Star Runners: Mission Wraith (#3) (9 page)

He shrugged. There were worse ways to die than being a Star Runner.

“Next,” a man at the entry hatch said. He wore a gray cap and simple, clean coverall with the rank of chief master sergeant on his chest. “Name rank?”

“Ryker Zyan, First Lieutenant, Thirty-Second Tizona.”
 

“I see,” the man stared at his tablet, his closely set dark eyes squinting. “Here you are. Main deck. Berthing compartments. Officers quarters. Room forty-two.” He pointed to his left. “Head down this corridor and follow the indications on the wall. You can’t miss it. I’m Chief Master Sergeant Jason Bates. I’ll be handling your transition to the
Formidable
. Please let me know if you have any questions. Orientation will take place at 0500 hours, ship time, if you need it. Welcome aboard, Lieutenant.”

“Thank you.” Ryker stepped through the hatch. She didn’t turn to wait for Austin. Instead, she made her way down the tight corridor, weaving through the traffic as officers and the enlisted rushed in countless different directions.
 

“Next,” Bates barked. “Name and rank?”

“Austin Stone, Second Lieutenant, Thirty-Second Tizona.”
 

“Stone … Ah, here you are.” Bates nodded. “Are you the Lieutenant Stone from the Battle of Atlantis?”
 

Austin’s face warmed. He clenched his jaw, trying to conceal his sense of nervousness and swallowed. “Yes.”
 

Bates grinned, an expression of approval crossing his face. “Definitely a pleasure to have you aboard, Lieutenant. First time on a Parazonium Class Carrier?”

“Yes,” Austin said, the feeling of apprehension in the pit of stomach lessening. “First tour, actually.”

“I see.” Bates turned around, gesturing to the corridor behind him. “This is the main passageway that runs parallel to the retrieval bay as you head toward the bow. You are currently at one of four entry hatches used to board the
Formidable
. It’s just above the main hangar bay. Follow this passageway until you pass berthing compartments for the enlisted men on the port side. Officers quarters will be just past the berthing compartments. You’ve been assigned Room Fifty-Eight. You can’t miss it.”

“Thank you,” Austin said, feeling overwhelmed by the sheer size of the carrier.
 

“Operations are pretty straightforward on the
Formidable
. Everything runs on schedule. I would recommend coming to the orientation today once we are underway. Should help answer any questions.” Bates nodded. “Right now, report to your quarters for departure. Welcome aboard, Lieutenant.”

Austin nodded and stepped over the hatch as he boarded the
Formidable
. The ceiling was cramped and lower than the corridor on Tarton’s Junction. The sound of a dozen conversations mixed with the crackling buzz of intercom messages. Human traffic swarmed through the corridor, carrying boxes and equipment. Officers wearing Tizona blue and the black of the Tarnex Squadron peppered the gray uniforms of the Legion Navy filling the majority of space in the corridor. According to what Austin had read about the Parazonium Class Carriers as he waited to board, two thousand souls would be aboard the
Formidable
when she debarked the
Tizona
and started its tour. Five-hundred personnel onboard consisted of the space wing with the remainder part of the ship’s crew. It looked like a busy airport. A busy, cramped airport.
 

He moved through the river of traffic, dodging people and boxes of equipment littering the deck. A nondescript wall pressed in from the left. The right opened up into a long thin viewport stretching the length of the corridor. The viewport revealed a massive bay open to the void of space Bates described as the retrieval bay. Trying not to be run over by the people hurrying through the passageway, Austin slowed and gazed down at the bay. It was empty now, but he could imagine Tridents filling the area after a patrol. He couldn’t wait.
 

Above the retrieval bay loomed the steel bulk of the Tizona, blocking any view of the stars beyond. Shuttle traffic crisscrossed the space above the
Formidable
. Thousands of crew boarded dozens of other carriers at this very moment, and Austin felt he was just one piece of this massive machine.
 

“Watch where you’re going, Lieutenant.” Ryker lingered at the right side of the corridor, staring at the empty bay and watching a shuttle pass to the far side.
 

Austin smiled. “Lieutenant Zyan,” he whispered. “What’s a pretty thing like you doing in a place like this?”

“Stop it,” she mouthed, barely audible. Austin thought he crossed a line with her but saw her smile. She turned back to the shuttle. “Impressive, isn’t it?”
 

“Yes.”

“Once we are underway, you’ll see this is where you will land just like on Tarton’s Junction. It’s not that different, but everything on a carrier is about space. That’s something that took some getting used to. It’ll be cramped at first, but they have plenty of operations and programs to help cope with it.”

Austin blinked. “You worried about me, Lieutenant?”

She cocked her head to the side. “A little. You’re from a beautiful planet with wide open spaces. I’m just worried you might have trouble coping with carrier life at first.”

Austin thought of what little Ryker had shared about her home world of Lian. With most of the population required to serve in the military from an early age, Ryker had spent her formative years growing up in what sounded to Austin like a subterranean bunker. It had been the reason she lost herself in the simulators—the reason she wanted to fly—and ended up being recruited by the Legion because of it.
 

“I lived on Tarton’s Junction for a year,” he said. “I should be able to deal with this.”

“I hope you’re right. Carrier life is much tighter than life on a station.” She turned to face him, her dark eyes falling from his own to focus on his mouth. She rested her hand on his shoulder. “I’ll go to my quarters now. I’ll see you after?”

“Definitely,” he said without hesitation.
 

She smiled at him and turned away, disappearing down the corridor. Austin remained at the thin viewport, staring out at the shuttle traffic for a moment. Soon, the
Formidable
would be underway, and his life on a carrier would begin. He took a deep breath and lingered at the viewport.
 

“ATTENTION!” a voice boomed on the ship’s intercom. The traffic in the corridor halted. “ATTENTION! All officers not on duty report to quarters. Ship’s crew to their stations. All bridge officers report to the bridge. All officers and crew should prepare for departure.”
 

The message repeated and the traffic in the corridor increased in speed. Austin pulled away from the viewport and headed into the flowing river of traffic.
 

*****

The steel gray walls of his quarters reminded Austin of the jail tour his class took in the fourth grade. The room—his new home—was even smaller than his room on Tarton’s Junction. He didn’t think that was possible. And there was no viewport. One seat attached to the wall had a retractable desk on the arm with a built-in tablet. The device had no off-ship communications or connections—he had to go to the Communication Room below the main deck for any messages bound for somewhere off the
Formidable
. Instead, the tablet had the ship’s Intranet with important forums to facilitate shipboard communications. Commander Horace had posted a welcome message.
 

A bed pulled out from the right wall and could be pushed back just as easily. A storage compartment comprised the left side of the room, filled with a standard uniform and regulation off-duty attire. His fingers lingered on the brand new blue Tizona flight suit. He knew this signified a Trident on the
Formidable
awaited him.
 

He thought of launching through a Legion carrier’s launch tube instead of taking off from a hangar as he did so many times on Tarton’s Junction. He had heard other pilots talk about the rush of being shot into space as if you sat on the head of a missile. His pulse quickened as he imagined it.
 

He suddenly didn’t mind the cramped quarters.
 

Since he had been ordered to his quarters until the carrier departed the
Tizona
, Austin sat in his one chair and spent the next minutes getting acquainted with the
Formidable
. She wasn’t the oldest in the fleet—far from it—nor was it the newest. According to the information on his tablet, the Legion fielded several carriers and escort ships older than the
Formidable
. Essentially a wide angled shape coming to a point at the bow with a handle at the stern, the
Formidable
was the shape of Parazonium dagger; an ancient weapon according to the tablet. A third generation Parazonium Class carrier, the
Formidable
had seen three tours. The file provided no details regarding these tours. However, Austin was able to find Commander Horace was about to lead them on his third tour—his second on the
Formidable
.
 

“All hands,” the intercom buzzed, “this is Commander Mitchem Horace. Welcome aboard. In the next minutes, the
Formidable
will depart from the
Tizona
, and we will be underway. All outbound communications will be ceased, and all ship business not essential to our departure will be halted. Once departure is complete, onboard business will resume. We will curve approximately twenty minutes after departure. Thank you.”
 

Dull rumbling like distant thunder replaced the constant hum of the ship. As the engine’s intensity increased and rattled the objects in his room, Austin sat in his chair and surfed through the onboard Intranet. Although he had no viewport, he knew the sound signified the carrier was departing the Tizona and heading for their destination.
 

His new life was finally beginning.
 

*****

Once Commander Horace gave the “all clear,” Austin left his quarters in a hurry. The corridor was not as crowded as before the
Formidable
departed from the
Tizona
. Only a few officers and crewmen still walked through the tight halls. With his satchel containing the tablet over his shoulder, Austin weaved through the corridor toward the center of the ship. He ducked under a control panel protruding from the wall, avoiding a pair of crewmen carrying equipment outboard. When he passed the enlisted crewmen wearing gray Legion Navy attire, they hugged the wall and saluted. Most were older than Austin.
 

Gotta get used to that, he thought.
 

The cramped corridor opened up to the main passage. The long viewport revealed the blackness of space over the
Formidable
instead of the gigantic bulk of the
Tizona
. He gripped the strap on his shoulder and leaned against the viewport. He stared into the void.
 

Below the field of stars stretched the carrier’s retrieval bay for all incoming traffic and the spot he would have to soon land his Trident. The bay in the center of the ship reminded Austin of a small football stadium. No space traffic was coming or going at the moment, but Austin knew that would soon change.

Pulling himself away from the view, Austin made his way toward the orientation in the multipurpose room on the starboard side of the ship. Along the way, he passed the guarded hatch leading to the bridge. Two Marine guards wearing perfectly pressed dark gray uniforms flanked the bridge entrance. They stared him down as he passed.
 

Austin found the multipurpose room. A crowd had already gathered in the room, speaking quietly in the dozen rows of seats. He found David “Bear” Keller lingering on the back row and focusing on his tablet.

“Hey man,” Austin said, slipping into the seat next to Bear. “Feels like school, right?”

“Sure does,” Bear said, glancing up from his tablet. “Did you know this ship’s reactor can operate for as much as fifteen years without refueling?”

“Uh, no.”
 

“Hey, what’d you think of your room?”

“It’s small, right?”

Bear lowered his gaze. “Look at me, man. I’m bigger than you. That room’s the size of a porta-potty.”

Austin laughed. “I guess you’re right.”

“You hear about Braddock?”

“What’s that?”

“Been promoted to Major,” Bear said, his eyebrows raising. “He’s leading the entire wing on this tour.”

Austin thought of Braddock, his strong leadership skills exhibited at the end of the Battle of Atlantis. He nodded. “He’s a good man.”

“Tough, but fair.” Bear exhaled. “I’ll miss Nubern, though.”

Austin smiled. “I will too, man.”

Skylar Kincaid strolled into the room, a tablet in her hand. Her face darkened as her eyes fell on Austin. She moved to the front of the room and sat alone.
 

“What’s up with you two, anyway?” Bear asked, leaning forward.
 

“I don’t know, man,” Austin lied, staring down at his tablet. “Why?”

Bear shrugged. “I thought you guys were close.”

“Not sure what’s going on,” he mumbled, his stomach turning.
 

“Women, right?”

“I guess.”

A Tarnex Squadron Star Runner stepped into the room and marched with a purpose to the front. His heavy black jacket made him appear like a biker. The man’s hair was cut close to his scalp. He pressed commands into a tablet from the front of the room. When he looked up, he placed his hands on his hips and surveyed the room. A hush fell over the crowd of two dozen Star Runners as he stared at them.
 

“That’s better,” the Tarnex Star Runner said in a confident tone. “Everyone take a seat, and we’ll begin.”
 

An image of the dagger-shaped
Formidable
appeared on the screen behind the officer. He gestured back with his thumb. “As I hope you know by now, this is the
Formidable
—your home for the foreseeable future. I’m Captain Doug Lord with Tarnex. It’s part of my job to educate you newbies on the ins and outs of this vessel. There are five-hundred men and women in the space wing on this boat and forty-nine pilots, a ship’s crew of two thousand and a hundred Marines as well as a handful of special operations troops, also known as
Serpents
. They are counting on you to integrate into the crew fast and seamlessly. For the next few days, we will meet like this and go over what you need to know to make a life for yourself on this ship—everything from the procedure for off ship communications to the importance of utilizing the mandatory rec rooms.”