The bridge of the USS Damocles was quiet while the ship sat moored in space dock. The decks weren’t vibrating with the steady, rhythmic drum of the engines, computers were not chirping while working on data analyses and course computations. No other time would the bridge of an IPX class starship be this quiet. And Captain O’Bannon was enjoying it. O’Bannon had been the captain of the Damocles for the last 6 months and she was always a hub of activity. Enjoying the peace and quiet, O’Bannon was shocked to reality when the alarm at the engineering station went off. He never even got the chance to turn toward the station before the fireball consumed him and his ship.
Captain Beckett Adams was walking across the courtyard at the ANS Academy for his meeting with Admiral Pratt. It was just before 7:00 on a chilly December morning and there was a cool breeze blowing out of the north. Winter in Atlanta was usually mild, but there were the occasional chilly mornings. It was unusual to have a meeting this early and Beckett was curious what it might be about. His ship, the USS Hyperion, was currently in space dock receiving upgrades and much needed supplies and he hoped this meeting wouldn’t cut that short. The Hyperion and her crew had only just arrived home two weeks prior after a very long six week tour of duty and rest and refit was just what they needed right now. But when you’re an officer in the Air Naval Service, you go when and where EarthGov calls whenever they call.
31 year old Becket “Beck” Adams was at the pinnacle of his career – a starship captain in EarthGov Air Naval Service (ANS). His career, like everyone else’s, was chosen for him in his teens. All students are required to take various tests as they progressed through school which determined both their career and tailored their education to equip them. Some even said that EarthGov knew how far one would progress in their careers, but Beck doubted that. Even EarthGov couldn’t predict how people would perform when the pressure was on. Beck performed well under pressure – he actually preferred it to the more mundane chores his duty required.
He arrived at the Admiral’s office shortly before his meeting was due to begin and settled into one of the plush, comfortable chairs in the outer office to await the signal to enter. Just as Beck sat down, the computerized voice chimed, instructing him to enter the Admiral’s office for his meeting.
“Figures,” muttered Beck as he stood back up and stepped quickly into the admiral’s spacious office. He took his place, at attention, in front of the Admiral’s desk. “At ease captain and take a seat,” the admiral said.
“Thank you, sir” said Beckett as he sat in one of the two chairs. “I have to admit, I’m a little curious what this is about.”
“How familiar are you with what happened to the Damocles?”
“Only what I’ve read sir. Some sort of engineering accident while she was in space dock. It completely destroyed the Damocles and 12 crew on board, including Captain O’Bannon. Lucky for them, most of the crew was planet side when it happened. There was also damage to the space dock We saw some of it when we arrived back two weeks ago.”
“The Damocles was blown up by a terrorist group, Beck. They call themselves the Nowhere Men, ever heard of them?”
“No sir. I’m not familiar with them at all. I was under the impression EarthGov had eliminated all these types of groups decades ago.”
“They’re an anti-government group that been around since the Second American Civil War. They’ve been in hiding, which is why you probably weren’t aware of them, but we know where they are right now and you’re going to go get them.”
“I would like nothing more, but my ship is being refitted and refurbished. I need a little time.”
“Time is something we don’t have. These guys move around too much and we can’t afford to lose this opportunity, so you’re going to do it yourself. There’s a skiff outfitted, fueled and ready to go. You’re going to take that skiff and destroy the asteroid they’re using as a base. The skiff is located on Sat-3, door 2 and the asteroid’s coordinates have been transmitted to the skiff’s NAV system.”
“OK. When do I leave?”
“Hope you got plenty of sleep last night because you’re leaving right now.”
“Sounds good, sir. Anything else I need to know?,” Beck said as he stood, preparing to leave.
“No Beck. Get up there and put an end to this now. These guys murdered 13 of our own.”
“Yes sir,” said Beck as he turned and left the admiral’s office.
Sat-3 was one of a number of small satellites orbiting the earth accessible via a space elevator which effectively attached the satellite to the earth. These elevators were only available to members of the military and all but the largest one, leading to the ANS main space dock, were located on military bases. These smaller elevators could take up to 10 personnel up to their respective satellite at once. The main elevator, located in South America, had two elevators operating which could each ferry up to 50 occupants to the space dock.
Beck arrived at the SAT-3 elevator within 5 minutes and, after using the retinal scanner to gain access, pressed the button for the door to open. The door opened immediately and Beck stepped in, pressed the up button, and began the short ride up to the satellite.
Each of the smaller satellites had the same basic design. They were relatively small, no larger than a typical two car garage. Since they were small and had very small energy requirements, there was no artificial gravity in place as there was on the three IPX starships, now two since the destruction of the Damocles. The main space dock, Olympus, also had artificial gravity generators in place.
When the elevator door opened, Beck stepped out into the open space using the handholds placed along the walls to maneuver around the satellite. There were six airlocks, one on each side of the satellite. Beck quickly found number 2, and punched in the code to open the airlock granting him access to the docked skiff.
Skiffs are the workhorses of the ANS. They are small, maneuverable ships that can hold up 12 fully loaded marines plus the two flight crew or carry large amounts of supplies. The skiff has a spherical transparent area at the front where the flight crew sits and this is attached to a long, square shaped cargo area. They are mainly used to ferry items from the surface to Olympus space dock which are too large or heavy for the elevators. They can also transport troops and personnel to and from earth who are stationed off world on either the lunar research lab or the Martian mining colonies. Skiffs have very little in the way of defensive protections and most are completely unarmed. A few skiffs in service are equipped with plasma cannon and particle beams used mainly for training purposes and to destroy the occasional errant asteroid. Beck’s skiff belonged to the latter group.
Beck made his way into the skiff, closed the airlock to the satellite, and headed toward the flight deck. As he began the start up sequence, Beck accessed the NAV system which had the coordinates already uploaded as promised by the Admiral. He also checked the flight computer and found the flight plan and orders which had also been transmitted to the skiff prior to Beck’s arrival.
“Earth Orbit Control, this is Alpha 679er requesting permission to depart Earth orbit per flight plan 1214J, over,” Beck said into the radio.
“Alpha 679er, Earth Orbit Control. Permission granted. You may depart when ready,” replied the controller stationed on Olympus.
“Thank you Control. See you on the back side. Alpha 679er out.” With that, Beck hit the dock release switch, disengaging the skiff from Sat-3, and engaged the autopilot which set the skiff off on her prearranged trip to the asteroid belt.
RS Byers 