Desjani’s voice was very low, but he could hear her very clearly. “You won’t be alone.”
That statement came far too close to a subject they could never speak of or even acknowledge existed. Startled, he looked up and caught her eyes.
Desjani looked away. “You needed to hear me say that.” She stood up, straightening her body to the posture of attention. “By your leave, sir, if there’s nothing else, I have some matters I should attend to.”
“Certainly. Thank you, Captain Desjani.”
He checked the time after she left. Five hours to jump for Varandal.
THE ball of wreckage that had been the last Syndic battle cruiser in Atalia Star System fell away in the wake of the Alliance fleet as it neared the jump point for Varandal.
“Captain?” The face of Dauntless’s systems-security officer floated in a window before Desjani.
“There’s been some uncleared transmissions from our ship.”
“Uncleared transmissions?” Desjani asked mildly.
“Yes. Unencrypted broadcasts to anyone in this star system. I’m trying to identify the source within Dauntless.”
“Is the information within the broadcasts classified?”
The systems-security officer blinked as he considered the question. “No, Captain, not as far as I can tell. There’s no formal classification attached, and the security review scans didn’t match the contents of the broadcast to any known classified material.”
“Then I don’t see any need to make it a priority,” Desjani said. “We need to ensure the ship’s systems are as close to optimum as possible when we arrive in Varandal.”
“But… Captain, any broadcast to the enemy is prohibited.”
“Of course,” Desjani agreed. “But since no classified material is involved, the damage assessment from this incident will surely place it as a low-priority matter. Let’s focus on preparing for battle, Commander.”
“Uh, yes, Captain.”
After the security officer’s image vanished, Desjani gave Geary an enigmatic look. “I wonder what that could have been about.”
“Probably nothing important, like you said,” he replied.
She was studying the information forwarded to her by the systems-security officer. “The same records from Lakota that this fleet already broadcast, a description of something at Kalixa, plus some kind of equipment schematic and a narrative. No transmission authorization code.” Desjani tapped her controls.
“Nothing that threatens my ship or the fleet. I have more critical issues to deal with.”
“Agreed.” He wondered how Rione had managed to trick the communications system on Dauntless into sending a broadcast without an authorization. Despite the things that Rione had already admitted she could do with the supposedly secure systems throughout the fleet, Geary suspected there were plenty of other capabilities available to Rione that she had never disclosed.
He studied his display, taking a last look at the situation in Atalia. Task Force Illustrious, now a good two light-hours behind the fleet’s main body, was still collecting escape pods. The survivors from Intractable weren’t far from the fleet’s main body, but picking them up would be impossible at the speed the fleet was traveling. They’d have to wait for Illustrious and her companions to get here. Fuel-cell reserve levels were hovering around 20 percent on most of the warships, though some like Rifle were significantly lower. Only three specter missiles were left in the fleet. Grapeshot inventories were at 60 percent.
On the fringes of Atalia Star System, Syndic HuKs, couriers, and merchant ships were still heading for jump points, racing either to escape or carry word of the Alliance fleet’s movements. Most of them would receive the broadcasts from Dauntless before they jumped. There hadn’t been any communications from the Syndic authorities in Atalia. No demands for surrender. Nothing. He wondered if the highest-ranking CEOs in this star system knew about the reserve flotilla’s mission, if they had been told about Kalixa. They’d know now.
“Five minutes to jump.”
Geary tapped his controls. “Captain Badaya, we’re about to jump for Varandal. We’ll see you there. Good luck.” He couldn’t think of anything else to say, and in any case Badaya wouldn’t receive the message for close to two hours.
“Four. Days.” Desjani closed her eyes in resignation.
“Yeah. It’s going to be the longest four days in jump that I’ve ever spent,” Geary agreed. The Syndic reserve flotilla was still in jump space, still headed for Varandal. So were the Alliance warships ahead of the Syndics. Now the fleet would join them. The maneuvering system flashed an alert, and Geary sent another message. “All ships, jump at time two zero four nine. We’ll see you in Varandal. Be prepared for combat immediately upon arrival.”
A few minutes later the stars vanished, and Geary was gazing upon the drab gray of jump space again. Thinking of the Syndic reserve flotilla’s mission and their superiority in numbers, and the state of the Alliance fleet, he couldn’t help wondering if this would be his last jump.
FOUR apparently endless days later, they sat in their seats on the bridge of Dauntless again, counting down the minutes until they left jump. Geary took long, slow breaths to relax, rolling his shoulders as if preparing for hand-to-hand combat. Desjani sat with her eyes glued to her display, her face calm, her eyes lit with excitement. At the back of the bridge, Rione remained silent, but tension seemed to radiate from her. The watch-standers were poised at their stations. Dauntless’s entire crew stood on duty throughout the ship, ready for action.
“All weapons ready. Set to fire on automatic,” Desjani said with a coolness that felt eerie amid the stress-filled atmosphere.
Ahead of them, in the gray emptiness of jump space, one of the mysterious lights seemed to bloom across their path. It could have been close or immensely distant, but it hung there a moment as if waiting for Dauntless. Geary heard almost everyone’s breath catch at the mystifying omen.
“Exiting jump space.”
The endless gray and the inexplicable light before them vanished as the stars appeared. Dauntless yawed around, seeking to avoid possible mines and enemy fire. Braced against the maneuver, Desjani was still eyeing her display. “They’re not at the jump point.”
Geary stared at his display, unable to speak for a moment as he looked upon Varandal Star System. After so many jumps, so many light-years crossed, so many Syndic-controlled star systems transited, the Alliance fleet had finally reached Alliance territory. Varandal, home of a regional fleet headquarters and many fleet installations along with strong defenses. He’d studied the database on Dauntless, seen how those installations and defenses had multiplied since the last time he had been to Varandal a hundred years before, but seeing it now for real still felt disorienting. Familiar and yet greatly changed. Alerts sounded and symbols pulsed. Geary watched updates rapidly proliferating across his display as the fleet’s sensors evaluated everything they could see. “We’re in time.”
The hypernet gate still stood, just under six light-hours distant.
Three light-hours away, the Syndic reserve flotilla orbited the star Varandal. Seven light-minutes from the box of enemy warships a small formation of Alliance warships hovered, the survivors of those who had attacked Atalia, then tried to defend Varandal. “Two battleships, one battle cruiser, six heavy cruisers, one light cruiser, nine destroyers,” Desjani read off. “That’s all that’s left.”