“We have more than one flotilla out there. We think the first ships are Covenanter for a number of reasons I won’t go into here. They’re beginning to close. We’ve received word from the Bannister. She just arrived. She managed to evade them, but reported another and larger flotilla has made a Gate translation and is also en route to Danann. The courier has offered us enough information that we can plot an exit course that gives us a good chance of evading both flotillas. This seems the best option, since we’re outnumbered by even the smaller flotilla. Our course will be closer to the smaller flotilla. We will attempt to use it as a screen of sorts.”
Two frigging flotillas heading for Danann? Why? From what I’d overheard, it’d take years for the scientists to develop anything worthwhile, even from the damned artifact I’d carted up.
“Do we have any idea of their objectives or intentions sir?” asked Tuala.
“Their objective is either Danann or us, Lieutenant There’s nothing else out here.”
“Ah… yes, sir. I had wondered if we knew whether they were actually hostile.”
“If we wait to discover that, our options are likely to be significantly reduced, possibly to extinction.” Morgan’s tone was dry, irritated. “If we depart, and they’re not hostile, they’ll let us go. If they are… that’s where you all come in. Lieutenant Chang will take Needle Four, and Lieutenant Lerrys will be primary pickup, if it’s necessary…”
Morgan didn’t sound happy. I couldn’t say I was either. Not frigging, likely.
“… We won’t launch needles until it’s clear that you’re needed. By then, we should be well clear of Danann. With luck, you’ll all remain on board the ship. We’ll be breaking orbit in about one stan. It will be at least three stans before you’re needed. It could be five or six. I’d suggest an afternoon nap. It could be a long night. Once you’re summoned to flight quarters, you’ll stand by here. You’ll go to armor when we’re stan or so from contact. Any other relevant questions?”
Clear Morgan didn’t want any questions. I didn’t ask. No one else did, either.
Didn’t really want to leave the ready room.
Tuala and Lerrys stayed, too. The others left. I wasn’t sleepy. So I went over to one of the briefing consoles. Wasn’t anything new there. Accessed the farscreen plot. Plot showed six ships incoming. From the signatures, I made out two battle cruisers, one heavy and one light, two frigates, a corvette, and a scout, trailing. Bet that the scout had been there all along, just had been masked by the emanations of the heavier ships. Plot also showed four signaler satellites, or something like them, each in a geostationary orbit, each a quarter orbit from the next.
I glanced up from the console. “Tuala? We’ve left some signalers out there, it looks like. You’re nav. Know anything about them?”
“Not much. Commander Morgan took shuttle one yesterday and placed them himself. He said all the other pilots needed the rest. He hoped that the Covenanters might leave them, since they’re just nav beacons. According to him, there was no reason not to leave them now. He said the whole Galaxy must know where Danann is by now.”
“Anything else?”
“No.”
Didn’t believe that. Morgan wouldn’t have wasted nav beacons, not without a reason. Had he gimmicked them somehow?
Kept watching the energy signature plots. Less than a quarter stan passed before the beacons flared into the energy signatures of a frigate, a courier, a light cruiser, and something like the Alwyn. Morgan had probably waited until just before the Covenanters were within detection discrimination range. Harder to pick out clear signals around a planet, even a cold one like Danann.
Even so, somehow, didn’t think that the Covenanters would let us off. Someone was still going to come after what looked to be two cruisers and a courier. Might slow them down, or split their forces, though.
Nothing was going to happen for stans, anyway.
I went and took a shower and cadged a meal from the mess. So did Lerrys. We sat at one of the tables that wasn’t yet set up for the next meal. Reformulated chicken with brown sauce. The brown was better than the white.
“Why would the Covenanters risk it?” Lerrys asked.
“They haven’t risked anything yet.” Kept eating.
“They will, even with another flotilla out there.”
“Maybe it’s theirs, too. Or someone who’s thrown in with them.”
“No one can use what’s down on Danann. Not for years, if ever,” Lerrys said.
“They don’t know that.”
“You think they’re that desperate?”
“Don’t know what to think. I know that there are two flotillas out there, or one big one, and that doesn’t look good for us. Don’t think they’d send that many ships out here if they weren’t after more than two D.S.S. ships and a courier or two.”
“How would they know?”
“Just like we know. Intelligence. Can’t keep anything a secret in a high-tech world. You can only move faster and be smarter. Looks like we weren’t.”
“You’re so optimistic, Jiendra.”
“Realistic.”
At that moment, the wall screen in the mess switched from the view of Danann to one of the captain. She looked alert, rested—unlike Morgan.
“This is the captain. We will be breaking orbit in a few minutes. For the next three stans or so you all may continue normal operations. After that, I may sound General Quarters at any time. That is all.”
The screen returned to a view of Danann.
Neither Lerrys nor I said much more. We separated, and I tried to get some sleep. Dozed some, but kept thinking about Liam… wondering. Why now? Was he that different? Or was it me?
It was almost a relief to go back to the ready room. Got there after eighteen hundred. Missed another meal in the mess, but stopped and cadged some stuff from the cooks. Was I missing meals because I wasn’t ready to face Liam so soon again?
Frig! Didn’t need all the complications.
Lerrys, Lindskold, Shaimen, and Tuala were already waiting in the ready room. They looked about as pleased as I felt.
Morgan was nowhere around. Had mostly expected that, not when he had no second after Tepper’s death.
I went back to the briefing console. Nothing new there on our launch or ops. When I checked the farscreen plot, I could see the vector arrows showing direction and velocity of the Magellan and Alwyn relative to Danann. The Bannister was running between the two capital ships. Then I frowned. The captain was using shield energy to damp our emanations. Both the Alwyn and the Magellan were radiating like frigates. Deception might have been worth the waste of power.
Before long, Morgan walked into the ready room.
“You’re all dismissed to your quarters. Get some sleep. Or rest. One way or another, you won’t see any action until late this evening. It could be tomorrow.”
I left. Wasn’t sure I could sleep.
74
Chang
Lieutenant Chang! To the ready room!
Frig! Checked the time. Zero four-seventeen. I’d struggled to get sleep, finally dropped off at sometime after zero one hundred. Hated early morning.
Washed quickly, scrambled into vest and shorts, ship-boots, and hurried up to the ready room. Lerrys was there. He looked like a frigging recruiting poster. Bet I looked like warmed and flattened shit. Tuala straggled in after me. Then the others followed.
No Morgan.
I heaved myself out of the chair and went to one of the briefing consoles. Lindskold was already at another. Nothing new. Checked the farscreen.