Out of the Darkness of Space
by Maurice Humphrey
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Table of Contents parts: 1, 2, 3, 4 |
conclusion
A few moments later, Myla came in, closing the door behind her. I almost didn’t notice she was wearing a plain white dress.
“I think it’s time I told you a few things I’ve neglected to mention earlier,” she began. I could see she felt embarrassed.
“I know all about that,” as I walked over and took her hands.
“There’s just one other little thing...”
I could see she had something on her mind, and I would have to coax it out of her.
“If it’s such a little thing, does it really matter?” I was just a little concerned.
“Oh, yes, it really matters. Remember those tests I mentioned?”
“Um, yes,” expecting the worst. “What about those tests?”
“They came back positive,” she replied with a smile of relief.
“Positive? What for?” I knew they had been running tests; she’d told me so. But I never thought to ask what for.
“We’re compatible,” she replied with a happy giggle.
“Compatible? Compatible for what?” Then it hit me. “Oh! I see.” My mind went numb. I was speechless. Then emotion took over. I blurted out that I loved her, and spoke what Avar told me to say.
“I’m sure you know what all of that means,” I said, holding her close.
“I do,” she said, “and I’ve loved you since I first spoke with you. It took some coaxing to get mother to agree, but you made a spectacular impression on my father.”
“And I do, too. Does that mean we’re formally married, or whatever term you use?”
“Yes,” she replied as we stood close together, “you may now kiss the bride.”
Now where did she hear about that? I wondered, and happily complied.
A few minutes later, there was a soft knock at the door. I stole another kiss and said to enter.
Avar stuck his head in. “Are we ready to go back to work yet?”
“Yes, Captain Neech, how long before contact with the invaders?”
“Two hours, sir.”
“Inform Captain Miden to have the first team up and ready, second team on standby.”
“Aye aye, sir.”
Avar was replaced by Captain Miden.
“You have your orders, Captain,” I told him. “It’s going to be messy out there.”
“Yes, sir. And may I be the first to congratulate the both of you?”
“You are, and thank you.”
* * *
“Major Weller, sir,” Second Lieutenant Libie Heuey, the officer on the watch called. “Long range scans are picking up signs of the enemy.”
“How close are we to the main action, Lieutenant? Colonel Veed didn’t give me any coordinates on the target.” I knew we wouldn’t be sensing the outposts; Aldus was keeping them dark and silent until it was time to strike.
“The pilot just received them, sir. Our intelligence has been in touch with command central, Operation Clean Sweep is about to begin.”
And who came up with that name? I wondered.
“And where is Captain Neech, anyway?”
“You sent him to rest a few hours ago, sir.”
I looked over at Lieutenant Heuey, her long red hair reminded me of someone I’d known long ago. “Three hours is more rest than I’ve had. Carry on, Lieutenant.” I wasn’t about to roust Avar; he knew his duty.
“Operation Clean Sweep has begun, Major,” Lieutenant Heuey called. “The outposts have formed a five-hundred million mile sphere; the action should be visible soon.”
“I’ve been briefed, Lieutenant, but thank you for the update.”
* * *
From our distant vantage point, the enemy’s vessels and the outposts were too small to be visible on the holographic display. Instead, a numbered red marker indicated the enemy’s positions as they swarmed around the target world. Further out, dark blue flags marked the outpost positions. We watched as Colonel Veed directed their powerful beams upon the enemy in a dance of death and destruction.
This went on for several hours before Colonel Veed began closing in, sweeping everything before him into a raging caldron of molten rock and metal. Colonel Veed was holding them there for as long as he could. If this didn’t work, the fight would go on for another hundred years.
The target glowed a dull red as he closed in, leaving nothing between the outposts and the target. Still, he kept the beams focused as the target turned a fiery orange red, like a molten pot of iron.
“All lookouts,” I called, “keep a sharp eye out for any stragglers; we want this to be a clean sweep.” I got a strange look from Lieutenant Heuey, which I countered with a wicked grin.
Suddenly, the beams began to falter; something was wrong on the lead outpost.
“Lieutenant Heuey, can you establish communication with Colonel Veed’s outpost?”
I watched as her fingers were all over the keyboard. “Yes, sir, we should be able to see inside the control room, now!”
The scene that popped up on the display was not what I’d expected. Someone was shooting at Aldus and the controls were unmanned. As the camera swung around, I knew what was going on; his ship was under attack from inside; the Ionids had accessed the transport system.
“Assault team to the ready,” I hollered as I ran to the transport room. I wasn’t the first one there, but I did beat the assault team. Myla was already reprogramming the controls. I told her to stay there and be ready to cut the system loose when we returned. A quick kiss and I was hard-pressed to keep up with Avar as he raced ahead.
When I came out in the lead outpost transport room, the first thing I saw was three dead bodies. So that’s what they look like, I thought as a blaster bolt hit the bulkhead above me. The team had spread out, slipping through the door one by one. When I ducked through the door, someone grabbed my arm and led me through a narrow corridor to a stairway leading down into the control center.
The scene below was chaotic. There were dead Ionids and smoldering wreckage scattered everywhere. My escort disappeared to the left as another hand grabbed my arm. It was Derring!
“What are you doing here?” he hollered, “Major-General Neech will have my hide if anything happens to you.”
“I might ask you the same thing,” I bit out. “How did these things get in here, and where is Aldus?”
“Major Seag has him.” Derring seemed upset about something.
“Then we should get them out of here and touch this firecracker off.”
Derring gave me a funny look; must be they don’t know about firecrackers. “You don’t understand, Ross, Major Seag is a spy for the Ionids.”
If I wasn’t already sitting on the floor, I would have been. “Where are they?” I had murder in my eyes.
“Not far from here.”
“Wait a minute! Maybe we can herd them back to the transport area.” I grabbed one of the assault team. “Carry this message back to Myla.” And I told him what she needed to do.
The plan was simple but extremely dangerous. We needed to get this outpost to finish the program that Aldus had given it; I needed Avar for that. Next, we had to herd Major Seag back to the transport area. The rest relied on Myla playing her part. That was the plan.
It’s amazing how some things just don’t go the way you want them to. We sent Avar and two of the assault team to do their part, and started hunting for Major Seag. We found him at the controls of the transport.
“Give it up, Seag,” I hollered above the din. “There’s no way out for you.”
“You blasted alien, Weller, You’ve ruined the whole thing,” he screamed back.
“If the Ionids win, there’ll be no home for you to go back to.” Aldus gave me a nod; I had to keep him talking. “Why have you done this?” Then I had a thought. “What have they promised you? Money, power, your own kingdom?”
“You wouldn’t understand, you freak.” He fired two more shots off before a metal pipe bounced off his head. Seag didn’t seem to notice at first as the back of his skull split open, and the head of an Ionid peered forth. I didn’t have much time to wonder about it as the pipe bashed the Ionid’s head wide open and the body fell to the deck twitching.
Aldus dropped the pipe and hollered, “Ross, I can handle things now; get everyone back to the outpost while I finish up here.”
“Now that we’re here,” I told him, “we’re not leaving without you. Don’t you have it programmed?”
“I did have, but Seag blasted the automatic controller. I’ll have to handle it manually from here.”
This was not good. Neither Avar nor Myla would leave without him, and I wouldn’t leave without all of them; time for plan B.
Avar went over the controller but there was no fixing it in the little time we had left. If only there was some way to bring the transporter to the control room. That way, he could jump back through at the last minute; my crew could handle the cleanup from there.
I asked Myla if that was possible; it wasn’t. Avar suggested making up a set of remote controls in the transport room. Aldus vetoed that one.
“How fast can you run?” a voice asked Aldus from closer to the floor.
“Not fast enough,” he replied, “even though it’s not that far.”
“Then I will have to do it,” Derring said. “Just show me what I have to do, and you head to the transporter. I may even beat you there.”
Aldus objected but, under pressure from the three of us, he relented.
I stayed with Derring until the last moment. The final relay clicked and the last phase began. He said to run, and I did. Derring’s shorter legs could really go, but I beat him by thirty feet. He leaped the last ten, and I caught him as Myla disconnected from the lead outpost and we were back in DP-451.
Several hours later, there was nothing left of the Ionid force but a few stragglers. I was amazed at how good our gunnery crew was. Several hundred single enemy vessels were quickly dealt with over the next several hours. I grabbed a few hours’ sleep while Myla took over, but she was just as tired as I was. After the last enemy was destroyed, I searched the area; no trace of the Ionids remained.
Not bad for a day’s work, I thought. I almost fell asleep at the podium; what a way to start a honeymoon. Aldus took over and sent the crew to rest. The next thing I remember was waking up in bed; and I wasn’t alone.
* * *
When the monthly freighter arrived at the usual coordinates, Pete looked around. There was no sign of the outpost, and nothing on radar or long range scans. “Where the hell are they?” he mumbled.
“Where are who?” Colonel Feld sputtered.
“Ah, Colonel? I can’t find the outpost.”
“You mean we’re lost?”
“No Colonel, we’re in the right place, but the outpost isn’t.”
“Are you sure of that?” Colonel Feld bellowed.
“I’ve cross-checked all the readings; it should be right over there,” as Pete pointed at the viewscreen.
“Then you better check it again,” Colonel Feld commanded. “How can something that big not be where it’s supposed to be? Let me know when you find the outpost and Major Weller; I’ll be in my cabin.” And he left in a huff.
Pete went over his coordinates again, “I don’t care what that idiot says, it just ain’t there,” and he threw his pencil at the wall.
A strange voice came over the receiver. “Hello, is anyone there?”
Pete lifted one eyebrow and turned to the receiver. “Just who are you, and what are you doing way out here?” he asked, plucking the pencil from the air as it floated by.
“Hi there, my name is Captain Neech. Is your name Pete?”
“Yes?” Pete mumbled. There isn’t supposed to be anyone out in this sector, he thought.
In the background he heard the voice call out, “Hey, Ross, we found him.”
Pete shook his head. I must be going crazy; there’s no one out here but me and that idiot Colonel Feld.
Then a familiar voice came over the speaker. “Thanks, Avar, I’ll take it from here. Hi Pete, how you doing?”
“Major Weller?” Pete asked. “Major Ross Weller?”
“Yup, it’s me, Pete. Oh, and it’s Lieutenant Colonel Weller now, sort of a wedding present. Sorry we weren’t here when you arrived. Our pilot is good but, after traveling several hundred light years I guess he can be off a paltry million miles. We’ve been searching for you. I was hoping you could join us before we head back to home base. I think you’d enjoy the trip, and we can bring your ship, too.”
“What about Colonel Feld? He’s with me this trip. Said something about dereliction of duty and a demotion? I think he wants to take you back in chains.”
“He’ll have to discuss that with my wife. Besides, I don’t work for him anymore. Hang on, we’ll have you docked in a moment.”
Pete checked his viewscreen, and there was Outpost-DP451, almost on top of him.
“What’s going on here?” as the Colonel caught the last end of the conversation. “Is that Major Weller?”
“Don’t ask me what’s going on,” Pete replied, “and Captain Weller said you’d have to take it up with his wife.”
“Damned fool has gone over the edge,” the Colonel remarked in disbelief.
“I heard that, Colonel,” Ross snapped back, “and I already tendered my formal resignation to General Marks yesterday. Standby, Pete; engaging docking mechanism.” There was a slight bump. “There, you’re all hooked up. Come on in and join the gang. I’ve someone for you to meet, and we’ve plenty of beer.”
Copyright © 2022 by Maurice Humphrey
