Space Rescue One (23 page)

***

"Squadron, flank speed. Continue to fire. Reinforcements are on the way."

      "Bandit coming at the squadron from the rear!"

      "Squadron, right turn. Full speed."

      "So, it's Admiral Thurman himself we found! Give it to them hot, ladies! We outnumber 'em!"

      "Squadron, break right. Half speed. . . Break left. Full speed."

      "He's wiggling! We've got them!"

      "Mars Leader! Bogies on radar!"

      "Shit! He's got reinforcements now. Break off!"

      "Aaiiee! Our bridge is on fire!"

      "This is
Space Rescue One.
Does the ship on fire need assistance?"

      Richard listened for an answer. There was none. 

      "I think it's the third ship from us in the squadron leaving the battle that's in trouble," Richard's radar operator said.

"Should we follow?" the helmsman asked.

      "Negative. We have to be sure that they want our assistance. Otherwise, we can't interfere. I feel for those men and women, but these are their rules," Richard said.

"But what good are we then? Won't you reconsider, sir?"

      "No. We will hold our position. Communications, continue trying to contact the two forces to determine if any ship wants assistance," Richard answered.

"Aye, sir."

      Richard shielded his eyes when a sudden glare blazed out in space from the direction of the VMA forces.

      The radar operator reported, "The third ship is gone. I guess we couldn't have reached them in time anyway."

***

"Call Captain Saber to communications! He's going to like this!"

      "Captain Saber to the bridge. Incoming message."

      Richard strode quickly onto the bridge to the communications section. "What is it?"

      "Good news, sir.
Mars Station One
went neutral.
Space Rescue Three
mutinied like we did!"

      "Well, that could have been put over the intercom. Everyone needs a little lift right now after our miserable showing a while ago," Richard said.

"I just thought you'd like to be almost the first to know."

      "Uh, yeah, thanks, but let's keep this an open ship like we agreed," Richard                        

      "Yes, sir. I'll keep that in mind."

      "Okay, then go ahead and pass the information on to the crew," Richard  

      "Uh, yes, sir. Doing it now."       

***

Richard returned to his new quarters to work on his message draft. He'd taken over the captain's quarters as more convenient and transferred his belongings. Now he stared at the unopened bottle of whiskey as he concentrated his thoughts. He forced himself to think of the good he could do if he could only make the warring parties understand a few things. The rules of engagement left him almost no room to render meaningful assistance. That had to change somehow. Since he didn't know of anyone else trying to change things, he saw himself left with the burden.

***

"This is Captain Richard Saber to all warring parties. We just recently witnessed a battle between the two warring forces. One ship was destroyed while others on both sides received some damage. Inasmuch as we would like to be called upon for assistance, it has come to our attention that there is one situation where it might not be possible. We believe such a situation occurred in the battle we saw. The one ship that was destroyed was heard to last report that its bridge was on fire. As well acquainted as we are with shipboard fires, we will assume that such vessels stricken by fire may not be able to further communicate their situation. In the absence of any additional calls for help by a ship we believe to be so endangered, we are willing to render assistance and will do so unless asked not to by another ship of the same force. We are not looking for glory or to interfere with your war. Our only intention is to save lives that would otherwise be lost and are already far beyond making a difference in the outcome of your battles. End of message."

***

Damon waited outside the airlock for Richard to appear. Richard strolled out with his face set in a grim look.

      "Any luck at all?" Damon asked.

      "You didn't monitor the radio?" Richard asked.

      "No, I was too busy seeing to it that the Commodore and others were put on board an Earth vessel for return to the surface," Damon answered.

      "We saw one VMA ship destroyed. I doubt that we could have reached it before it exploded. At least, we accurately picked out the right ship in distress before it went nova. I just finished sending a message to Earth and the VMA stating that we will render assistance to any ship we believe to be in distress and unable to communicate. I don't want to see us standing by idly while everyone dies. That defeats our purpose out here."

      "It's bad relations, too. You'll have mobs of people believing that you refused to get too close because you were chicken. They'll blame you for the deaths instead of the war."

      Richard responded, "That too. If we're going to fulfill our function, we'll have to aggressively give assistance."

      "Well, the station is almost entirely neutral now. We still have some personnel who side with the VMA that I'm anxious to see leave. At least I don't have to worry anymore about them fighting with the personnel who left for Earth."

      "Do we outnumber them?" asked Richard.

      Damon answered, "Yes. I've got armed guards inside the armory to keep the weapons secure."

      "You'd be better off rendering the weapons inoperable. Then you won't have to keep armed guards there," Richard said.

      Damon glanced around before whispering, "I did, but I don't want anyone to know that. I'd rather they waste part of their force on trying to secure the armory."

      "What about the weapons you gave your guards?" asked Richard.

      Damon answered, "I limited their ammo and stored the rest of the ammo elsewhere. Their guns can't be reloaded."

      "I hope that's enough precaution on our parts."

      "I hope so, too. So, tell me about the battle. What were their tactics like?"

      Richard answered, "To tell the truth, I think they're only beginning to work out tactics. You'd be better off asking Jimmy or Alex about that. They're both into that as a sideline to their political talks.

      "Well, you better start studying tactics yourself. You might need them sooner or later."

      Richard replied, "I know. Right now, I'm relying on being able to outrun or outgun anything. I don't intend to fight unless I'm cornered. I'll shoot back if fired upon, but I'm also going to take off running at the same time. I'm not going to let either side sucker us into joining them."

***

"Attention all personnel.
Space Rescue One
is on scramble alert. Attention all personnel.
Space Rescue One
is on scramble alert."

***

Richard switched on the intercom. "We're leaving the station to take up a watch on it. We have a ship from Mars approaching to pick up people who wish to be there more than anywhere else. We're doing this as a precaution in case someone tries something slick. Our best guess is that no one will attack the station if we're alert and not docked at it. In the meantime, everyone to their positions and hope along with me that everything goes smoothly."

***

Richard listened to the Internet news concerning the war, what little wasn't heavily censored by Earth authorities. Aside from the one engagement that Earth governments called a major victory, there wasn't much action yet. Having listened to Jimmy and Alex numerous times, he was beginning to appreciate their keen grasp of the politics and tactics going on. What he felt wouldn't happen was taking place.

      The VMA was attacking because they had little else they could do to force the Earth to recognize their independence. The Venus space station was still in Earth hands with its rescue ship kept busy defending it against Venusian forces. Mars was free to act since their station declared neutrality. If the Venusian station fell, one way or another, then Venusian forces would be free to join Martian forces in attacking Earth.

      Other than military traffic, there wasn't much for the station to monitor. Earth quickly put up some high satellites to replace some of the functions the space station used to perform for them. There was a blanket of converted freighters orbiting the Earth constantly to defend it. Richard supposed that there would be more action if the distances weren't so great.

      The news blared, "On the home front, heavy industry is busy preparing new ships with which to replace the freighters the Space Navy is currently using. Once they arrive in space, there won't be anything capable of withstanding them in combat, not even one of the Space Rescue ships."

      Richard wondered if there would be hell to pay once those ships got off the drawing board and into space. Richard continued to listen to the news.

      "Although officials applaud the recent victory, the public mood is more of an impatience than anything else. People are wondering constantly when they're going to see videos of actual space battles. The heavy censorship on the war is frustrating them."

      "In other news, two saboteurs were caught in the act by alert security guards at . . ."

      The intercom blared out, "Attention all personnel.
Space Rescue One
is on scramble alert. Attention all personnel.
Space Rescue One
is on scramble alert."

      Richard dashed for Corridor One. He almost collided with several others at the intersection, but twisted enough to avoid them.

      "Any idea what the alert is for, Captain?"

      "Not yet. We'll all find out at the same time."

***

      "SRO, this is
ESO.
VMA forces are engaging in combat with Earth forces behind the moon. Telemetry verifies the presence of both forces. They appear to already be engaged in battle."

      "Roger,
ESO.
Receiving course settings now."

      "Corridor One free. Airlock secured."

***

Richard glanced out the port at the battle. Already, two ships appeared to be heavily damaged. One was near the edge of the battle.

      "This is Captain Saber of the
Space Rescue One.
We are moving in to check for survivors on a ship near the edge of the battle. Team One has the call. Team Two is on standby."

***

Shelly slipped into her armored suit. Moments later, she was checking Chief Dickson's suit. When she finished, she turned so he could check the back of hers.

      The intercom blared, "Distance is fifty meters. Course is now parallel. Speed is almost matched. Team One, make ready to check for survivors."

      Chief Dickson led the team into the airlock. He closed and dogged the hatch before he pressed the first switch to evacuate the air from the chamber. The airlock lights changed to red to help their eyes adjust to the darkness of space since they were on the dark side of Earth.

      "Team One is cleared to exit."

      Chief Dickson opened the outer hatch. He led his team outside. Moments later, he and two others jetted across the void separating the two ships. Two team members remained on the hull of the
Space Rescue One
playing out cable to pull them back with. The seriousness of the war was cause for different procedures than they used before. As they neared the ship, it was clear that most of the hull was perforated by missiles or lasers. Unless someone was suited up, it was doubtful that anyone survived. Still, he and part of his team had to make the inspection.

      Isaac placed a listening device against the dead ship's hull. He nodded to Shelly. She struck the hull several times in a deliberate pattern with her armored fist. Then she stopped so Chief Dickson could listen for a return answer.

      Chief Dickson couldn't believe his ears. He heard a return tapping with the listening sensor. He radioed, "We have a survivor on board. Send over the tools."

***

Richard wished he could be with the team now that they were once more saving lives. Only the knowledge that he was the sole person on board qualified to lead the ship kept him on the bridge where he was needed. However, it didn't keep him from listening in closely with one ear while listening to his bridge crew in case they spotted something threatening the ship.

***

Chief Dickson considered the situation. It wasn't anything he was used to handling. A rescue usually involved a ship with far less damage. Normally, a ship with as much damage as he saw didn't have survivors. Now he had a distinctly uncomfortable problem to solve. He had a crewman trapped in a sealed cabin without a suit.

      Isaac reported, "SRO, we have a problem here. We have a sealed cabin with no airlock to reach the man through so we can get a suit to him. The way I see it, we can't open his cabin door without using the Space Jaws because of the inside air pressure. Using the Space Jaws is out because the air will evacuate the cabin taking him with it. This is beginning to look like a no-win situation. Does anyone over there have any ideas?"

      Richard considered his options. He replied, "The only thing I can think of is to collar the ship. What's its overall condition?"

      "The ship is falling apart. There are jagged pieces sticking out everywhere. You won't be able to establish a close enough seal to reach him," Isaac answered.