The Cyber Chronicles IX - Precipice (21 page)

Commander
Andon, a tall, handsome man with gingery hair and pale blue eyes,
turned and bowed as Tarvin entered the bridge. "Sire, the enforcer
ship is heading straight for us, and decelerating. Imperial is
following."

"Did you agree
to protect them?"

"No, Sire, not
without your approval."

Tarvin studied
a tactical screen, where two tiny points of light moved towards
Shadow Hawk, one noticeable bigger than the other. In a magnified
real time view on one of the smaller screens, the two ships were
distinguishable as a vast burgundy and gold battleship and a much
smaller, mottled battle cruiser that looked more like a pirate than
an enforcer. Pulses of laser light strafed the enforcer ship,
striking her hull with blue flashes. The enforcer fired back, lines
of blue fire pouring from her stern to score glowing marks on
Imperial's forward shielding. The enforcer was badly outgunned, and
clearly knew it. She headed for Shadow Hawk like a frightened child
seeking shelter behind its mother. Since Shadow Hawk had been
travelling in sub-light parallel to the corridor, the ships
approached from the side, and angled their trajectory as Tarvin’s
ship moved past them.

"Contact
Endrovar and tell him to break off his attack. He's in Estron space
now. I want to know his reason for attacking the enforcers."

"Sire, the
enforcer is altering course. If Endrovar keeps firing, any shots
that miss the enforcer will hit us."

"Tell him to
ceasefire immediately," Tarvin said.

Andon touched a
coms-con key and murmured into his headset's microphone, waited a
moment, then said, "He's not responding, Sire."

"Take evasive
action."

"Firing dorsal
thrusters." Andon watched his tactical screen. "The enforcer is
altering course again, keeping in line with Endrovar."

"Probably
hoping Endrovar will break off his attack rather than hit Shadow
Hawk, which he should."

"He's not,"
Andon said.

"Turn towards
him, and arm."

"Yes,
Sire."

The stars moved
across the screens as Shadow Hawk turned. The points of light that
raced towards them swelled, becoming discernable without
magnification on the main screen.

"Tell the
enforcers to alter course," Tarvin ordered.

Andon keyed his
microphone and murmured into his headset again, frowning at the
ships on the screens. Plumes of flame burst from the enforcer's
bow, and she veered. A tinny voice gabbled in Andon's ear, audible
in the bridge's hushed hum. He glanced at Tarvin.

"Sire, they say
they're damaged, but they're trying to obey. They say..." He
listened for a moment. "They freed a Myon Two technician from
Endrovar, that's why he's attacking them, apparently... They're
requesting our aid again. Now they want repairs, too."

Tarvin glared
at the screens. "Since when did Endrovar become a pirate? That's a
tall tale to swallow. Still... fire a warning shot across
Endrovar’s bows, and tell him to break off his attack immediately.
I will meet with all of them and get to the bottom of this."

Andon relayed
the order to the cyber pilot, and twin beams of white fire shot
from Shadow Hawk's bows, barely missing Imperial. Instantly, a pair
of blood-red laser bolts shot past Shadow Hawk's bows in a
retaliatory warning.

"What's the
matter with him?” Tarvin demanded. “Has he lost his mind?"

A tinny voice
spoke in Andon’s ear. "Endrovar says... we should stay out of it...
He won't comply with your order. He says the enforcers stole from
him... a slave, apparently."

Tarvin's brows
rose in surprise. "Well, well. The plot thickens. Why would he be
this upset about a slave, unless it was a valuable one? Perhaps the
enforcers are telling the truth after all."

Andon consulted
his tactical screens. "Sire, the enforcer ship has altered course a
little, but she's going to pass very close to us, and Endrovar’s
still firing at them. Should I summon aid?"

"Shadow Hawk
can deal with Endrovar’s ship. No, move to cut him off. How dare he
defy me? It seems everyone thinks I have no spine."

Andon shot him
a shocked look, averting his eyes swiftly. "Yes, Sire."

Tarvin pondered
the double meaning of his words with deep bitterness. His ego still
smarted from Tassin's defiance, and now Endrovar, too, seemed to
think he was bluffing. Just because he had a broken back did not
mean he could be defied and disobeyed at every turn. This was
Estron space. Once again the stars shifted as Shadow Hawk turned to
face her enemy, following Imperial's course as it headed after the
enforcer. Blazing lines still linked the two ships and glowing
spots marked their hulls. Shadow Hawk approached the fiery web,
imposing its bulk. The enforcer ceased fire when Shadow Hawk moved
into range, but Imperial continued to strafe her.

Andon winced as
the tinny voice shouted in his ear. "He's ordering us to get out of
his way, Sire. He sounds angry. He's threatening to fire on
us."

"If he does,
he'll start a conflict with us, and that, he doesn't want to do,"
Tarvin stated.

A shiver ran
through the ship, and bright flashes filled the screens. Andon's
jaw dropped, and he shot Tarvin a look of horror.

"Apparently he
does, Sire."

"That bloody
fool." Tarvin cursed. "Fire back."

Andon relayed
the order to the cyber pilot, and lines of white fire lanced from
above and either side of the screens. They converged on Imperial,
whose hull became dotted with glowing spots. Andon listened to the
furious voice in his ear, grimacing.

"He's
threatening to engage us, Sire. He says those were just warning
shots."

"We're already
engaged. I'll ceasefire if he does, otherwise he will suffer the
consequences."

"Sire, that's a
battleship too."

"I'm aware of
that, thank you."

Andon listened
to his earpiece again. "The enforcer is asking to dock with us for
repairs."

"Not right
now."

"They say it's
an emergency... some sort of gas leak."

"Fine, let
them. Myon Two's going to pay for the damage to my ship, that's for
sure."

Brilliant
streams of laser fire poured between the battleships, pure white
and vivid red mingling in a scintillating web. Imperial's bows were
almost molten under the barrage, the glowing spots melding before
they faded in the sub-zero of space. Tarvin knew that Shadow Hawk's
bows were similarly affected, and the rapid heating and cooling
weakened her hull.

As if reading
his thoughts, Andon said, "Forward hull strength down to seventy
per cent, Sire."

Although a
battleship's bow was reinforced to withstand just such a barrage
for a while, it would take its toll. When battleships engaged,
which was rare, the resultant spectacular battle's outcome depended
upon which had the stronger hull. Shadow Hawk's forward shielding
was a high-density duronium-tirrinium alloy, but Endrovar could
also afford the best, and Tarvin did not doubt that his ship's
shielding was just as good. Tarvin squinted as the screens blazed
brilliant red, and Andon cursed.

"Close forward
shields," he ordered.

Battle shields
whined over the forward screens, blocking off the view of the
battle, and Tarvin's scowl deepened. The screens, made from Trevian
armoured plasglass, were a ship's weakest point, and targeting them
was a low tactic. All it did was force them to raise the battle
shields, which was a mere annoyance.

"Target their
screens too," he said.

"Yes,
Sire."

Two could play
at a game of tit for tat, but, with the shields up and the vista
ruined, all that remained to monitor the battle were the tactical
displays and vidscreens that brought images from external cameras.
Andon glanced up as a voice gabbled in his ear, looking
relieved.

"He's broken
off his attack, Sire. He's asking to come aboard and speak to
you."

"At last, he
shows some sense. Ceasefire and let him wait. I'm not in a mood to
see him now."

"The enforcer
ship is docked, Sire."

Tarvin turned
his chair and drifted towards the door. "Bring their commander to
my meeting room. I want a word with him."

Chapter Eleven

Sabre glanced
at Tarl, who watched him with deep concern. The ex-cyber tech's
hovering irritated him, even with the calming drugs. Pathos had
just completed docking with Shadow Hawk, and tension on the bridge
was high. Thestan issued orders into his com-link, directing rescue
and repair crews to affected areas. Pathos had taken a terrible
beating, and several decks were damaged, as well as one of the main
engines and four thrusters on the port side. As soon as Shadow Hawk
was in range, the cyber's scanners had picked up Tassin's life sign
far to the rear of the vessel, and he fought the urge to go to
her.

Tarl raised his
brows. "Well, that worked. What now?"

Sabre gazed at
Shadow Hawk's hull, which filled the screens, since Pathos was
docked with it. "Now I have to get aboard and find Tassin."

"That's not
going to be so easy, bud. What about if Thestan asked Tarvin to
hand her over? He could say that she's the wife or daughter of a
Myon Two elite or something. That might work. Tarvin seems to be an
ally."

"A lie won't
work if there are any cybers around, and, since he has so many,
there probably will be."

"True," Tarl
agreed. "But you can be quite sure Tarvin won't allow a cyber on
his ship."

"I'd say he's
more likely to than most, since he has so many of them."

The coms'
officer glanced around. "Sir, Shadow Hawk is ordering our commander
to a meeting with King Tarvin."

Sabre nodded.
"Good. Ask if we can bring a cyber along."

The officer
listened to the reply, and his brows rose. "They say we can bring
as many as we like."

Tarl frowned.
"That's odd."

Sabre turned to
Thestan. "Any ideas, Sub-commander?"

"No, sir."

"Of course not.
Perhaps it's because Tarvin's got so many of his own on that ship.
It suits me, anyway."

Tarl said,
"It's weird. No one allows four strange cybers on their ship if
they can possibly help it, even if they've got forty of their own.
I could understand if we were able to persuade him to allow one,
but to agree that easily to as many as we want? There must be a
reason for it."

Sabre shrugged.
"I guess we'll find out, won't we?"

"You're far too
calm. Have you taken any of those pills?"

"Yeah, and I
feel fine."

"Of course you
do, you're on cloud nine."

Sabre sighed.
"Quit worrying about me, and quit hovering over me like a bloody
over-protective mother naibull."

"You're not
yourself..."

The cyber
turned away. "Thestan, assemble a boarding party. Ten men, I think,
and one of the cybers. I assume you wouldn't normally take all of
them, would you?"

The
sub-commander shook his head, and Sabre continued, "You'll play the
part of commander for the duration. All you have to do is tell
Tarvin the truth about Tarl, and keep him busy while I fetch
Tassin. You order the cybers to wait outside the doors to his
audience room, or wherever he meets you. Tarl will come along as
your prisoner. Got it?"

“Yes, sir.”

Tarl said,
"That's a battleship, bud, it's -"

"A Vegar Class
Battle Axe, built on Estron Prime, I know. I can find my way around
it blindfolded."

"Yeah, but
they're not going to let you just leave with her. There's got to be
more than five hundred people aboard her, and a lot of them will be
soldiers, not to mention the forty-one cybers."

"I'll do it
quietly. They won't know she's gone until we're well away."

"You can't be
sure of that,” Tarl protested. “What if -"

"Will you quit
arguing with me?" Sabre glared at him. "We're here to rescue her,
and that's what I'm going to do."

"Not like that.
The chances of your plan working are nil. You're not thinking
straight, bud. We've got to try to buy her, or tell Tarvin that
Myon Two wants her. If you sneak her off that ship, even if you
succeed in getting her back here, he'll attack us."

"I'll risk
it."

"Just how many
of those damned pills did you take?"

"Not enough to
stop you annoying me." Sabre rubbed his brow, disliking the
harassment. The drugs that brought him a modicum of calm also
fogged his mind. "Look, I know it's a bad plan, but there's no
other way. It will seem mighty odd to him for enforcers to want to
buy a slave, and he might not care if she's Myon Two elite. We
don't know how important Myon Two is to him, and if we let on that
we want her, for whatever reason, and he doesn't agree to give her
up, he'll make sure we don't get to her. Right now he's busy with
Endrovar, so, if I can sneak her off, we tell him we've made our
repairs and leave. The chances of anyone noticing she's gone
straight away are slim, and if she has guards, I'll make sure they
can't raise the alarm."

"What if
they're cybers?"

Sabre shot him
a scathing glance. "Why would anyone guard a woman with
cybers?"

"I guess." Tarl
still looked worried. "You should call Fairen."

"No. This is my
battle."

"Would you risk
Tassin's life?"

The cyber
frowned. "I'll call Fairen if I have no other choice. That has its
risks, too, because although he’ll probably demand Tassin’s release
if I ask him to, Tarvin is a king, and I’ve dealt with royalty
before. They don’t like to be ordered around, even by an Overlord,
so he might just arrange a little accident for her rather than hand
her over. I won’t risk that. I have to be with her, so I can
protect her. Besides which, Fairen’s helped me out of enough shitty
situations. I can do this on my own."