Star Crusades Nexus: Book 03 - Heroes of Helios (2 page)

Beneath the floor of the Hammerhead, the boarding collar fitted securely to the outer door and created an airtight bond. The entire locking system was automatic, and in seconds, the robotic system had opened the external door while maintaining pressure within the ship.

Jack expected something bad to happen, and his stomach muscles tensed at the possibilities. In theory, they should have arrived safely, but there was no way to be completely sure. The hijackers had only gained control of the ship a few days before but could easily have positioned camera monitors anywhere on the ship. Even worse, they might have booby-trapped the hatches on the exterior of the vessel.

Sergeant Stone showed no such concerns and moved through the hole headfirst, pulling himself down into the interior of the ship. Two more marines followed him before it was Jack’s turn to enter the blackness.

Okay, be cool, this is it,
he thought nervously.

It was silly of course; he’d already experienced significant combat and had even played a major part in destroying an entire enemy vessel. This was different though, and he’d only managed that by activating the autodestruct facility on an already crippled vessel. The operation aboard this ship was a military one and not of necessity or desperation. It wasn’t even like the jobs he’d been involved in when he’d been helping the Jötnar on various operations throughout the Alliance. Those had been somewhat illegal and kept as discrete as possible. This was a hostage rescue and mistakes could leave many innocents dead. The tunnel leading inside was pitch black, with just a subtle hint of yellow coming from the small landing lights beneath the Hammerhead fighter. The light cast hard-edged shadows inside before vanishing without warning. The lowlight warning indicator came on inside his PDS armor, and the system tried to adjust for ambient light. It took no more than a second for it to detect an error and brought up a number of options on his visual display. The unit was built into the visor and operated much like a Heads Up Display. Jack hesitated, but the voice of the Sergeant appeared like a whispering demon.

“Switch to combined infrared and thermal.”

Jack nodded even though the man couldn’t see him at that very moment. He selected the option, with nothing more than using his retina to choose the correct mode. His visor changed in an instant to show the new combined overlay mode. It utilized a low intensity emitter on his shoulder, bathing the interior of the tunnel with infrared light that could be visualized on the overlay. It was colorless and showed the world in a dull monochromatic layer of gray. The thermal imaging layer, on the other hand, was set to only show heat bloom that would then be overlaid with the infrared data. The combined series of information was the next best thing to daylight, and he immediately felt more comfortable. He pulled on the rails, and he was now halfway inside the tunnel. In front of him, he could see the heat bloom given off by the marines. It was lower than expected but still obvious to the advanced sensors on his suit. The stealth and subtlety of this part of the mission reminded him of the last, and very violent, training scenario where he and his fire team had been forced to take a position in hand-to-hand combat.

Just as well Wictred and Hunn aren’t here.

The thought of his two friends made him smile. They were a rarity in that both were Jötnar juveniles and had managed to pass selection and training in the Marine Corps, just like him. Like the rest of their kin though, they were massive, strong, and partial to excessive violence in situations like this one.

Yeah, maybe hostage rescue isn’t ideal for Jötnar!

Jack used the grab rails on the walls of the tunnel that led from the outer door deep inside the ship. The only sound he could hear was the voice of the marine officers as they directed the teams of marines inside the ship. He finally reached the bottom and lowered himself to the walkway below before activating his magboots. It was an odd feeling as his body became anchored to what they had now determined was the floor, though in reality there were places to put his feet on any of the four sides. Walkway was probably the wrong term, and the surface he was standing on contained a dense pattern of metal extending out like a grid. The holes were wide enough for a couple of fingers to hold onto but not too big that a mag boot would slip through. Sergeant Stone waited until the entire squad was inside before moving.

“Stay alert, we’re two hundred meters from the habitation section.”

He looked directly at Corporal Harvey.

“Stay here with your fire team. If we need to fall back, you’ll need to provide cover.”

“Sarge!” replied the man firmly.

“Let’s go.”

He moved away with each foot lifting and dropping into position like a robot moving through treacle. Although the other marines had trained for this kind of mission, not one of them moved with the speed or precision of the Sergeant. He covered the ground quickly, and they struggled to catch up.

Hey, slow down!
Jack thought angrily.

As they moved through the ship, Jack became aware of sounds being amplified through his armor’s speaker system. It was a minor detail but did tell him there was air in that part of the ship. It made sense of course; it was after all a pressurized section like all the inhabited parts of the ship.

“Watch your sectors, marines. I don’t want nothing to surprise us.”

Jack smiled at the odd double negative but said nothing. The Sergeant already seemed to have enough reasons to dislike him without adding more. Mentioning points like that had earned him a reputation for not keeping his mouth shut, and after many months, it seemed that he might even be learning something. The walkway was narrow, barely wide enough to stand side-by-side. The eight marines advanced in a long staggered column, each keeping their L52 MK II carbines in position and ready for trouble. Jack looked back and saw the blackened visors of his comrades right behind him. Their dark armor and tiger stripe pattern made them almost invisible in the blackness of the walkway. Inside the suit, Jack could smell the oil from the mechanical segments as well as the sealant used prior to operations to patch weakness in the joints and seal units. He took a series of deep breaths and continued forward. Sergeant Stone maintained an impressive rate of movement but stopped just before reaching the end of the walkway. He lifted his left arm in a clenched fist, and as one the marines halted and found whatever cover they could in the lifeless corridor.

“Remember the briefing. Use low velocity rounds, protect the civilians, and avoid damaging the ship, for God’s sake!”

Jack glanced down at his L52, checking the barrel was correctly twisted for what must have been the tenth time. It was a quick and easy setting and forced the weapon to reduce the velocity of the magnetic projectiles. It was normally a mode used for silent operations, but in this case it was to do with avoiding damage to the ship. With another signal, the tech specialist they’d brought stepped up to the door and attached a breached unit to the wall. A small articulated arm extended out, and he placed it on both the circular door and another on the control pad. A rubber-coated cable ran directly from the device to a unit on the marine’s back.

“Twenty seconds,” he whispered on the unit's secure channel.

Each of the marines heard this and tensed ready for what was to come. It was only then Jack noticed the bars on the right of his suit that indicted air pressure and temperature. All the levels suggested the ship contained breathable air and a fully sealed environment. He’d already heard the sounds as he moved, yet it hadn’t occurred to him this meant the interior of the ship was now perfectly suited for human habitation, just without the benefit of a system of artificial gravity. Jack thought of the design of the ship, and its antiquity amused him.

Old school, Spartan would love it.

The comments from the Sergeant came right back though, and he remembered some of the videos they had watched demonstrating what happened doing depressurization. It wasn’t pretty for those without protection, and even those in armor would be taking a major risk. The statistics for finding lost crew in a ship blowout still shocked him.

Another good reason not to blow holes in the side of the ship!

The possibility of an external breach was always a concern, even when wearing a suit such as his. Rapid or explosive decompression could kill those that were unprotected, as well as sucking out the unwary marines into space. Their orders were clear; they were to avoid damaging the ship, its cargo, or passengers.

Jack watched the circular door with great care as the tech specialist accessed the computer system. He could see the screen and knew exactly what the young man was doing. He even noticed the man make a minor but obvious mistake, as he navigated through the ship's systems. He wanted to move forward to help, but it wasn’t his place and he knew it. The tech might not be perfect, but he’d done nothing that would harm the operation; it had just taken him two seconds longer than Jack knew it would have taken him. A magnetic seal unwound and clunked open, revealing a bright white light. Without the suit's protection, Jack would have been blinded for critical seconds. Luckily, the visor was designed to protect against the power of something like an unexpected solar flare. It adjusted its reflective and abort capabilities while deactivating the infrared mode.

“Go!” Sergeant Stone called out.

They were through the door and into a communal area of the ship. The floor was slightly rounded, and Jack could feel himself moved to the side. He hit the moving floor and then found himself planted as if on the ground.

Artificial gravity,
he mused, forgetting for a few seconds that many ships made use of rotating sections to produce useful levels of gravity on long journeys. The other marines joined him, and soon the entire unit was taking advantage of the gravity being offered.

“Stay frosty and keep your magboots active. It won’t be like this for long.”

They moved past the tables that were built into the walls and extended out just a few meters. Cupboards and lockers covered the outer surface, and bright strip boards bathed the area in a white light. On first glance, the place seemed untouched, but already Jack had spotted marks on the walls and scorch marks on the units.

There’s been a fight here already.

They reached the end of the room and another of the circular doorways. This time it was already open and led out into a small open area, with doors leading to other sections in the ship. Sergeant Stone stepped out and continued on. Jack glanced at his schematic overlay of this Ontario class freighter. The next section was one of the habitation segments, including a recreational area and access to sleeping quarters, then came the engineering, and finally the bridge.

“Okay, third team has reached the motor control units. They will deactivate the system on my mark. Be ready people,” the Sergeant said without pausing.

They passed through the small square space and the next door into the recreational area. Computer displays were fitted into plinths along the walls, as well as a holographic projector unit in the center of the room. There were large burn marks on the walls in this section as well as black colored stains.

Blood.

Jack shook his head at the sight; he knew full well that if they’d taken lives, the hostage takers would be prepared to go further. He could only hope there were no explosives on board. The rest of the unit moved into position, all of them stationary like armored sentinels.

“Now!” cried Sergeant Stone.

A sick feeling spread through Jack’s body as the artificial gravity cut inside the ship. Two seconds later, the circular door blew open to reveal the large habitation area. Directly in front was a man in brown trousers, a dull shirt and flak jacket that was open to the waist. He hung onto the grab rail on the wall while his legs flailed about in the air. In his right hand was a heavily modified pistol.

“Watch out!” he cried, but it was too late.

A powerful flash erupted from its muzzle, and the first marine at the door was knocked backward from the impact. Jack didn’t have time to check the injuries but pushed himself through the gap and deactivated his boots. The rest of the marines pulled inside and reattached their boots to the ground. Jack, however, sailed through the interior of the ship in total silence, spinning slightly as he went. Everything appeared to him as though it was a slow motion dream. Sergeant Stone had already killed the armed man with a double tap to his head and chest. More armed men tried to find cover, but it was too little, too late. Jack took aim at a man reaching for a thermal shotgun and fired a single round, striking the man in the stomach. The impact blew him back, and he spun out of control. Jack grabbed the closest wall and pulled himself down and directly behind the targets. He scanned quickly with his eyes, and the visor flagged the potential hostiles as his retinas darted about.