Omega Force: Savage Homecoming (9 page)

“I’m still going through the data from the feed on Jason’s armor,” Twingo was saying, “but I just can’t believe that these buildings were constructed from a solid piece of rock.”

“That’s not even the strangest thing we saw down there, but I have my doubts as well,” Jason said as he ate, feeling decidedly mellow after their long trek across the alien city.

“Let’s try to stay focused on the matter at hand,” Doc said. “Tomorrow we’ll attack this fresh and try to see what may be left on that device Jason brought back. And with that in mind, I bid you all goodnight.” He got up from the table and ambled off to his quarters without further comment.

“That’s not a bad idea,” Jason conceded. “We’re all beat after the flight out and the day we’ve had. I’m going up to the bridge to put the
Phoenix
to bed and then I’m hitting the rack for at least six hours.”

“I will be up to stand watch momentarily, Captain,” Lucky said as Jason stood to leave.

Jason walked around the bridge stations putting various systems in standby and priming others to alert the crew at any sign of danger. Finally done, he flopped into the pilot’s seat. The planet below was exquisitely beautiful without the telltale signs of an industrialized civilization spoiling it. He activated the orbital maneuvering system, spun the ship to port, and then dipped the nose down so the
Phoenix
was flying sideways around the planet and offering an unfettered view of the globe through the main canopy.

—
BEEP BEEP—

He looked at his display as the computer automatically brought up a com control panel, complete with a blinking indicator that he had an incoming
com request. Assuming it was the
Diligent
, he moved to activate the link, but his hand stopped when he saw the link origin; it was only a few thousand kilometers away, also in orbit around the planet.

Jason swallowed hard as he considered the implications. The sensors claimed the system was clear of any ships, but something was transmitting from a trailing orbit off their starboard side.
Could those ships have some sort of advanced stealth ability?

—
BEEP BEEP—

Hands clammy with a sudden sweat, he reached over and activated the link.

“I see your manners haven’t improved much since last we spoke, Jason Burke.” Deetz’s face filled the display projected on the main canopy.

“Having my home planet attacked by a psychotic, lying,
piece of shit synth doesn’t help,” Jason said evenly as he rose from his seat and walked around to face the display, but not before making sure the transmission was being recorded and a trace from the signal’s origin was being run.

“Oh my, you are mad
, aren’t you?” Deetz laughed. “Imagine my surprise when I got to that backwater world and discovered the DL7 had never returned and you were nowhere to be found. I had expected you would have fled home, had the ship confiscated, and likely been incarcerated by your government.”

“Thought I’d do some sightseeing first,” Jason replied lightly, trying to prolong the conversation so the computer could provide a better trace.
“So what is this all about, Deetz?”

“It’s not obvious? I went from being an up-and-comer in Bondrass’s organization to being without a ship and hunted by two different cartels. I want revenge.”

“Oh please. This is a little elaborate for a simple revenge plot isn’t it? You’re up to something and I want to know what it is,” Jason said as he stood in the middle of the bridge with his hands on his hips.

“I could care less what you want,” Deetz said, suddenly dropping the pretense of joviality. “You’ve cost me dearly and you’re going to pay for that.”

“You might want to get some better friends before that. The one ship that tried to stay and fight didn’t fare so well.”

“Ah yes
… I’d noticed the gunship has been
highly
modified from its original configuration. In fact, I wasn’t sure it was you until I had my probe in that system get a visual confirmation before transmitting the com request.”

“Let’s stop dancing around, Deetz,” Jason said sharply. “I’m coming for you and I won’t stop until I’ve got you. No mercy and no walking away
. Not this time.” Deetz simply winked at him with a smile and terminated the transmission. Jason stared at the blank screen for a moment before raising his voice. “So what do you think?”

“He was very confident,” Lucky said as he emerged from the passageway that led off the bridge. Jason had seen the light glint off his skin as he
was pacing the bridge, and was both thankful and impressed at the battlesynth’s instinct to let the charade between him and Deetz play out.

“He was,” Jason agreed. “He also wasn’t surprised to see us here. In fact, he left a probe here for when we arrived. He planned this somehow.”

“The probe was possibly left for anyone who stumbled upon this planet and his secret. But it does confirm we are in the right place.”

The computer beeped again to let Jason know it had traced the signal from the probe as best it could. It was woefully incomplete as were most traces of slip-space signals, but it directed them to a general area that was a four
-day flight from their current location.

“
Twingo, is the ship slip-capable?” he called over the intercom.

“Yes. Why?”

Jason ignored the answer as he plotted their course from the pilot’s seat, something Kage normally did, and fed power to the main drive to break orbit and get them to the mesh-out point the computer had provided.

“Yes.
WHY?”
Twingo said forcefully as he walked onto the bridge, but pulled himself up short at the look Jason gave him.

“We’re leaving. Now,” he said simply, not wanting to get into a protracted debate about the conversation with Deetz just
then. “I’m jumping us at a moderate speed and we’ll still talk it through after everyone has rested. I may have a general location on Deetz and we need to start making our way back towards ConFed space anyway.”

“Hmm,” Twingo hummed, obviously suspicious. “I’m sure you’ll tell me everything tomorrow.” The
Phoenix
shuddered slightly as the slip-drive meshed them out of the A’arcooni’s home system.

“Tomorrow,” Jason confirmed. When Twingo had exited the bridge
, he looked at Lucky. “You’ve got watch, big guy. You know the drill, call if the ship blows up.”

“Of course, Captain. Sleep well.”

Jason trudged to his quarters, now truly exhausted, wanting nothing more than to sleep for at least a few hours before trying to process all the new information that was bombarding him. Someone, however, had other ideas.

“Hey,” Taryn said softly from his bed, propped up on some pillows. Her hair was artfully disheveled and she had obviously been waiting for him. She straightened in alarm when she saw the look on his face, however. “What’s happened?”
she asked with dread.

“Deetz just called the ship. While I was on the bridge,” Jason said, not even considering lying to her. She had been through too much already for him to insult her by trying to coddle her. “I traced the signal as best I could and we’re flying that way now, but who knows
…”

“But that’s it? No new attacks on Earth?”

“Not as far as I know.”

“Come here,” she said gently but firmly, holding both her hands out towards him. He spun around and slid into the bed next to her and allowed her to cradle his head while she pushed her cheek against his.

“What have I done, Taryn? I thought I was doing the right thing by letting him go. And then I doubled down on stupid by not coming home, I selfishly stayed out here stirring up trouble, and practically dared anyone to find Earth and attack.” Jason stared at the far bulkhead, the guilt of the attacks on his homeworld weighing heavily on him.

“You couldn’t have known,” Taryn said softly. “Nothing changes the past, Jason. I’ve
heard what you’ve been doing out here and I would hardly call it selfish. Now, you can either wallow in your own guilt and feel sorry for yourself, or you can correct a mistake you made years ago.”

“Jesus
… don’t sugar coat it,” Jason said.

“You know bullshit when you hear it. Right now you need to hear it like it is
, and you need to get your head right for this. Earth is depending on you to do the right thing here, even if they don’t know it.” She released his head and turned his face to hers. She kissed him shortly and then pulled away. “You need your sleep,” she said as she rolled over and turned her back to him. He stared at the back of her head for a minute in disbelief before rolling over and killing the lights. Grumbling with obvious disappointment about the conclusion of his night, he punched his pillow a couple of times until it was to his liking, unable to see the half-smile on the face of the woman beside him.

“So that’s it,” Jason said. “And then the signal trace led to this general area of space and that’s the best I’ve got.” He was addressing both his crew in their small meeting room as well as Crisstof and Kellea aboard the
Diligent
via a slip-space com link.

“That region has a few developed systems in it, but nowhere to hide the remaining two ships,” Kellea mused. “We can also begin moving into the area so we can cover more ground once you arrive.”

“Be very delicate with that device, Captain, as well as the data you gathered from the A’arcooni homeworld,” Crisstof said. “It’s the only link we have to what may have happened to an entire sentient, industrialized species.”

“We’ll do our best,” Jason assured him, “but that is second priority to finding and stopping the other two ships. Rest assured we won’t wantonly destroy the camera, if that’s what it even is.”

“I suppose it’s the best I can ask for from you,” Crisstof muttered. Jason ignored the pointed comment and addressed Kellea.

“We can crank up ou
r speed and get on-station within two days, Captain. How far out are you?”

“A little over three days,” she answered. Jason mulled that information over a moment.

“We’ll maintain course and speed for now. Deetz seemed overly confident during our talk, and I’d rather not blunder into a trap of his without any backup.”

“You’re beginning to learn, Captain,” Kellea said with an arched eyebrow and a half
-smile. “We’ll see you in a few days.
Diligent
out.” When the display went blank Jason turned to his crew, careful to ignore Taryn’s icy stare after his interaction with Captain Colleren.

“Anybody have anything to add? No? Then get back to whatever it was you’re supposed to be doing,” he said to them. “Twingo, Kage
… I want the data off that device before we arrive.”

“We’ll do our best, Captain,” Kage said enthusiastically. Twingo just stared at the Veran in disgust, but said nothing. Everyone began to file out of the small room and go about their business, but Taryn remained seated.

“You’re not going to just dump me back off on Kellea’s ship when we arrive, are you?” Jason just blinked, as it wasn’t the question he had expected.

“This ship isn’t a safe place in the best of times,” he began, but at the look that crossed her face he quickly changed tactics. “But we can ta
lk about it when we get there.” She said nothing as she moved past him out the door, but her eyes said plainly that she had no intention of disembarking when they met up with the
Diligent
.

Muttering to himself
, Jason made his way back up to the bridge. He really didn’t have much to do but wait for his crew to report back to him on anything they found.

“How is life with your
… mate? ... on board?” Doc asked as he sat in his seat.

“Probably not the proper term right now, but it’s a pain in my ass,” Jason said moodily. “I catch myself making decisions I never would have now that her life is at risk too.”

“Such as?”

“Would we have ever slowed down to make sure we had backup when we arrived?” Jason asked.

“Point taken. So what are you going to do?”

“I have no idea,” Jason answered miserably. “Having her here is both a dream come true and a nightmare at the same time.”

They fell into an uncomfortable silence as Lucky walked in and took up his normal post by the entrance to the bridge, and Jason was left to reflect on how his already-complicated life had taken another wild turn.

*****

“Three minutes until we mesh in,” Kage reported. Omega Force, plus one human female, were all on the bridge and were anxious for the tedious slip-space flight to be over. Taryn had begun to get twinges of what Twingo had dubbed “space madness” as the walls of the
Phoenix
seemed to close in on her after days of nothing but the drone of the engines and the back and forth of the alien crew. That, coupled with her body fighting off all the alien bugs that Doc’s medical treatment didn’t fully suppress, and Jason was dealing with one seriously unhappy woman.

They were
about to drop back into real-space in the middle of nowhere; interstellar space that was roughly equidistant from each of the three systems that contained habitable worlds. Jason wasn’t sure if Deetz was using a ship’s transmitter or if they would simply find another repeater in the area. Or, would they simply find nothing but empty space? The more the enormity of the task ahead of him became clear, the more frustrated he became. Chasing Deetz across the galaxy could take years, depending on how long the synth wanted to string him along.
But he did seem to be interested in finding me. This may not take as long as I think.

“Standby for mesh-in,” Kage announced to nobody in particular. There was the familiar shudder as the
Phoenix
transitioned back into real-space and the canopy cleared.

“Clear the area,” Jason ordered.

“We’re alone,” Doc confirmed. “Active sensor sweep shows nothing in our area.”

“Kage, start using the com array to scan for the frequency Deetz used and see if we can get at least a bearing on it,” Jason told his right-seater. “I know it’s
a long shot.”

“That’s the understatement of the year,” Twingo volunteered from the engineering station, earning himself a long, unfriendly stare from Jason.

“Isn’t there anything useful you could be doing?”

“Not really.”

“Contact the
Diligent
and inform them we’ve arrived at our first jump point,” Jason said to Doc, ignoring Twingo altogether.

They spen
t the next few hours scanning through various frequencies with the slip-space com array to no avail. Jason ground his teeth together and fought down the urge to lash out, as he was sure Deetz was somewhere aboard one of the remaining two ships having a great laugh at his expense. His crew was working tirelessly to find a solution to something that was essentially his problem, so he bit his tongue and busied himself with running focused scans with the active sensor array.

Once he could take no more
, he excused himself from the bridge and walked off the command deck. Having no particular destination in mind, he found himself walking though engineering and looking at the disassembled A’arcooni device on one of Twingo’s workbenches before moving on into the armory. He ran his hands over the deadly armament that lined one of the walls on hooks before walking over to the rack that held his powered armor.

He touched the panel on the rack and began to run diagnostic routines on the complex piece of equipment. It was an unfathomably expensive unit, but with it on and using his neural implants to control it
, he was almost unstoppable.
I could have captured Baghdad by myself wearing this thing. Hell, I could be the Emperor of Earth with the Phoenix and a few days’ time.

“Penny for your thoughts?”
a voice floated from the doorway.
People actually say that?
When Jason didn’t reply right away, Taryn went on, “Jason, you’ve got to snap out of this.”

“Out of what?”

“You know what. You’ve been moping around like it’s your fault Earth has been attacked,” she said as she walked in, pausing at the wall of hand-held weaponry. “What the hell?” she whispered.

“Most of those are Crusher’s. I’m not moping and I’m not necessarily blaming myself, Taryn. But there are some real dangers here: the genie is out of the bottle. People know where Earth is so that’s not likely to stay a secret for long
, and now humans know of the existence of advanced alien cultures out here,” he replied.

“We’ve always sorta known—
”

“No. Now they
know
. No tinfoil hat conspiracies, real proof. And once humans know for certain there might be something interesting on the other side of a hill, there’s almost no way to stop them from finding a way to take a look for themselves.” He slid the armor rack back into its alcove and closed the door.

“I don’t like the way you keep referring to
we
humans as
them.
It’s like you don’t feel a part of us anymore,” she said softly, approaching him.

“Look at me Taryn,” he said
just as softly. “I’m loaded up with alien wetware, Doc has manipulated my genetic structure extensively, and my best friend is an annoying blue alien. For the most part I would be a stranger among you. I certainly wouldn’t be allowed to come home and resume living freely.”

“So where does that leave us?”
she said, her eyes glistening. “You’re never coming home, are you?” Jason didn’t answer her; instead, he wrapped his arms around her and drew her in close, careful not to hurt her with his augmented strength. After a moment she looked up at him and pulled his head down to hers for a gentle kiss on the lips. It wasn’t long before things became decidedly more heated, so much so that they almost missed the snort of disgust from the doorway.

“I put up with you eating and drinking in here,” Crusher began in a deadly quiet voice. “I grudgingly gave ground on you not cleaning your equipment right away. I’ve even overlooked your repeated violation of standing policy by leaving your sweaty cloth
es all around. But I will NOT abide you mating in the armory!” The warrior’s voice had been rising in volume as he went on, and he was nearly in full voice by the end.

Taryn then did something that shocked Jason and Crusher both. She laughed lightly as she disengaged herself from his arms and walked over like she was going to slip by and leave. The petite blond then suddenly stood on her tiptoes and grabbed Crusher’s cheek in her right hand and gave it a jiggle like she might do to a favorite, eccentric uncle. With another short laugh she slipped out of the armory and was gone. Crusher’s eyes were wide as
he watched her leave, and then looked back to Jason, making huffing noises that indicated he was less than amused. Jason just shrugged helplessly as he fought to control his own laughter.

*****

When Jason walked back onto the bridge he saw Twingo and Kage in an animated argument. “What?” he asked.

“You won’t believe this, Captain, but I think we may have found the transmission source,” Kage said hurriedly before Twingo could answer.

“I take it you disagree?” Jason asked his friend.

“It’s not that I disagree that the carrier frequency and the modulation properties are similar, but the signal is actually two signals. Look,” Twingo motioned Jason over to the display he was looking at. “This
strong signal is coming from an unpopulated star system fairly close to here. But there’s a second, weaker signal that’s detected right after that and it can’t be pinpointed.”

“The ships have split up,” Jason said to himself. “Or Deetz is still on that smaller ship he escaped in and is communicating with them.”

“Plausible,” Kage agreed. “What do you think we should do?”

“Well, the problem is that this is obviously a trap,” Jason said as he climbed into the pilot’s seat.

“How can you know that?” Doc asked as he and Taryn drifted over to join in the conversation.

“Deetz has been manipulating
this from the start. I’m beginning to believe he knew I wasn’t on Earth, but by drawing me back there he could better control the chain of events and engage us at times and places of his choosing. Otherwise, why leave that com drone in orbit over A’arcoon looking for a DL7 gunship?” Jason put his hands behind his head and leaned back as he thought out loud. “He also knew we’d trace the transmission back to this general location and he knows how fast the
Phoenix
is, or at least how fast she used to be, and now we conveniently have com traffic coming from a point of origin not far from here. He’s fully expecting us to go check it out, and now that he knows about the
Phoenix’s
improved armament he may have a nasty surprise for us.”

“Sound thinking, Captain,” Lucky said. “But the question remains, what are we going to do?”

“We’re going to spring the trap,” Jason said with a grin. “Deetz has no idea about our alliance with Crisstof. We’re going to mesh in just outside the system while the
Diligent
does the same at a different location. While they may be expecting us to rush, in they won’t be ready for us to have them in a pincer with a frigate-class warship.”

“That’s not nearly as stupid as most of our plans,” Twingo
agreed. “I’ll get us ready to depart.”

“I’ll contact the
Diligent
and coordinate our arrivals. Kage, feed me the nav data when you get the course plotted,” Doc said as he sat down at the com station.

“Sure thing,” Kage replied as he climbed up into his seat. “We’ll be ready to mesh-out in five minutes, Captain. I’m giving you our heading now.”

As soon as Jason got the heading he began accelerating along it. The slip-drive didn’t need forward velocity to transition the ship, but Jason liked to have some momentum when he meshed-in so he could maneuver immediately.

It was more than ten minutes later when the
Phoenix
blasted her way into slip-space. The delay came from trying to convince Captain Colleren why she should willingly fly her ship into a suspected trap. In the end she agreed to let the
Phoenix
enter the system from above the ecliptic and bring the
Diligent
in from the opposite direction and inclination exactly fifteen minutes after. Jason didn’t blame her for the hesitation. There were a lot of lives on the
Diligent
, and while she felt for him she was under no obligation to risk her crew or her ship in the defense of Earth. For his own part, he was painfully aware of the blond woman on his bridge who was currently trying to explain to Twingo what a pizza was and why he should try one.