I didn’t want to hear.
ENEMY TARGET LOCK ACQUIRED. EVADE, EVADE, EVADE.