A Faded Star (3 page)

 “I've just returned from my briefing with Admiral
Vesper. Although I haven't yet officially taken command of the Rampart, I
wanted to take a moment to welcome you aboard. I understand you've been
promoted to your current rank more than three years early because of your
performance in the tactical drone program?”

 “Yes, sir. The officer in charge and I worked closely
together to get the drone performance parameters in the simulators into sync
with the real world drones.” The combat drone program was brand new, designed
specifically for the Rampart and follow-on ships in her class. No ship had
carried drones during the Karn-Ebrim war. “Once we had the performance right in
the simulator, I just kept using them to the best advantage.” Patho felt a bit
of pride at his accomplishments in the simulations. “Sometimes, they would put
me up against three or four other students at once. One time, I beat every
instructor at the school at the same time. That wasn't their fault, though.
They thought the overwhelming numerical advantage they had was enough to crush
me outright. Combat drones are much more effective when you use them like a
needle instead of like a hammer.”

 “Well, the recommendations your instructors wrote
based on that, and other training events certainly helped your military career
along, Mister Patho. I know you're quite young for your post, and you must know
you will be in command of officers and men who are older than you are. If you
have need of guidance, you should come to Commander Hanlon or myself.”

 “I understand, sir. Thank you.”

 “When I was given my first department to command, I wasn't
much older than you are now. That was during the war, of course.” Stokes paused
to observe Patho's reaction to the mention of the war. Patho's eyes narrowed
slightly, but he gave no other indication of his thoughts. “One of the enlisted
men was nearly twice my age. His insight into how the men think and carry
themselves was invaluable. I have assigned a similarly experienced man to be
your leading chief petty officer. Chief Hogan will liaison between you and your
junior NCOs and enlisted men. You also have a division officer, Lieutenant
Junior Grade Fuchs. I want you to teach him everything you know about
commanding drones in a simulation. We leave space dock in three weeks to begin
our shakedown cruise, and I need the most highly trained team in the fleet.”

 “Understood, sir.” Fuchs had been in tactical training
school with Patho. He'd graduated weeks earlier because Patho had spent so much
additional time improving the training curriculum. “I'll do everything I can to
pass my expertise along to everyone in my division.”

 “Miss Hanlon will assist you in drawing up a drill
schedule. All personnel are expected aboard within the next two weeks. Once all
assigned crew members have reported aboard, and all of the space dock personnel
are gone, we will drill hard and fast. The Rampart is expected to begin long
range operations in two months, provided the shakedown cruise goes well.”

 “If I may ask, where are we planning on going?”

 “Initially, we are going to explore the comet shield
surrounding the Lashmere System. As you know, our system went supernova about
four billion years ago. The debris and gasses may help us in understanding what
the system looked like before that event. We have been to the comet shield
before, of course. The real purpose of this is to prove Rampart's ability to
operate away from support systems for extended periods of time. During this
period of cautious exploration, the next ship in Rampart's class, the Rook,
should be complete. The Admiralty feels that once there are at least two ships
with interstellar travel capability in commission, we'll be ready to begin
moving out of the Lashmere system itself.”

 “I understand, sir. Thank you.”

 “Of course, Commander. For now, I suggest you get your
cabin situated and then introduce yourself to your division. If there are no
other questions?” Stokes paused, and at Patho's negative response, said, “Very
well, then. Dismissed, Commander.”

 Patho spent the next three weeks settling in. The
officers and crew, after a short period of surprise at having a Karn officer,
quickly became accustomed to his presence and mostly welcomed him into their
ranks. Only a very few demonstrated lingering concern or unease at his
presence. The Rampart departed space dock on time without incident. After a two
week series of exercises, the ship began live fire testing of the combat drone
system. As was usual for systems testing, the entire bridge crew of the Rampart
was assembled, along with Marli Simmons, the technical adviser from Naval
Research and Development.

 The thrum of launching drones rumbled through the deck
plates below Aden's feet. Sensor displays bloomed with fresh data as the drones
exited their launch bays and sorted themselves into flight patterns. "We
have a normal launch, Captain."

 "Very well, Mister Patho," Stokes replied.
"Engage exercise target at point alpha. Put the drone remote sensor data
on the main plot."

 "Aye, sir." Patho tapped a few controls,
causing the large central display on the bridge of the Rampart to shift its
focus from a broad overview of the Lashmere system to a much tighter view of
the tactical exercise area. The drone flight paths were light gray trails
following the bright blue dots of the drones themselves. "The drones are
on course to engage the target in seventy-five seconds, sir."

 "Acknowledged." Stokes turned his attention
to the display for a moment and then said, "Correct me if I am wrong,
Mister Patho, but it looks like they are holding their assigned vectors this
time."

 "Yes, sir. It appears we have worked out the
hiccup from the last test. I'm using the single pass pattern this time. Drones
are entering attack range now."

 Stokes watched as the drones entered attack range. The
drones sent back target damage assessments as they fired. The target lasted
less than ten seconds in engagement range. His voice took on an edge of tightly
restrained excitement. "Excellent. It looks like that target didn't stand
a chance."

 "No, sir," Aden said, trying to keep his
conflicting emotions in check and out of his voice. The drones had been
extremely challenging to troubleshoot and, worse still, they had been developed
exclusively by the Ebrim. He took a deep breath and controlled his voice. “It
looks like the out the worst of the bugs have been worked out of the system.
The drones kept the AI net up for the entire attack run. Outputting the error
correction data now, sir."

 The secondary plot blinked up a log of shared data
that had run between the drones during the attack run. Stokes looked over at
his executive officer. "Analysis, Miss Hanlon."

 Hanlon paused a few breaths as she visually inspected
the information. "Sir, this data looks like the simulation runs we made
before live fire exercise. At first glance, I can't see any anomalous readings
at all."

 "Excellent. Recall the drones and prepare to
maneuver to the next target area." Stokes leaned back in the command
chair, feeling relaxed for the first time in weeks. The Rampart was a brand new
ship, and her post-launch shakedown cruise had been especially challenging. So
many of the systems on board were new designs with innovations from lessons
learned during the war. There was virtually no background of experience to upon
which to draw. During initial simulation exercises, the drones attacked each
other immediately after launch and, once they had deemed themselves 'dead',
then turned on the Rampart, which was saved only by the fact that the drones
were firing simulated weapons. In subsequent tests, the drones' targeting
systems interfered with their navigational sensors, causing massive flight path
errors. Fortunately, the worst of the bugs had been eliminated, leaving minor
glitches and errors to work out. Stokes was about to give the order to engage
maneuvering engines when Hanlon held up her hand to Stokes.

 “Sir, there's an alert of the proximity net. It looks
like an unidentified energy reading.”

 Stokes looked over the data that Hanlon put on the
master plot that dominated the front bulkhead of the bridge. “Very well, Miss
Hanlon. Science station, give me an analysis of the energy source.”

 Halford Kri looked up from his console and reported,
“Sir, it seems to be an unclassified disturbance on the sensor net. It appears
to have come from a single point source and is highly energetic. Running
analysis now.”

 Stokes looked the young lieutenant over for a moment
while he worked at his console and then said, “Mister Kri would you care for
the assistance of Miss Simmons?”

 Kri glanced at the Commodore and nodded sharply. Marli
Simmons had repeatedly rebuffed Stokes' efforts to talk her into a year aboard
the Rampart. Her input had been instrumental in the development of drone
technology for the formerly Ebrim and now Lashmere navy. Stokes gave Simmons a
nod, and the petite redhead walked over to where Kri was working. The pair
began to interact quietly over his console.

 After several minutes had passed, Stokes had to resist
the urge to tap his foot in impatience. “Is there an answer forthcoming?”

 Kri jumped and looked up at the waiting commodore.
“Sorry, sir, but we have a bit of a disagreement on what this may be. There are
a number of possible explanations, but until I see a more detailed sensor scan
of the area where this reading came from, it is impossible to say for sure.”

 “Would you care to hazard a guess, Mister Kri?”

 "As I said, there are several possible causes for
this energy reading. It could be a cometary collision between highly
reactionary materials, or it could be some kind of solar reaction or..."
he trailed off.

 "Or what, Mister Kri?" Stokes spoke into the
growing tension filling the bridge. Kri turned and was about to speak, but
Marli Simmons interrupted him.

 "Sir, if I may?" She said.

 Stokes nodded. "Go ahead, Miss Simmons."

 "Sir, I think what Lieutenant Kri is unwilling to
say is that this may be a signature from a hyperlight jump. The theoretical
physics behind this kind of system would probably leave an energy discharge
like this at the destination point. We explored this kind of faster than light
drive before we perfected the point to point drive system."

 Kri nodded slowly as he stood off to the side, looking
over Simmons' shoulder. Stokes steepled his long fingers before his face and
considered for a moment. "Very well. Miss Hanlon, what's your opinion?”

 “Well sir, whatever it is, it set off the early
warning net. If it's a natural reaction, we should see what happened. If it's a
ship, then we should definitely take a look.” Linis Hanlon responded. She
paused for a second and then added, “I recommend we go to battle stations, sir.
Just in case.”

 The Rampart had been designed during the Ebrim-Karn
war that had ended five years before. Construction had been started before the
war actually ended. The original intent of the ship with all of her highly
advanced systems was to bring the war to a decisive end. Since the Karn
surrendered before the Rampart could be commissioned into service, her
functions had been upgraded. Ostensibly, the ship was now primarily for the
purpose of exploration and scientific research much moreso than combat. Stokes
knew better; the Rampart had been designed from the keel up as a predator. He
made his decision. “Very well. Miss Hanlon, warm up the point to point drive
and prepare to intercept at..." he paused as he tapped out a quick
calculation on the arm of his command chair, "twenty-five thousand
kilometers in system from the energy point. If we assume it's a ship, that
should put us well outside weapons range when we arrive. Sound battle
stations."

 "Aye, sir. Helm run calculations for point to
point transit. Coordinates are now on display." Hanlon said crisply. She
tapped a button on her console and the battle stations klaxon bellowed from
every speaker on the ship. Pounding feet could be heard from the passageway
running alongside the bridge as freshly roused personnel hurried from their
bunks to the myriad assignments battle stations entailed. Hanlon then tapped
out another command. The shipwide announcement circuit cracked to life.
"Attention all hands, prepare for point to point transit in three hundred
seconds." She put down the mic and turned to watch as the helm completed
his calculations. "Begin countdown while I validate your readings,
Helm."

 "Aye, ma'am," the young enlisted man said,
carefully keeping his attention fixed on the large bank of displays arrayed
before him. He began to input the coordinates for the point to point transit.
After a moment, he turned and gave Hanlon a nod.

 Hanlon ran the calculations again and turned to
address Stokes. "Point to point jump calculations validated, Commodore.
The countdown is now at one hundred thirty seconds.” She paused and glanced
over the displays on her console. “Ship reports ready for jump." Hanlon
reported and turned to watch the main plot again.

 "Very well, Miss Hanlon. Jump as
calculated," Stokes said into the slow building whine of the point to
point drive coming online, its massive energy capacitors charging up for the
burst of gravitational energy required to make the drive function. The seconds
ticked by in near silence as the bridge crew went about their tasks quietly,
anticipating the coming faster than light transit.

 Aden Patho worked quickly and methodically at his
console, recovering all of the combat drones before the countdown reached zero.
Finally, he was able to report, "All drones recovered, Commodore."

 "Very well, Mister Patho." Stokes watched as
the last few seconds ticked off of the display. "Jump ship, Miss
Hanlon."

 "Jump ship, aye. Helm, jump ship."

 "Jump ship, aye." the helm pushed the jump
lever forward until it clicked loudly into the socket. There was a sudden
lurching feeling and a momentary loss of equilibrium as the ship maneuvered
through the toroid shaped deformation in space-time that the point to point
drive created. The main plot flickered and jumped as it updated the Rampart's
position.

 "Jump complete, sir. All systems report
normal." Hanlon turned away from her status display and looked at the main
plot. "Put short range scan on the main plot, Hal."

 Halford Kri tapped at his console. "Short range
scan is up now, ma'am. Looks like an unclassified energy source. Probably a
ship."

 "Definitely a ship," Simmons said just as he
finished. Kri snapped his head around to look at her sharply. Her return gaze
was impassive. "Sir, if I may,” she paused, gazing under arched eyebrows
at Stokes. At his nod, she continued. “The energy distribution from the
unclassified source is clearly a gravity slope sublight drive. This is
basically the same type of system we use aboard the Rampart."

 "Mister Kri, do you concur with Miss Simmons
assessment?" Stokes watched the pair as they spoke quietly for a long
moment.

 "Sir, I think she is probably right. The system
must be a lot more efficient than the one we use. There is no energy wake we
can detect." Kri said, his tone making it clear he was unhappy with having
to make such a definitive statement.

 "Very well, Mister Kri." Stokes weighed his
next words for a moment. “Could it be a Karn ship? Maybe something left over
from the war?”

 A sudden silence enveloped the bridge, everyone
carefully did not look at Aden Patho, the only Karn present.

 Hanlon shook her head slowly. Her smooth contralto
voice interrupted the pregnant silence that had sprung up. “Sir, even if one of
their ships had survived, none of them ventured out this far into the system.
The first generation point to point drives they were using had a range of only
a couple of light hours and the systems they used didn't create an energy
discharge like the one that set off the proximity net.” She twitched her
shoulders dismissively. “No, I think it must be something else, sir.”

 She looked over the sensor data being fed to her
console. “Optics should have it in range soon, given our closure rate. We will
know for sure then, whatever it is.”

 Stokes nodded and said, “Very well. Although I am not
dismissing the remote possibility this is some long lost Karn vessel, let's
presume that the ship is of non-Lashmere origin. Mister Patho, prepare two
drones for launch. Give them full recon packages with defensive
secondaries."

 Patho didn't turn from his console, his hands already
flashing across the controls as he responded, "Aye, sir. Drones are being
repackaged. Launch in eighty seconds." Something deep within him tugged
and twisted at the possibility it may be a lost ship full of his countrymen; a
part of him he had never thought existed. He clenched his jaw silently and
willed that part of himself to be silent.

 "Very well." Hanlon turned to Kri and
Simmons. "You two, make sure you keep data logging and get as much as you
can. If this isn't a wayward Karn ship, I want any insight you can get into
whatever this is. Make sure you scan to see if they are readying weapons or emitting
any kind of energy."

 Kri flashed a wry grin at the executive officer.
"You got it, ma'am. Anything else we can get you?"

 Hanlon just shook her head and said nothing to the
gentle retort. Of course, Kri and Simmons would already be working as hard as
possible to get whatever they could. Kri's inexperience was showing. Everyone
else on the bridge may not be aware that they needed as much information as
possible, especially the enlisted men who were quietly performing their tasks,
confident in the abilities of their officers to lead them through danger in
complete safety.

 Patho turned to look at Commodore Stokes and said,
“Sir, if I may... If that is a Karn ship, wouldn't it be possible to offer them
the opportunity to come in peacefully?”