Wings of Steele - Destination Unknown (Book 1) (49 page)

Though
almost literally side by side, the two launch tubes were
separated
by a special blast wall almost fifteen feet thick. Considering the
amount of ordinance and fuel a fighter carried, it was a reasonable
and important precaution to prevent a catastrophic launch accident
from spreading to the fighter in the next tube.

The
catapult sled rose out of the floor, three legs extending upward
toward
the underside of the fighter. The ground crewman ducked underneath
and fixed the legs to the grab-slots on the hull, one near the nose
and one on either side of the fuselage. "Ok," he said,
re-emerging to the left, "pull in your landing gear."
Brian flipped the solid green switch next to the anti-grav and the
hydraulics hummed, pulling the gear in flush with the skin of the
Warthog. It left the fighter supported by the legs of the catapult
sled. "Switch on your comm unit," instructed the mechanic.
Brian flipped the switches for his communications equipment and the
frequency dial lit up. He could hear the other fighters talking with
the tower and gave the thumbs up signal to the crewman. "Ok,
Lieutenant, you're all set, so have a good flight!"
Disconnecting his headset cord from the nose of the fighter, the
coverall clad figure backed out of the catapult bay and using the
control panel outside the tube, closed the entrance to the catapult.

Brian
watched as the wall rose out of the floor on his left and
arched
upward to connect with the ceiling. The launch tube was oval, being
widest at the sides, and the wall had just sealed him in. He felt
like a live torpedo.

"Flight
two," called the tower, "you copy?" Both pilots in
the tubes
acknowledged.
"Good. I know you guys are rookies, but if you follow
directions, you'll be just fine. So, first... never
ever
,
arm guns, shields, or ordinance in the tube. Got it?" They
acknowledged. Without saying so, Brian had to agree, that would be
pretty stupid. "Ok, switch on nav." The pilots
acknowledged. "Switch on radar, scopes and sensors." As
each command was given, it was executed by the pilots and
acknowledged. "Ok, here we go... switch on engine power, but do
not
ignite burners." Brian raised the safety cover for each of the
two red switches and flipped them up with a snap. When released, the
safeties closed, locking the switches in the on position. A red
light glowed above each switch. "Fine. Now, when those red
lights turn green, you will be clear to ignite engines." The
Launch Boss counted down from five and fired the catapults.

The
walls of the tube flashed by in a blur. In what seemed to be a
nanosecond
,
he had pierced the blue veil of the stasis field and was cast into
the star filled blackness beyond. "YaaHooooo!" The engine
lights turned from red to green and Brian punched the ignition
switches, firing up the Warthog's twin engines as he cleared the
tube. "Whoa, what a rush!"

"Hey!
How about a little radio decorum out there!" joked Steele from
the
bridge of the cruiser.

"Sorry,
Skipper," called his former copilot, "but you gotta' try
this,
it's totally awesome!" He rolled the Warthog, started a loop
that he turned into a barrel roll and fell in alongside Derrik off
his starboard wing.

"Loony
Yank," kidded Derrik.

"Aw
c'mon," chided Brian, "gimme a break! You guys have done
this
stuff
before... well, sort of... but this is
my
first time!" He looked at the stars all around him, "Christ,
this is beautiful!" The others were more than inclined to
agree. To really appreciate its vastness, the beauty had to be seen
from outside the ship.

After
some general observations and a little horseplay
,
the flight grouped and settled down for some serious recon work.
Leaving the Freedom behind as it continued to gain on the Princess,
the fighters flew on, observing radio silence. After about ten
minutes they reached the Princess Hedonist. As they passed over the
cruise liner in formation, they rocked their wings in full view of
the observation deck and bridge. The running lights of the liner
blinked in response. The fighters continued on at a moderate pace.
In about another ten minutes, she was only visible on their
scanners.

By
the time the flight had reached their outward bound nav-point,
the
Freedom had caught up with the Princess and was cruising abreast of
her, with about five miles between them. On their navigation
computers, the pilots saw the first nav-point turn from pink to
blue, indicating they had reached their destination. "See you
on the back end," said Paul, breaking radio silence.

"Roger,
Pappy," answered Derrik. "Leader two, breaking right."
When
Derrik's
right wing dropped, Brian chopped his power and followed him through
the turn. Letting the other fighter drift across his bow, Brian
powered back up and formed on his wing leader's opposite wing.
Looking over his right shoulder, he could see Paul's flight as they
dwindled to two points of light.

■ ■ ■

"The
fighters have reached their outward point, sir, they're splitting
for
the return points."

"Thank
you, Ensign," said Jack, changing his monitor over to watch the
split.
At the very forward edge of the Freedom's sensor range, the blip
separated to form two smaller blips, traveling on a rearward angle
away from each other. At that point, he had a quick understanding of
the pattern Pappy had used, the return angle after the split made it
obvious. He reached forward and turned the monitor off and got out
of the command seat, Fritz rose off the floor next to him. "Looks
like you found yourself a new favorite spot, huh?" The Shepherd
cocked his head in a most familiar fashion and wagged his tail. "The
bridge is yours, Walt. I'm going to get a bite to eat and get some
rest." He dropped his comm unit gently on the console, "I'll
take over for you later."

"She's
in good hands, my boy." Replied the Professor. "Go get
some
rest,
you were up awful early this morning..."

"Thanks"
said Jack, yawning. "Call me if you need me."

"Will
do."

Jack
and Fritz strolled off the bridge and down the hall toward the
central
elevators. Jack was thinking how strange it was that the dog was no
longer vocal like he used to be, never barking or growling, not
making noises of satisfaction or indignation, no whining, no
snorting... He wondered if the injury had caused some unseen damage,
something the doctors missed. He decided he would speak to CABL M7,
maybe have him give Fritz a checkup. They rounded the corner and
stopped at the central bank of elevators. Jack pushed the button and
waited for the lift. "So what'll it be, Kiddo? Eat first, or a
walk first?" The door swished open and Jack stepped in.

"Wok!"
barked the dog.

Jack
froze mid stride in the elevator's doorway. He wasn't sure if
he
was more surprised that the dog had finally made vocal noise, or if
it was because the vocalization sounded like he had
said
something. Jack smiled, shook his head and finished entering the
elevator. Fritz followed him and sat down. "I must really be
tired," said Jack, “I'm starting to hear things." He
pushed the third button. "I said eat or walk," he mumbled,
"and you barked. So it just sounded like you said..."

"Woak,"
interrupted the dog, improving his annunciation.

The
door swished open but Jack didn't move, he stood frozen, staring
at
the dog who stared back, head cocked to one side, wagging his tail.

"Captain?"
Jack just about jumped out of his boots. "Sorry, sir. Are
you
getting off?" Jack looked at the gray uniformed non-com
standing outside of the elevator. He had a heavy electrical tool bag
slung over his shoulder. "Are you getting off?" he
repeated.

Jack
looked at the deck number, at the dog and back at the waiting
non-com,
"Uh, yeah, sure." He stepped off the lift and past the
curious technician.

"You
Ok, sir?"

"Yes
I'm fine," lied Jack. What was he going to say? I think my dog
just
talked to me? Not likely... He waited until the elevator doors
closed the crewman inside before he turned to the dog. "Look
you, if this is someone's idea of a joke, I'm not laughing..."

"Nyo,"
said the dog shaking his head.

"No?"
Steele ran his fingers through his hair. "You said no?" He
looked
around, but besides himself and the Shepherd, the corridor was
empty. "He said no..." mumbled Jack, sitting down on the
floor. "I must be losing my marbles."

"Nyo,"
countered the dog. He turned and strolled down the corridor.

"Hey!"
yelled Jack. "Where are you going?"

"Woak!"
answered the Shepherd.

Jack
shrugged and got to his feet. "Sure, we'll walk," he
muttered.
He
walked down the hall behind the dog talking to himself. "What
the hell, flying saucers exist, aliens are real, there's pirates in
space, I know talking cat women, there's even a guy wearing a cloak
who drinks brandy and walks through walls... so why not a talking
dog?" He followed Fritz into the garden and sat down. "Geez,
what a freaking weird universe."

■ ■ ■

"Well,"
said CABL M7, after examining Fritz, "it may not have been
expected,
but it was surely predictable to a certain extent." He rolled
the sleeves of his tunic back down. He was one of only two members
of the crew with a green uniform tunic, signifying he was on the
ship's medical staff.

"But
he talks!" insisted Jack. "Dogs aren't supposed to talk...
at
least
not where I come from."

"It's
a side effect from the installation of his CABL network. Did
the
surgeons not explain all the possible side effects?"

"Not
really," said Jack apprehensively, "why, what else is
there?"

"Sit
down, Captain."

Jack
was sure he didn't like the sound of that. CABL M7 turned to
the
dog, "You're all done Fritz, you can go if you wish." He
nodded and gracefully jumped off of the exam table. "I will
send the Captain to the galley when we're done. Ok?" The
Shepherd nodded once again and trotted through the sliding infirmary
doors. Jack stared in disbelief. "Now," began CABL M7,
"there are many possibilities." He leaned back casually
against the exam table, arms comfortably folded against his chest.
"But the probabilities are more what we're concerned with.
First of all, you must stop looking at him as merely a dog. The
moment his body took to the CABL insertion, he stopped being a dog,
he will never be merely a dog again."

He
walked over to the small refrigerator used to preserve drugs and
specimens.
Jack watched him go. He pulled out a jug of ice water and held it
up. Jack nodded, his mouth was dry. CABL M7 poured two glasses,
placed the jug back and returned with the glasses, handing one to
Jack.

"There
are many different types and sizes of implants. Fritz's is
fairly
sizable, it will affect everything about him. Mine, for instance, is
more specialized. I was already a surgeon when I developed
Garginson's Disease, a debilitating illness which attacks the
nervous system of my species. It crippled me. The CABL installation
cured me. I decided to replace my right eye with this special
optical, about a year later because it enhances my microsurgery
abilities. No matter how extensive or how small a system, once
inserted, it's permanent." He drank some of his water as did
Jack.

Jack
found it both disturbing and fascinating. "So what are some of
the
things I should expect?"

"I'm
getting to that," said CABL M7. "A CABL system develops on
its
own...
learns, if you will, and eventually develops and improves other
things. For me, my reflexes doubled in speed, my motor control is
beyond my original norm, I'm physically stronger..." He hopped
up onto the exam table and crossed his legs, sitting like an Indian.
"For Fritz, it will mean a much increased intelligence, the
ability to reason, an enhancement of
all
his natural abilities, hearing, smell, intuition, reflexes, speed,
agility, even strength. He may even learn to talk..." Jack
cracked a smile. "I thought that might amuse you," added
CABL M7, grinning. "The more extensive a unit that's installed,
the further-reaching its effects on the recipient."