Wanderer 3: Tainted Universe (33 page)

He was surprised by how easily his fleet was able to make progress.  Initially some of the attackers turned their attention on Vorn’s forces.  They attacked in small groups and were easily swatted aside.  Then, once Vorn’s fleet had passed the defenders and was clearly moving away, the attacks quickly tailed off.  It seemed the attackers were willing to leave his forces alone if they didn’t interfere in the battle.

Despite their relatively clear route Vorn was chilled by what he saw.  The attacking fleet was immense.  Only its lack of any significant tactics was preventing it swatting the blockading forces aside.  If someone managed to coordinate the attackers more efficiently they would quickly smash through every layer of defence within the Quarantine Zone.

Vorn changed his earlier assessment.  His fleet couldn't possibly have tipped the balance.  His forces would have been chewed up along with those of the defending fleet.

The further Vorn’s fleet travelled the fewer fights were visible, though the wreckage of battle was everywhere.  Vorn waited anxiously as his fleet slowly navigated the dangers.  Finally they cleared the tar pit’s range and launched themselves back into jump space.

*****

Greenseed Station

Marsh stared at his screen, watching the freighter depart.  His team hadn’t found any way to communicate yet.  The freighter had taken aboard the cargo, blissfully unaware of the danger.

Marsh couldn’t help wondering what had been hidden amongst the cargo.  Had it been the tainted themselves?  Or could the Taint be spread by objects?  By food?  By water?

He was bitterly disappointed.  He’d hoped that someone from his team would pull a miracle out of thin air.  It hadn’t happened.  No one had even put forward an idea so far.

Despite what he’d told his team he wasn’t happy with the idea of warning the hundredth ship, or the tenth or even the second.  He’d wanted them to warn off the first and they had failed.  Whatever happened now there would always be one ship that had got away.  One ship that was spreading the Taint in Greenseed’s name.

Marsh could feel the mood of the team dropping by the second.  They were having similar thoughts.  Everyone had hoped to stop the Taint spreading from their station.  Everyone felt they had failed.  Marsh forced himself to speak.

“
Listen up,” he said loudly.  “We knew we might not be able to warn the first ship.  Or even the tenth.  That doesn’t matter…”

“
It matters to anyone who meets that ship,” someone muttered.

Marsh glanced around sharply but couldn’t work out who had spoken.  Sullen eyes stared back at him.  He realised he needed to take a different tack.

“Yes,” he said more quietly.  “It matters to them, and to wherever they end up delivering those supplies.  But we can’t do anything to save them.  We have to focus on those we can help.  On those who haven’t arrived yet.  If we give up now then they will suffer the same fate, as will every ship that docks here.

“
No one said this was going to be easy.  It won’t be.  We are fighting against an enemy that knows our systems almost as well as we do.  Almost.  Remember that.  You are here because you are the best we have.  If anyone can find a way it’s you.  Are you going to keep trying?  Because I damn well am!”

Marsh stared fiercely around the room, challenging his team to agree.  He was pleased to see grins and vigorous nods.  He could feel the change in the room.  A spark was back, and it was infectious.

Marsh smiled.  That had felt good.  He’d made similar impassioned demands many time as a captain, but none since moving to Greenseed.

Damn,
he thought. 
I should never have let them retire me.  If we get out of this I’m going to demand command of a warship again.  If we get out of this then they’ll bloody well owe me one!

Chapter Forty

Jess studied the picture of real space the
Wanderer
was able to generate.  While the ship was in jump space details were difficult to discern, but several major themes could be made out.

Firstly, there was wreckage.  An awful lot of wreckage.  A massive battle must have taken place, or possibly a massacre.  Then there was the fleet.  It was heading in the opposite direction to the
Wanderer
, and it was immense.

“
Look at the size of it,” he said.  “It’s at least ten times the size of the two fleets we saw fighting.  Whichever side it’s on is going to be unstoppable when it arrives.”

“
I seriously doubt it will be the Empire,” Dash said.  “There are almost no military ships in that fleet.  The Empire just doesn’t work that way.  Teaching civilian ships how powerful they can become if they band together is guaranteed to lead to trouble, sooner or later.”

“
So the Imperial defence is going to be swept aside?”

“
Not necessarily.  This fleet is large, but very few of those ships will have anyone with serious combat experience aboard.  Fighting off a few pirates is one thing, marshalling a fleet of that size is completely different.  If they can’t focus the firepower then the Imperial fleet will take them apart piece by piece.”

“
Maybe.  That’s still a lot of ships though.  Eventually sheer weight of numbers must tell.”

“
You’re both missing the most important point,” Ali said.

Jess glanced at her and tried to think what he was missing.  He came up blank.

“What?” he asked finally.

“
Why is that fleet in real space?  There’s no tar pit here is there?  What’s stopping them from hitting jump space?”

Good point!
Jess sent to Ali. 
I should have spotted that.

He allowed his feelings to overlay the message, a mixture of his love for her and how impressed he was.  The response nearly knocked him out of his chair.  A burning desire to be underway, to reach their destination, mixed with frustration at the slow pace.  It cut off almost as soon as it started, leaving a cold emptiness.

Jess, are you OK?
Ali sent. 
Did you feel that?  What was it?

I’m OK.  I don’t know what it was.  Let me try to find out.

It hadn’t been Ali then.  He should have known.  How could something so powerful, so alien, have come from her?  It had affected her as badly as it did him.  Another indication of the dangers she faced while her implants remained active.

Jess queried the
Wanderer
, but it could offer no explanation.  It hadn’t been aware of the blast, and was unable to identify the cause.

“
Maybe they don’t know,” Sal said.

“
Sorry, what?” Jess asked, mind still on what had just happened.

“
Them.  The fleet.  Maybe they don’t know the tar pit has been destroyed.”

Jess struggled to change track, his mind still full of worry for Ali.

“That could be it,” Dash said.  “If they are relying on charts showing where the tar pits should be.  Yes, that would fit.”

Jess finally caught up with the conversation.  “Surely the wreckage gives it away though,” he said.

“Apparently not,” Dash replied.

“
Do we need to worry about them?” Sal asked.

“
I don’t see why we should.  They haven’t got a tar pit and they’re heading in the opposite direction to us.  We should be past them soon enough.”

Jess wasn’t so sure.  He felt like he was missing something, but he couldn’t put his finger on what.  Something didn’t make sense, but he was too distracted by whatever had happened to him and Ali to give it his full attention.  Silence fell over the flight deck.

*****

The
Wanderer
had to nudge Jess several times to catch his attention.  He wasn’t asleep, but he was bone tired.  They had passed four more defensive layers that were nothing but wrecked ships. They hadn’t spotted any more fleets.  The long hours were catching up with Jess.  The others seemed in better spirits, almost happy.  Jess put it down to the rest they had all managed to grab.

Finally Jess responded to the
Wanderer
’s message.  Information streamed into his mind, driving all tiredness away.

“
We did it!” he said.  “We made it.  We’re clear of the Quarantine Zone.  We’re not stuck in the narrow jump space tunnel anymore.”

The others took a few seconds to absorb the new information, then grins exploded on their faces and they cheered.

“Damn, I never thought we’d actually make it,” Dash said.  “I hoped we would, but it was such a long shot.”

“
So are we safe?” Ali asked.

“
Well we still have those troopers in the main hold, and the fleet that’s been able to find us wherever we go,” Jess said.  “But yeah… right now things are looking good.”

His reminder of the problems they faced didn’t dampen the enthusiastic mood.  Ali released her straps and stood up, leaning over the back of Jess’s chair and kissing him, upside down from his point of view.  He responded enthusiastically.

“Remember to breathe!” Sal called out.  “And warn us if we should leave…”

Jess felt himself turning bright red.  Ali just laughed, though she did pull away.

“Head rush,” she explained.

“
Have you changed course?” Dash asked.

“
Yes.  As soon as we could,” Jess replied, annoyed at being distracted.

“
How are the troopers getting on?”

“
Still trying to break through,” Ali said.  “It’s very slow going though.  They have to brace themselves carefully before planting any explosives, otherwise they get hurt when the ship triggers the explosion right under their hand.  And the walls are much tougher with the changes Jess made.  They’re maybe halfway through creating a hole now.  Give it another five or six hours and they should be through.”

“
They won’t get far though,” Jess said, feeling smug.  “I know where they are breaking through and the ship has had time to reinforce the walls around that area.  They won’t be getting anywhere fast.”

Dash opened his mouth to speak. 

Here comes the gloomy warning,
Jess thought.

“
They’ll be working on something else,” Dash said.  “They probably won’t use it yet, but once they find what you’ve done they’ll try to find ways to move more quickly.”

And there it is,
Jess thought.

“
We’ll deal with that when it happens,” Ali said firmly.  “Jess, you look exhausted.  You need to rest.  Come on.  I insist.”

Her expression told Jess that rest would probably be coming later.  She had something else in mind first.  He grinned at her, trying to ignore the snort from Dash.

Could he leave?  He was sorely tempted.  Not just by the thought of sex.  The thought of getting some sleep after was just as powerful an incentive.  The
Wanderer
should be safe enough in jump space.  The troopers were under control, for the moment at least, and the
Wanderer
would warn him if they suddenly broke out.  There was no reason not to go.

“
I think you’re right,” he told Ali.  “I really, really need to… rest.”

“
I’m going to take a break too,” Sal said, surprising Jess.  He’d expected another joke or comment at his expense.  “Dash, are you coming?”

“
Definitely.  I learnt long ago to grab a rest whenever I could.  You never know what’s around the corner.”

The two of them were unbuckled and leaving the flight deck before Jess had finished climbing out of his seat.

“Do you think they are going to…” he started to say to Ali.

Ali grinned back and shrugged her shoulders, then nodded.

“Don’t you worry about what they are going to be doing,” she said.  “You just need to worry about what I’m going to do to you.”

Jess grinned back, swallowing hard.  Ali grabbed his hand and pulled him.  Not that he needed any encouragement.

*****

As soon as the door to Ali’s room shut behind them they were pulling each other’s clothes off.  Jess still marvelled at the situation, at the feel of Ali’s skin against his.  Sometimes he worried over his feelings for Ali.  His upbringing as a slave had taught him that no relationship was forever, or even for very long.  Adjusting to the idea that they wouldn’t be torn apart at someone else’s whim was difficult.

Soon their clothes littered the floor.  Jess pulled back slightly, taking the chance to run his eyes over Ali’s naked body.  She grinned at his attention, then turned and ran to the bed.  Jess laughed and chased after her.

He tried to grab her, but with a twisting move she turned the tables, throwing him onto the bed.  He landed on his back and she pounced immediately, straddling him and holding him down with her hands on his chest.

“What are you going to do now?” Jess asked.

“
You’ll find out,” she replied, grinding against him.

Jess groaned, rocking his head back.  She paused and he managed to look into her face.  He found himself being drawn into her eyes once again.  They were sparkling, gleaming.  Jess felt wrapped in warmth.  Safe and secure.  He felt himself pouring into Ali.  He felt closer to her than ever before.

Something changed.  Something started to flow back from Ali, but it wasn’t any part of her.  It was something dark.  Something heavy and constricting.  Something that started to dig into Jess’s mind, embedding itself.

Jess panicked but found he couldn’t move.  Couldn’t break the connection.  In desperation he reached out for the
Wanderer
.  Time slowed.  He felt more able to concentrate, though he still couldn’t break free of Ali’s gaze.  At least now he had time to understand what was happening, and if necessary he could use the
Wanderer
to intervene.

He briefly wondered whether the problem was with his and Ali’s implants, but he knew deep in his gut that it wasn’t.  Whatever was happening was coming from Ali.

The
Wanderer
pulsed an alarm into his mind.  It was so powerful it caused a spike of pain.  It carried a sense of fear, of panic.  From the ship.  The message chilled Jess to the bone.  Something was attacking the
Wanderer
through Ali’s implants.  And it was winning.

It couldn’t be coincidence.  Whatever had happened to Ali, whatever had sunk its dark hooks into her, was trying to do the same to both Jess and the ship at the same time.  Jess’s mind flashed back to the first time he’d felt this way, when he’d thought it was his implants causing the problem.  Now he viewed it differently.  Whatever was controlling Ali had tried to attack him then, but had been thwarted by his link to the ship.  This time it was attacking on both fronts.

Jess checked the status of the
Wanderer
.  It had already lost control of many systems.  He sensed the ship dropping out of jump space as the jump drives were taken over.  The
Wanderer
was fighting back, but it was losing.  Step by step, layer by layer, it was being stripped away.

It could probably have withstood the assault with help from Jess, but everything he had was going into resisting Ali and he was still losing ground fast.  Even linked to the
Wanderer
it was getting harder to think clearly, to fight back.  And soon the attack on the
Wanderer
would impact his ability to resist.  Jess kept fighting as best he could.  He wouldn’t give up.  It wasn’t going to make any difference in the long run, but he would fight it until his strength ran out.

*****

Someone knocked on the door.  Ben froze, eyes darting towards Teeko.  The young boy hadn’t really started grieving for his mother yet.  The idea that he would never see her again didn’t feel real.  She had left a large gap in his life though, one that the strange alien had managed to fill.  Ben didn’t even think of Teeko as being unusual now.  It was just Ben’s friend.

“
Friend Ben calm,” Teeko rumbled.  “No danger is.  Friends outside is.”

Ben nodded and ran across to Teeko, jumping on the alien’s back as it moved to the door.  The door slid open to reveal two of the ship’s crew.  Sal and Dash.  They looked worried.

“Teeko, Ben… are you alright?” Sal asked.  “The troopers have managed to release some sort of chemical agent.  It attacks through the eyes.  Jess says it could be deadly.  Here… let us check your eyes.”

Before Ben or Teeko could say anything the two had pushed into the room.  Ben found himself staring into Ali’s eyes.  He was vaguely aware of Dash staring into Teeko’s.