FFA Part 6 - Reunion...

[silentWitness]

Reunion

Eleanor smiled at me "Wakey wakey sleepy head. We're almost at the rendezvous point" I stared out into the thick swirling gas nebula, electrical storms flashed all round us, slightly buffeting us and illuminating the ship hulks surrounding us, shattered remains of wrecks long since forgotten "What is this place?" "We were lucky in the fact that the Argon simply saw the AP gunner as obsolete, as you know Earth fleet ships were hurriedly repaired and pressed into service against the terraformer threat, many ships had equipment simply grafted directly to the hull, the AP gunner had a faulty power input for its navigation system, a new system was simply welded on and patched into nav computer, the old system functioned for approximately four days before it's power reserves ran dry, enough time for the AP gunner to make the journey with Gunne to Ronkar's Clouds and then on to Sonra-4 where as we know the command vessel crash landed and the survivors began their journey into becoming the Argon... The Argon Military obviously didn't require this information as the nav system didn't pick up any information about the Khaak so we pulled it before the ship was confiscated by Argon Intelligence. After all how many ships have two Nav systems?" Eleanor could see I didn't really know what she was talking about "This sector is the real site of the Earth Gate! This sector was disconnected from the gate network during the realignment. We don't know where the gate in Brennan's Triumph once lead but it serves to keep people asking questions." As we entered a clearing in the nebula the shattered remains of a gate, around it the unmistakable remains of terraformers. "Each of the three gates in this system loop back in on themselves, it's the only system along the Gunner's route we've discovered to do this, the others have all been incorporated back into the network albeit out of sync of the original layout... Right now we are literally nowhere!" "Why are we here?" "Because now outside of the two of us, no one knows of this system... And if you are to survive on your own you're going to need to learn how to fly" I noticed a small light ahead of us... A ship. As we loomed ever closer I saw the small drones hurrying back and forth to it's Mothership, a sleek almost monolithic carrier ship... Maybe even a shipyard in its own right. "The Fuso..." I grinned at Eleanor... Someone was still thinking of home.

My training was slow, while the M3 I was to be provided with was mostly automated merely touching the controls would often send it into an uncontrollable spin, which of course Eleanor could break us out of with a mere flick of her wrist, she insisted I was making progress, but even flying forward was a challenge that seemed beyond me. I cursed the simulator every time the game over screen appeared.

Suddenly we stood outside the real ship... The flight suit was tight yet I could breath easily Eleanor took my hand "before we do this there is one last thing we need to do..." Eleanor was quite serious "No pilot flies a nameless ship... It's a bad omen... So?" I looked at the smooth lines "Ariake" a small panel flew up from the floor of the dock. As I pulled myself up the ladder into the Spartan living area, two little bunks, amble storage for a week or two, even a little hygiene station tucked away in the corner.... A home away from home. I slipped into the flight seat, it was very comfortable... Suddenly it rose up and I was in the cockpit... I'd never seen it before but everything was familiar. "Alright! Bring the engines online and when you're ready ease us out of the docking bay." Even on the comm Eleanor's voice was remarkably clear... As if she was whispering in my ear. The engines whined as the thrust out-takes ignited, but as the atmosphere in the bay was removed the sound dropped to a bearly audible hum.

The metallic throttles were cold to the touch, the flight stick, sat before me like a delicate sculpture, moulding itself to my hand as I grasped it... The doors were open... It was time. I brought the throttles up, the ship effortlessly pushed its way out of the bay and into open space, so far so good. "Alright! I've marked the location of the first Kesler ring on your hud, fly through each one sequentially" I cautiously turned the ship and pushed the throttle slightly more but this was seeming far too easy. "Why is this so easy?" "You weren't born in a cockpit... So I turned back time a bit..." The afterburners ignited "what the hell does that mean?" There was a sudden burst of acceleration... The turns were coming too quickly. I screamed, Eleanor must have gone space crazy! She was trying to kill us both! I pulled desperately at the throttle but the overrides are set... I am locked out... Suddenly I hear Eleanor cackle over the comm... I see the open space in front of me... In the blur of the moment I half remember moving the flight stick, has I just done the impossible? Was this ship under my control?

The slimy putrescence sludged itself over the deck, slowly oozing its way through the small grated drain, the moment I had stepped from the ladder I was overwhelmed with nausea... Eleanor silently crept up beside me "It seems we have more in common... I knew you were a natural... You just needed to get your mind out of the picture... And I also threw up after my first hands on flight." "You're out of your mind!" "It worked though didn't it?" That I couldn't deny... From that point on flying in a straight line wasn't going to worry me... I feared only the thought of a crazy woman with the throttle override!

According to the log it was very early in the morning... While the environmental systems attempt to create an artificial day night cycle the outside view never changed... It was the same... A black space with the occasional dot of light. Eleanor insisted that as a planet dweller I was not to stare out the viewing windows for to long as it would cause depression and severe mood swings, for the most part Eleanor kept me busy with my flight training or some other with her stories of the universe but tonight it really hit me... We were the only two people within millions of light-years, the whole Argon race could have been wiped for all we knew and with no way back to Earth it would be a lonely existence... I closed my eyes and turned from the window trying to fill my mind with happy thoughts but it was too late the vast loneliness of space had sunk it's claws in, Eleanor could see it in my eyes the moment I arrived for flight training that morning... I might not have been ready but it was time to return to civilisation.

As the jump drive throttled down I saw comforting blue blips on the Gravidar... They were Eleanor said they were Teladi ships... The reptilian race... Apparently the sector Seizewell had the strongest jump signature of any known sector... Apparently during the initial testing of the, malfunctioning jumpdrives either ended up in Seizewell or were never recovered, Eleanor loved to laugh about it, saying that somewhere out there in the wide universe there's an Alien race wondering where these nine jump sleds came from! Eleanor flicked a switch and the computer slowly initiated challenge protocol with the nearest station... symbolically reconnecting us with the universe... The message terminal rang out... The bearded man from the Space post flashed up on the monitor. "Eleanor. I have some good news! Brennan has been recovered, but we have a problem, the Paranid are threatening to declare war if we do not hand him and Julian over to them, the Senate is looking to assign blame, Senator Mcarthy has pushing for the arrest of all both Julian and Brennan, and I feel that with the Fleet stretched so thin the Senate will fall to her arguments. While I have managed to spare your daughter from the fallout when Julian returns I will be forced to arrest him and Brennan. I feel now that you were right to shield the other Terran from the authorities, I don't know what know what knowledge she must have but if the Terran's can create gateless jump portals they would be a great ally in what is becoming a very hostile universe. Take care! Ban Danna out." Eleanor and I both looked at each other shocked by the message... Things had gone from bad to worse.

I stood on the surface of a sun... Why was I here? One moment I was in the shuttle now I was here... The light was intense but not blinding a soft whispered shout entered my ears as if it was coming from all around "The time is coming! The Machines shall show you the path.". It was suddenly black... I was immobile, staring out into the cosmos... I was a machine... Where was I? I awoke on my back, the hard deck of the shuttle beneath. Eleanor staring up at me her face pale and white as a sheet, fear in her eyes as if she has stared into the face of death itself. "What's wrong?" I asked but Eleanor said not a word, instead helping me back into the flight seat. It would be several hours before she would speak to me... It would be a day before she told me where we were going.

A strange sight greeted us as we entered the through the south gate of Circle of labour... Several battered cruisers limped their way slowly towards the gate, apparently the Khaak had attacked on a massive scale across the entire galaxy yes we had not seen even one Khaak ship on our journey. Eleanor hesitated as we approached the North gate... Her breath short and anxious... Suddenly we were on the other side...

Wreckage and debris were spread thickly across the sector, the Gravidar flashed up multiple unidentified targets. A fighter craft shot across our bow. "Unidentified ship. By order of the Terran Military cease your approach"... My god! They were here! Earth was here! "This is Major Eleanor Kho, serial number 37N255-864 requesting dark-side re-entry!" There was a brief moment of silence "UO Vessel... Cut your engines and prepare for re-entry. The Process was relatively quick... Eleanor ran through the inconsistent and downright crazy questions at lightning speed as if all her life works were dedicated to that moment. As we began our approach there was a moment of realisation that my amazing journey would end, the moment I stepped on board that ship... I would have a lot of explaining to do. The gantry was slow... The universal docking port was traditionally used for rescue missions rather than docking, as the airlock opened into the grey tube of the dock I felt physically sick... What if they kill us when we get to the top. The gantry opened out into a large room Marines their guns seeking out any signs of hostility. A small machine sat on a table... A palm reader... This was going to be the worst moment of my life. Eleanor went first. "Identity: Major Eleanor Kho"... Angular scan beams flashed all about her. "Verified". There was a visible shifting of guns towards me. Now it was my turn... I placed my hand above the reader stretching my fingers out for fear it might not read. "Identity.... There was a deafening pause "Colonel Nicole Xique. Earth Fleet Forces" The scan beams seemed to burn into me as if searching my very soul. "Verified." What? My mind searched itself wondering whose cruel joke this was... But the world seemed real enough. There was a sudden shout "Officer on deck" The marines surrounding us snapped strong solutes. Eleanor looked at me with amused suspicion as she slowly reached to solute me. I solute back a sheepish grin coming to my face... So much for killing us.

The Admiral's staff ushered us into his offices, the uniform was crisp and fresh... While I've never worn one in real life I must look natural... The Admiral eyed us up with a smile that was like he had has just been delivered two high class hookers as a retirement present! "Colonel... Major... Welcome back! You've both been gone a... long time! For your return to coincide with the Captain's return makes this day extra auspicious!" Obviously a career Soldier... Must be the reason he was sent to Earth's most dangerous border ever conceived. "Major! We can certainly consider your mission a success! We have word that you have established a successful business within the Alien Territories, and that you have a family. The intelligence services wish for you to operate business as usual... Managing future Terran Agents within Argon and surrounding territories" "Thank you sir" "No Thank you major! You've proved yourself a great asset to all Terran kind" Eleanor gave a backwards glance at me and smiled. "Colonel, it is with great honour that I greet you today... Your deployment of the... Recovered Prototype. When the ship disappeared we felt sure that you had died! For you to be alive and well... Is astounding... Because of you we now of the major temporal flaws inherent in a gateless jump event and were able to successfully jump, Captain Kyle Brennan to the 'X universe' without high levels of distortion..." He paused for a moment "Is there anyone on Earth you would like to be contacted?" I thought long and hard... My old life seemed a distant memory "No" "It is as I thought... Man mourns the loss of such a woman as you to the service but it is a necessary sacrifice... Your record speak for itself... Exemplary. If you still wish to remain part of the military we have a very special mission for you... We need you to explore and experience this new universe... As a high ranking field officer you would be well placed to direct local forces in the near future. Will you do it?" They were telling me to go live my life... From being sure they were going to slice me up... The military were about to sponsor me a new life! How could I refuse.