Hunt for the Saiph (The Saiph Series Book 3) (17 page)

Seaton ensured the electronic shield reengaged as the door closed behind the still-chatting men before he returned his attention to Dikul.

"I take it you have heard something of interest, Katria?"

Dikul took a sip of her brandy and eyed him over the fine crystal.

"My sources are telling me that Bradshaw has ever-so-quietly been meeting with high-ranking officers of the PSO and subsequently over the last few weeks, all of Harriman's protection detail have been rotated out to other duties."

Seaton kept his voice free of inflection for fear of giving something away in the presence of this political shark. "Surely it would not be unusual for the Presidential Security Office to replace their more experienced officers with others, now that Harriman is no longer vice president?"

"You would think that would be true, but you then have to ask yourself why the PSO has now requested a special dispensation in their agreed-upon budget because of an unexpected overrun that they have put down to extra protection required by a raised threat level at a senior retired official’s home."

"Although an interesting piece of gossip, Katria, I cannot for the world see what it has to do with me."

A playful smile crossed her lips. "Come now, Seaton. Do you forget that I am chair of the Armed Forces Oversight committee? The military and the FIB may have tried to keep it quiet, but I know all about Daya Thomas being detained while in possession of files which listed some very powerful people in and out of government. The contents of those files are still a closely guarded secret, but from what I have heard, those files, if in the wrong hands, have the potential to end a lot of careers. Maybe even result in jail time for a few unlucky individuals." Dikul paused as she took another sip of her brandy. Seaton suspected this was more to add to the suspense than because she was thirsty. She was enjoying this moment of intrigue.

"You run a very tight ship, Seaton. There’s no way Daya would have been in possession of those files if you didn't know about them, and a man as well-organized as yourself would always make sure he had copies." When she paused this time, she ensured that she kept her eyes on Seaton. "All I'm saying is perhaps those files contain something which could take Bradshaw out of the picture, so to speak. With him gone, Madkin would be a lame duck and Mathias could walk away with the election."

Seaton was forced to admit that he had underestimated Dikul. Not only was she willing to do everything in her political power to win, she was hinting she was willing to go beyond simple legalities to ensure victory. Her expectant face told him enough. Time to take the game to a new level.

"Unfortunately Bradshaw's name is not among those you will find in the files. However..." Dikul's obvious disappointment became expectation. "Perhaps a more direct course of action could be taken in this particular case. I am aware of an individual who has been useful in the past in this type of situation..."

As Dikul listened to Seaton's proposal, she began to understand the true depth of this man’s willingness to succeed. No matter what he was forced to do. And she admired him for it.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Piggy in the Middle

PLANET IV - 23 LIBRAE SYSTEM - 83.7 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH

It was past two o'clock in the morning ship's time and the ensign on duty at the Tactical Station aboard the research ship TDF
Henry Moseley
was struggling, mostly in vain, to keep his eyes open when an incessant beeping eventually penetrated his groggy consciousness. Rubbing his eyes, he canceled the alarm and checked his panel. The sensors were picking up a ship on approach and by the course it was shaping, it was headed for a low-orbit insertion. The
Henry Moseley
was in high orbit of Planet IV, known as Uolas by the Deres and Wapal by the Nilmerg. Neither side could agree on a single name for the planet and were not likely to any time soon, was the ensign’s understanding. The
Henry Moseley
was here in support of the scientific expedition on the surface of the planet, which the Commonwealth simply referred to as Planet IV. The fact that the mission was the combined effort of the Commonwealth, Deres, and Nilmerg was a minor miracle in itself. The arrival of SurvFlot Two and Rear Admiral Torrance three years ago had brought about a ceasefire, albeit a precarious one, in the hundred-year war that had raged between the Deres and the Nilmerg. Both sides had suffered horribly in the conflict and their hatred of each other was so deeply etched into their psyche, even getting them to sit down at the same table had taken the Commonwealth Ambassador, Amber Isa, over two months. The ceasefire she negotiated was only made possible with the promise that the Commonwealth navy would be its guarantor and that the navy would constantly maintain sufficient resources in 23 Librae system to enforce the ceasefire agreement. At present, that force consisted of the four Lynx-class cruisers comprising Cruiser Squadron 1.2.2 under the command of Commodore Mkhize, currently engaged in war games on the edge of the system.

With a few keystrokes, the ensign commanded the tactical computers to run an ID on the approaching ship, which they dutifully accomplished a few seconds later, throwing the results up on the tactical holo cube. The ensign half turned in his seat to face the duty bridge officer, an engineering lieutenant who was so completely engrossed in her PAD displaying details of the latest declassified specs on the new Colossus carriers, she did not even notice the tactical display’s update. "Ma'am, we have a Deres freighter on approach to low-orbit insertion."

Without raising her eyes from the PAD, the lieutenant replied, "Probably just the monthly resupply with more of that stringy stuff the Deres call food. Log it, then inform Base Control to expect visitors."

"Aye-aye, ma'am." Message sent, the ensign shuffled in his seat to find the most comfortable position and returned to his battle with boredom.

#

EXPEDITION BASE - SURFACE OF PLANET IV – 23 LIBRAE SYSTEM

Sarah Boone took one last look up at the stars through the clear plasteel dome enclosing the base and holding back the thin, barely breathable atmosphere as she closed the door to her cramped quarters on the surface of Planet IV with an audible sigh of relief, her ears still ringing from the constant whining of Gils Sarar and Ull Fors. Both the Deres and Nilmerg expedition leaders respectively had been a pain in her proverbial ass since the base had been established six months ago. It appeared neither could agree with the other on anything. If one said something was black, the other would immediately state that it was white. The latest disagreement was over who would be first to enter the cave five kilometers below them. A cave which, if the power readings detected by the
Rapier
during its first visit to the planet, and the subsequent surveys the Deres and the Nilmerg had carried out were to be believed, held blockhouses identical to those found over a decade before on the Rubicon planet in Proxima Centauri. Blockhouses that Sarah knew undoubtedly contained another complete Saiph database. Even through her fatigue and frustration, a small shiver of excitement passed up Sarah's spine. During the original Rubicon expedition, she had been the Chief Structural Engineer and remembered as if it was only yesterday the day they discovered the five blockhouses constructed by the Saiph so long ago. When she was approached to head up the Commonwealth expedition to Planet IV, she had jumped at the chance. Little did she know what she had been letting herself in for. Kicking her boots off and discarding her coveralls, as she walked to the bathroom, Sarah headed for the welcoming embrace of a hot shower and then bed. Sarah only made it as far as the bathroom door before the double tone of her wrist comm interrupted her plans.
Give me a break!

"Go for Boone."

"Director. Willis in Base Control. Signal from the
Henry Moseley
. They report a Deres freighter entering orbit."

And?
Sarah bit her tongue. Willis was only doing his job. "Thank you, Willis. I'm sure they know we're in the middle of the night here so unless it's urgent, tell them we will be prepared to receive supplies when the morning shift comes on."

"Yes, Director. Sorry to disturb you. Good night. Control out."

And good night to you too. Now for a shower,
thought Sarah.

#

If the bridge crew of the
Henry Moseley
had bothered to make visual contact with the inbound freighter’s crew, they might have been curious as to why, instead of the usual white uniforms of a Deres merchant vessel’s crew, they would have seen the space-black uniforms of the Deres Space Force, but after months of coming and going, the Deres had satisfied themselves the Commonwealth ship’s crew were becoming lax. And it was about to cost them dear. The freighter's navigator turned to the ship’s captain and did his best to ignore the presence of the squat, older Deres who sat beside the captain, with the ever-present hulking bodyguard directly behind him. "Orbit achieved. We are now geostationary directly over the Commonwealth base and the research vessel is holding station 28000 Jils above us, sir."

"Very well." The captain turned his head sideways to address the true commander of the vessel. "With your permission, Marshall?"

Marshall Poll, Commander in Chief, Deres Space Force, paused a heartbeat before answering. Relishing the moment as months of secret planning were about to come to fruition. Poll cursed the politicians who denied him permission to take the secrets of the Saiph database buried deep below the surface of Uolas and use them to finally bring the long war against the Nilmerg to an end. An end which would see the Deres victorious and the Nilmerg annihilated. No. The politicians would rather listen to the words of the cowards who had forgotten how the Nilmerg had killed so many with their treacherous, unprovoked attack so long ago. The same cowards who insisted there could be peace between Deres and Nilmerg. Fools! Did they not realize if the Deres did not seize the alien library then it was only a matter of time before the Nilmerg did and then it would be they, not the Deres, who would be victorious? Poll had been a soldier all his life. He had shed his blood in defense of his world and had watched too many of his friends pay the ultimate sacrifice to let some spineless mouthpiece in the House of the People belittle their sacrifice by seeking peace when the tools of victory were so close to hand. No. Never!

His voice came out in a whisper, but it was loud enough for the captain to hear. "Execute."

"Execute! Execute!" Repeated the captain, and seconds later the bridge crew experienced the craft shudder as explosive bolts fired. Along the entire length of the freighter, false hull plates fell away to reveal evil-looking assault shuttles full of Deres soldiers sitting in their drop cradles. This particular freighter was something humans would have called a Q Ship. An armed merchant ship which only revealed its teeth when its prey was close enough. As the plates reached a safe distance, the shuttles were released and their pilots tipped their noses downward and began a screaming, maximum power descent into the atmosphere. Just as the juddering of the released shuttles halted, a fresh set of tremors rolled throughout the ship. Along the upper spine of the freighter, a second set of explosive bolts blew, the hull plating cleared the ship and exposed the ugly snouts of a hidden battery of energy weapons, which swung on their mounts and oriented themselves onto the
Henry Moseley
.

"Target locked, Captain."

With only the briefest of glances at the marshall by his side, the captain called, "Fire!"

#

The bridge crew of the
Henry Moseley
returned to their quiet routine as the freighter slipped into orbit. The quiet was shattered by the ear-piercing wail of the missile warning alarm. The sleepy ensign's eyes flew open and he nearly fell from his seat as he leaned forward to read his display. To his horror, the computer was telling him that what he and the rest of the bridge crew had presumed was an unarmed freighter had just fired a dozen missiles toward the surface... wait... hold on... the bogeys were too slow for missiles. The computer was now calling them small craft. Before he could tell the lieutenant, a fresh alarm sounded. His eyes flashed to another corner of his display.
Oh God!
A targeting radar had acquired them. "Lieutenant..."

He never finished. The near light-speed energy weapons mounted on the freighter’s spine fired, and at such close range the minimal battle armor of the
Henry Moseley
may as well have been tissue paper. The outer hull simply evaporated under the intense bombardment. The inner hull was sliced open as the terawatts of energy sought to turn itself into heat. On and on the beams went, evaporating flesh and steel without pity until at last they punched through the outer hull again. As the beam weapon mounts slowly tracked along the length of the research ship, it was only a matter of time before they connected with a critical area. In less than five seconds they found it. The area took the form of the forward-fusion bottle. In an instant, containment was lost, and in a blinding flash the
Henry Moseley
and her crew were no more.

#

"Target destroyed. Energy banks recharging. Radar shows no further targets within range, sir."

Poll clapped his hands together and let out a loud, "Ha! I told those fools we could defeat these meddling Commonwealth pale skins. Captain?"

"Yes, Marshall."

"Transmit the go code to the fleet, we need them here as quickly as possible. There are still Commonwealth warships lurking in the system somewhere and we cannot be sure the research vessel did not have time to get off a call for aid."

"At once, Marshall." The captain gave the comms officer a curt nod and with that, phase two of the marshall's plan was put into operation. The captain wholeheartedly agreed with the marshall that they needed the fleet here if they were to stand a chance against Commonwealth warships and not simply a poorly armed research ship. He just hoped the fleet got here first.

#

The high-pitched whining of turbofans rudely wakened Sarah Boone. Very close turbofans if she could hear them through the dome walls. Her hand scrabbled about the top of her bedside cabinet as it searched for her wrist comm in the darkness. Retrieving it, she pulled it toward her and activated the link, her tired brain making no effort to keep the irritation from her voice. "Control! Willis! What the hell is going on? I thought I told you to tell the Deres not to unload till the morning and what the hell are they doing setting down so close to the dome anyway? If they puncture it we'll all be wearing breathers until it’s repaired and I don't know anybody who will be happy with that."

"Eh... Director, you had better get in here. Those aren't supply shuttles. The airlock cameras are showing armed Deres soldiers entering the dome."

Sarah sat bolt upright in bed, her eyes searching the pitch-black room as if she could see the soldiers coming. The base was a civilian affair, there wasn't a single weapon or soldier on it. That had been a specific clause in the agreement in setting up the combined three-way expedition.
Crap!

"Contact the
Henry Moseley
and make them aware of our situation."

"I've been trying to raise the ship and all I'm getting is static." The sound of desperation was apparent in Willis' voice.

If they couldn't raise the research ship it can only mean two things,
thought Sarah.
Either it’s folded away or the Deres have already dealt with it. Whatever, there’s no chance of help arriving in the next few minutes.
"Well, get a general signal off on all frequencies then. Hopefully Commodore Mkhize will hear it and come running." Sarah didn't wait for Willis to acknowledge. She cut the link to the Control Room and then entered her director’s code into the wrist comm. A single tone informed her she was now linked to every wrist comm and speaker on the base. "Attention! Attention! This is Director Boone. An unknown number of armed Deres have entered the base. All personnel are ordered to offer no resistance. I repeat, no resistance. You are to comply with all instructions given to you. Good luck. Boone out." Having done what she could to warn her people, she flung back the covers and started getting dressed. She was just putting on her boots when the door was flung open and in the doorway she could make out the shadow of a Deres soldier pointing his weapon at her.

#