Please read forgivingly (and if you have the time corrections are welcomed).
Captain
Chase was disturbed from what felt like the best night’s sleep of
his life by one of the platoon's Corporals to be told there was an
urgent call for him. He swore and cursed his way out of his narrow
ship's bunk not noticing how nervous Braddow was after he had
answered the call or how much heavy stubble there was on his face
after the long exercise. He had just spent two weeks in a steaming
hot jungle undertaking ‘survival’ drills with his men and they
had only a few hours earlier returned to the ship for two days of
rest and debriefing before doing it all over again. Now some idiot
had decided they needed to speak with him urgently just when he had
finally been able to sleep in an atmosphere at less than thirty-five
degrees and ninety percent humidity.
“Yes,
what now?” he demanded gruffly, slamming on the monitor.
The
greeting face calmly raised an eyebrow. “Did I disturb you,
Captain?”
Chase’s
eyes widened and his body automatically moved to attention. “No,
sir. Sorry, General, wasn’t told it was you.”
“That’s
fine, Captain I recall feeling like that sometimes on exercise as
well.” Boyse cleared his throat, it was not a time for small talk.
“Jacob 6 has been out of contact for two days and since you are in
close proximity the Emperor has ordered that you should go and
investigate.”
Chase
thought about this, there had to be something else going on. “A few
days? But couldn’t it just be electrical?”
“It
could be, but there is a complicating factor, you have just become a
Retrieval team. If it is just a simple fault you report this to us
and return to your exercise but if anything untoward has occurred,”
the General let out a long breath. “There is someone you will need
to get out at all costs.”
“Very
good, sir,” Chase nodded. It was not so unusual for high ranking
officials to retire to out of the way colonies and they were always
on the priority list for emergency pick ups in the case of a disaster
of any kind.
The
General expanded a little, giving the minimum detail required to
allow the marines to do their job. He shared the concerns of his
peers in the Palace but he was not so convinced there really was an
issue, he did not want to give away the truth to a random marine just
on the off chance. “ Good luck, Captain.”
“Sir.”
The
monitor switched off, but Chase sat looking at it for a while as he
gathered his thoughts. He could only hope it was just a transmitter
fault, but even if it was his career had the potential to take a turn
for the better. If he screwed up he could forget about ever getting
anywhere, but if he succeeded in
making an impression perhaps he would get that high powered
connection he needed to succeed in finally hopping up the ranks and
get out from the dead end he had managed to find himself in.
He
left his desk and strode out to the corridor. There he reached up and
slammed his hand against a large red button.
In
seconds there was the sound of running feet and men struggling to get
to their places throughout the ship. Chase picked up the intercom.
“This is not a drill. Begin take off preparations. We lift off in
fifteen minutes.”
Sergeant
Felton jogged up to Chase, ponytail bouncing across her back. She too
had just managed to get to sleep but the alarm woke her in record
time. “What's happening, sir?”
“We’re
being pulled to Jacob 6, they’ve been out of contact for a while
and people are getting nervous.”
“If
it’s out of this heat I’m all for it.” Felton was agreeable
despite the rude awakening. She had grown up on a colony world where
a hot day was when the temperature reached ten degrees; the jungle
heat seemed to cook her. Even if people were just being jumpy about
an insignificant grain world stripping their transmitter for spare
parts she would not complain about the change.
“And
into the fire. I’ll brief everyone once we're on our way.” He
turned to head to the control room.
“Captain?”
Felton followed Chase through the small corridor. Sometimes she
thought his name was particularly apt, she seemed to spend most of
her time chasing after him with his unreasonably long legs. “What’s
going on?”
“We've
gone up in the world.”
“Sir?”
There was something in the way the man spoke, a positive note he had
exorcised from his voice while they were steaming in the jungle had
suddenly returned.
“Get
this crate airborne and then I'll tell you all about it.”
“On
it.” she slid past the Captain and dropped down an open hatch to
the cramped engineering deck. She would ensure the engines were fired
up while he headed to the equally cramped flight deck to chivvy a
tired pilot into action.
Chapter
3
On
the first night, Se-se did not sleep at all. She was scared, confused
and grief stricken, a combination which did not lead to rest, so most
of the night was spent looking numbly into the small fire long after
she ran out of tears. It was cold enough the warmth from the fire was
needed even if she did not want it advertising her whereabouts. She
had no idea what had happened to her Uncle, why he had said what he
had or why her Aunt had done what she had. It was normal to worry
after someone when things were going bad, but they had both been so
specific about who she could trust and how careful she had to be. All
Se-se had in her head going round and round was the question. Why?
In
the morning she stripped, cleaned, and reassembled the rifle and
pistol just as she had been taught and struggled to eat the simple
breakfast she found in a tin in the pack. There was nothing else for
her to do then but wait, something she was not very good at. Uncle
Joe had always chided her on her lack of patience, but sitting and
doing nothing was not in Se-se’s nature even if it was what she was
told to do.
At
least she was able to sleep a little that next night, a dead sleep of
exhaustion, not that she felt refreshed the next morning.
Two
days had been and gone but there was still no sign of her Aunt and
none expected with Se-se sure she too was dead. She had no idea where
to go or what to do, it was all very well being told to hide in the
forest but she could not just do that, she could not just hide.
Without Aunt Tam to tell her what to do next she was lost, but Se-se
had to think of something.
By
the end of the morning her mind was made up, she would head back to
the farm and skirt round the edge of town. It was heading back in the
direction of danger, but if Aunt Tam did indeed died of her wounds
there was no point in wandering the forest for the rest of her life
and if she was still alive she would need Se-se's help.. It was to be
a good long ride but that would be time enough to think over her
options and indeed to work out if she had any.
The
small Marine transport ship arrived outside the colony's only town on
a suspiciously empty landing field. Even out of season there should
have been a couple of shuttles under their canopies, the emergency
shuttles for the colony inhabitants to escape any disaster that might
befall them. All their hails had gone unanswered and there was no
welcome party waiting for them as they landed.
Something
was very wrong. On the way in they trained their cameras onto the
town and could see strange piles of tables, cabinets and miscellanea
in the street with what looked uncomfortably like people motionless
beside them.
Seeing
the images Chase was immediately on high alert.
“Could
it be a contagion?” Felton asked, not liking the prospect of
catching a colony disease.
“Contagions
don't break transmitters.” Chase glared at the screen on the flight
deck. “And sick people don't lay in the street. We'll take a small
squad for a look around as soon as dawn breaks, no one excitable.”
Felton
acknowledged the order. They had some new men aboard, young marines
only just out of basic training who had not yet seen dead bodies, and
an unknown situation this like was not the best place to test them.
There were more experienced marines they could take outside to
undertake the unpleasant duty.
While
the majority were told to hold station, Chase resolved to lead the
squad venturing out rather than hand it to Felton. There was every
chance they would meet their VIP hidden somewhere in the town and he
wanted to make that contact himself. He did not want to leave
anything to chance so ordered a full combat ready deployment. Tooled
up men could not move so quickly but something was simply not right
and he did not plan on taking chances.
After
years of wearing it, the combat armour felt comfortable and Chase
still felt the rush of adrenaline as he dressed for the unknown. It
was a long time since he had seen real action, for two years they had
been stuck on exercises and manoeuvres. That the Empire was in a
peaceful phase was a good thing, but a soldier in peace time was a
hapless creature and it needed action.
Before
he could go in search of that action there was the ritual to
complete.
He
rolled his ankles, the boots were a close moulded fit, they flexed
but held true. As he stood the joints at knees and hips moved freely
without catching or creaking. Rolling his shoulders and taking his
arms though their motions everything was in the right place. Reaching
down to the deck he frowned, an adjustment was out, at his chest
there was a constricted panel. With a gloved hand he tweaked a
connector. That was better, he had free movement again, not that it
was true heavy armour where each joint was absolutely critical or a
soldier would simply not be able to move, in this lighter armour it
was a matter of comfort, protection sacrificed for lightness so it
could be worn for extended periods in the sweltering heat of the
jungle they had just been pulled from. They had not packed the heavy
armour, instead using the cargo space for practise equipment and food
supplies. He wished briefly they had thought ahead and packed for
real combat but of course they had not been expecting any more than
just another long exercise before a well earned spell of leave.
The
ritual was repeated when Chase added a backpack. He had ordered full
kit on the basis that on the unlikely happen-stance it was a
contagion they would not be able to go back on board their transport
without first going through decontamination. He did not believe in
taking unnecessary chances and everything in the town was wrong.
He
made one last stretch before stepping out of his cabin and heading to
his squad and the outside to see what they could find.
FraidyKat Runs - for inspiration
No comments:
Post a Comment