“Sorry about your nose, Tony.”
“It’s not your fault, Cuddy. It was already reinjured.” Tony gave Kyle a mean look.
“Can you help me up, Kyle?” Cuddy asked. With the help of his brother, he climbed to his feet. He wavered then steadied himself. “Orb… where are we? What are we doing back in space?”
“On three occasions I attempted to return to Earth’s atmosphere. Of those still functioning sufficiently, Earth’s strategic defenses—primarily ballistic missile systems—are all on high alert. The Revenge has taken numerous direct hits and our ability to cloak our presence is no longer possible. Added to that, our protective shields are ineffectual.”
Tony, sounding nasally, asked, “Can’t we just tell them who we are… that we’re the good guys?”
Cuddy and Kyle looked at each other. Kyle shrugged and asked, “Is that possible?”
The orb stopped what it was doing—as if momentarily considering the question—then replied, “This vessel has a variety of communication capabilities, including radio frequency transmission.”
“Who would we talk to?” Tony asked. “I mean, who would believe us? We’d sound like prankster ass-clowns…”
Kyle nodded and pointed a finger at Tony. “That’s why you’re going to contact your father… the sheriff. Who else do we know who has any clout? Since he’s been on this ship, it won’t be all that far-fetched.” Tony gave back a pained expression.
“What’s the big deal?” Kyle asked.
“I don’t know if he’s even out of the hospital yet. And I don’t get along very well with him, anyway.”
“Tough. Would you rather die up here? Be atomized by a fucking missile from Iran, or maybe Poland? You want to die from a Polish missile, Tony? Would that make you happy?” Kyle asked.
Tony started to laugh at that. “Fine… um… you, orb, do you know how to connect to, communicate with, the Woodbury Police Dispatch? That’s always the best way to get ahold of my father.”
“Stand by… I will attempt to make the necessary connections.”
“Whatever,” Tony said, rising to his feet. “He still may not believe me.”
Cuddy wasn’t sure Tony was right about that, since the sheriff had been taken prisoner too—had been a prisoner on this same alien ship. It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to realize his son was still on board.
They were startled by the sound of loud static, then Sheriff Bone’s craggy voice, blaring into the bridge compartment: “Who is this…? This is a police emergency frequency.”
Tony looked around the compartment, like he didn’t know in which direction to address his words.
“Just start talking, Tony!” Kyle said, annoyed.
“Dad? Um… it’s Tony…”
There was a long static pause before the sheriff spoke again. “Tony?”
“Yes… like… your son.”
“Where the hell are you? I’ve been looking for you, damn it. What are you doing on this frequency?”
“Just listen, Dad… I want you to know I’m not fooling around here. This is for real, okay?”
“I’m extremely busy, son. I’ve just gotten back from the hospital… what is it?”
“I’m up in space. I’m still in the Howsh ship. This is the spacecraft that just destroyed the other two spaceships… like over Russia.” Tony shook his head and stared over at Kyle then Cuddy. He mouthed the words, He thinks I’m pulling his chain.
“That was you? How…?”
“Well, I’m not flying it… that’s the orb’s doing. Anyway, it’s a long story, but it’s all very true. Even I couldn’t make shit up this crazy.”
“Watch your language on an open channel, son. Are you coming home now?”
“Yeah… just as soon as Poland stops firing missiles at us.”
“Poland?”
“Look, Dad, the rest of the world has no idea what’s really happened. They don’t know we’re the good guys up here. You need to call… I don’t know… like NASA or the President or someone. We need to be able to land. Dad, weren’t you in the Navy? Can’t you call someone?”
“You’re really up in space? I’ve been listening to the news… that was you?”
“I already told you, it wasn’t just me. Truth is, I’m really more of an observer, though it’s too hard to explain right now. Just get the military to stop firing on us… can you do that?”
“Guess I can try. How can I contact you?” Tony looked over to the orb for guidance.
The orb said, “I will continue to monitor this police band. If your father speaks, I will hear him.”
“Did you hear that? Did you hear what the orb said?”
“I heard it. Okay, let me get to it. Take care of yourself, son.”
“Thanks, Dad… you too.” Their connection ended.
Cuddy said, “There’s still the issue of keeping this ship… us too… out of the hands of the government. We need to avoid capture.”
“Why do we care?” Tony asked. “I just want to get home. Let them take the damn ship.”
Cuddy felt his anger rise up, “No… that can’t happen. I made a promise. I’m going to Primara. This ship, and the Evermore, cannot be taken. I… cannot be taken.” But clearly, by their expression, neither Kyle nor Tony fully understood why.
Over the next two hours, Cuddy had time to think. And he did so with a level of laser-sharp clarity that, even with everything else that had changed within him, was still surprising. His brain—his consciousness—had continued to evolve. He anticipated that when the sheriff came back online, he would be handing off all further communications to some authority figure in the military—maybe a general, or someone else high up—who would demand the ship land at some pre-designated location. But that wouldn’t work with what Cuddy planned to do.
“Orb… when we reenter the Earth’s atmosphere, can the Revenge be tracked?”
“Yes, primarily by various types of commercial and military radar. And the Revenge is no longer invisible. What did you call it—stealth?”
“I may be able to repair that functionality.”
“Why didn’t you mention that earlier?” Kyle asked.
“I was unfamiliar with the characteristics of this vessel. Since then, I have completed an in-depth evaluation of each of the ship’s systems. The stealth mode generators, which are part of the Tactical system, do have a certain amount of redundancy built in. I can make the necessary repairs… make use of the redundant system on board. It will take me another hour.”
“So you’re saying the Revenge will, in fact, be able to avoid detection? We’re not going to be blown out of the sky by some missile?” Cuddy asked.
“That is correct. At least, for Earth-based technology, I am confident the Revenge cannot be tracked.”
“What other technology would we have to worry about?” Kyle asked. “We destroyed the other two Howsh ships.”
The orb, hovering close to one of the larger display screens, replied, “I’ve detected this…”
At first, Cuddy didn’t understand what he was seeing on the screen. It just looked like a lot of slow-moving icons.
“What you now are viewing are ten Howsh Marauder-Class star fighters. Individually, they are highly capable crafts. Together, they become a powerful force.”
“What is the Revenge like in comparison?” Kyle asked.
“The Revenge is referred to as a Scout-Class vessel.”