Slipspace: Harbinger Read online

  Labonne knew what everyone else knew- the pirates would not surrender, and she would not show them mercy.

  “We’re in firing range, but we’ve got too many bandits for you to stay on my wing. Break formation and engage at will. Weapons hot and free! I repeat, we are weapons free.” She bore down and sighted her primary target. “Committing!”

  She squeezed the trigger. The twin rail guns in her wing mounts erupted in a burst of rapid fire. Tracers lit up projectiles, creating a trail Labonne followed as they struck her target, dealing damage to its hull and causing it to veer away from the convoy and flee. As she approached the cargo ship, she fired her combat thrusters, sending the fighter into a drop while its forward momentum continued uninterrupted. She looked up and saw her target. Her fighter followed, pitching ninety degrees upward and giving herself a clear shot at the target’s ventral side. She took it and the pirate’s fighter erupted in a ball of fire all its own.

  “Splash one!” Labonne called as she changed vectors. No sooner had she thrust in the new direction, did her proximity detector indicate another bandit giving chase. She came about, spinning 180 degrees, and opened fire. The target had no time to react as the ordinance shattered the cockpit glass and sliced through the engine housing. Less than a second later, the pirate was little more than debris. “That’s two!”

  “Don’t get too cocky, Major,” Mitchell cautioned. “There’s still four of them.... Make that three of them still out there. I’ve got one in my sights. The second is behind you, and the third is making a suicide run at the lead ship in the convoy.”

  “I’m on the suicide run. Just worry about the fighter in your cross-hairs.”

  Labonne angled her fighter to intercept. She kept the maneuver simple, not wanting to lose her pursuer as she flipped to her weapons inventory and keyed the missile stored in the belly of her fighter. With the weapon armed, Labonne triggered her engines, thrusting forward and activating the boost generator to open the range on her pursuer. In a well- practiced motion, she executed a yaw, spinning her 180 degrees. A split second later, the warhead locked. Labonne fired.

  She trigged her jets once again and the control seat pushed into her legs as the fighter felt as if it were lifting her up. The missile streaked towards the target, and overshot, just as expected. Like Labonne’s fighter, the weapon flipped, reversing direction. It accelerated harder, striking the pirate’s aft engine housing. The target exploded at the point where it intersected the Kamikaze’s attack angle, leaving that pilot no time to react as his ship became one with the fireball.

  The cargo ship too had no time to react and flew into the explosion as fire and debris pounded the vessel. Labonne spun her ship around as Mitchell reported the destruction of the last fighter.

  “Convoy Four Bravo, this is Major Labonne in command of patrol One-Alpha. The last of the pirates have been destroyed. How are you holding up?”

  “We were holding together until your warhead took down our navigation systems, Major. But we’re in one piece. Thank you for the assist...such as it was.”

  Labonne ignored the jab. “Don’t mention it, Four Bravo. My wingman and I will form up and escort you to the Luna gate for damage assessment.”

  September 29, 2832

  13:05

  Luna Station

  AS HER FIGHTER came to a halt, Jenna Labonne powered down and pulled herself out of the cockpit. Before her boots hit the deck, maintenance techs had already started working to service her ship and get it ready for its next flight. Her helmet came off as she stepped down, but before she could say anything the deck chief came up to her.

  “I don’t know what you did, but there’s someone here who wants to see you. He’s waiting in the squadron observation deck.”

  “Great...”

  When she arrived to receive her guest, she found the officer standing at the far wall look out the gallery windows, hands folded behind his back, watching the stars as the remainder of the convoy limped along. She took a moment to size him up. He wore the standard ISPA naval officer’s duty uniform. Short hair, well groomed, clearly someone looking to impress his superiors.

  He turned as she came in, extending his hand. “Major Labonne? I’m Captain Cody Amado. Pleasure to meet you.”

  Labonne’s eyes rose in surprise as she shook his hand. Given his apparent age, she would have pegged him as a Commander. “And you, Captain. What can I do for you?”

  Amado took a moment before responding. “How’s your assignment here? I’m guessing you’re bored.”

  “How did you come to that assessment?”

  “I monitored your engagement, Major. It was aggressive...far more than need be, bordering on reckless. The Captain of the convoy has filed a formal complaint regarding the collateral damage your missile did to his ship. Apparently, you fried his primary navigation array.”

  “Does he want an apology, Captain? Is that why you’re here?”

  “No.” He waved his hand dismissively. “I was very impressed with your efforts, despite the collateral damage.” He turned back to her. “I’m here because I need a squadron.”

  “What for?” Labonne asked, her curiosity piqued.

  “I have a ship ready to launch, but the fighter wing has yet to be assigned.”

  Labonne sighed. “Captain, I’m flattered. But I don’t think my squadron is suitable for your needs.”

  Amado frowned. “Why not?”

  “Simply put, Captain, I don’t think my squadron is an appropriate size for your ship.”

  “What’s your current roster?”

  “Twelve wings. 144 pilots.”

  He sighed. “You are correct, Major. You won’t do in your current configuration. You’ll have to add 48 pilots to your roster.”

  Labonne choked at that statement. “Um, I think you have that backwards, Captain. I have 144, which puts me over the 96 needed to fill a standard wing aboard a non-carrier class vessel.”

  Amado smirked. “There’s a new standard now, Major. Add pilots and bring me a roster of 192 so I can have Gryphon squadron on my flight deck when I take my ship into deep space.”

  Labonne paused, a little overwhelmed at the opportunity: the chance to get off Luna, onto a ship, and actually do something worth doing. But there was a can of worms waiting for him. If he was to be her commanding officer, he needed to know the full picture.

  “Captain, I appreciate the offer. But you need to know that I carry baggage. My father...”

  “...is Admiral Charles Marr,” Amado interrupted. “Yes, Major, I’m well aware of him. I do my homework.”

  “Yes, Captain, of course. But the Admiral and I are not on good terms, and I wouldn’t put it past him to use his position to pressure you.”

  Amado sighed, “Major, my superiors, including your father, have given me unprecedented autonomy to choose most of my command staff. Your squadron comes highly recommended. The solution should be simple, wouldn’t you agree?”

  Labonne considered for a moment. “We’re in, Captain. Where shall the Gryphons report?”

  Amado produced a handheld from his uniform jacket. “I’ve requisitioned the Olympic. She’s a cargo carrier and will ferry your personnel, ships, ground crew, and any specialized equipment you need from here to the Lyros ship yards. I need your squadron and support crews, in their entirety on board within the next six days. Also…” He paused to take a breath. “I’ve read your personnel file and I’m aware the review board has approved your promotion, but it’s been on hold until a posting became available.”

  Her words caught in her throat leaving her able to only exhale a short breath of surprise. That review board had so long ago. She had started to wonder if she would ever receive her promotion. Ever since the war ended, movement within the ranks of the fighter corps had slowed to a near halt. She had only gone through the review process because she thought it would look good to make the attempt once or twice. The day she found out she’d been approved to be promoted, it came as a shock.

&n
bsp; “This post fills that caveat, so you will finally receive your promotion. Congratulations, Colonel Jenna Labonne.”

  “Thank you, Captain.” Labonne said as the weight of the Captain’s news set in.

  “You deserve it. But don’t let me down. You and your squadron report aboard within six days.”

  “Aye, Captain.”

  Cody stepped past her towards the door, but stopped short and turned. “Colonel, one other thing. Do not let this promotion go to your head. You were promoted because your record is amazing. You were not promoted for that stunt I saw out there. I told you I was impressed with that maneuver of yours, and I was. But only because it worked. You had no way of guaranteeing success, did you?”

  “No, sir. Just a damn good hunch. I figured that if I didn’t try, the freighter was dead. If I did try there was a chance it’d survive.”

  Amado nodded in agreement. “Still, and be honest with the both of us, you could have just as easily taken out the kamikaze, led the one behind you off, and allowed your wingman to do his job and protect you, yes?”

  “Yes.”

  “So, why didn’t you?”

  “I played the hunch, Captain. I had something to prove...mostly to myself.”

  “Congratulations, Colonel, you proved it, and if you ever try another hare-brained stunt like that, especially when safer options are available, you and I are going to have serious problems. Am I understood?”

  Labonne nodded. “Yes, sir. I’ll get the squadron expanded and ready to go.”

  “Good. And I’ll see you aboard ship,” Amado said. He then turned back to the door and exited leaving Labonne alone with the starscape. She strode to the window, tapping the handheld against her palm.

  “Good work, Jenna. Not even aboard ship and already chewed out by the CO. Nice.” She stared into the blackness of space as the last of the convoy slid out of view. She smiled. A ship in need of a squadron. Not just any squadron, but her squadron in its entirety with forty-eight additional seats to fill. She had never served on a squadron that large much less commanded one. This fantastic challenge was hers, but time was wasting and her comm was beeping.

  She turned to the gauntlet on her right arm and keyed the built in comm switch and checked the identification tag. It identified as a call from Charles Marr.

  Labonne silenced the call. He’d leave her a message and, if possible, she’d ignore it. She switched over to a different channel.

  “Labonne, to Mitchell, where are you?”

  A brief moment passed before Mitchell’s holographic avatar appeared, a scaled down image of his entire body standing on her gauntlet. “In your office, wrapping up paperwork.”

  Labonne suppressed a smile. “Thanks.”

  “It’s what I do. Let me guess, another dressing down over your piloting choices?”

  She sighed. “Yes, but not by the usual parties.” She paused for a moment before continuing. “Listen, I need you to compile a list of all available pilots’ names, flight stats, and personnel records. Let’s meet for dinner at 17:00 and go over them. We don’t have a lot of time to waste on this.”

  Mitchell’s voice wavered despite his avatar remaining stoic. “Major...Major, slow down. What’s going on? Why am I pulling service records?”

  Labonne took a moment to catch her breath. “It’s Colonel now, Mitchell, and we need to expand the squadron.”

  September 30, 2832

  21:30

  Lumo

  WITH EACH STEP, Nira Fen squeezed the powdery white sand between her toes. The tide rushed up against the shore line, splashing at her feet and soaking the fringe of her sarong. The wind picked up and she brushed her golden-brown hair out of her eyes and behind her ear. Her fingers slid past the flower in her hair and down the length of her hair to just below her shoulder blades. ‘Long walks on the beach’ seemed cliché but the opportunity to spend a few nights at Lumo’s Zarthine shores was far too tempting to pass up, even if she would be spending it alone.

  Another cool breeze blew inland, sending a chill across her bare arms.

  She continued walking, knowing she could not blame Cody. Business was business. She wouldn’t hold it against him if the Alliance had him out on a recruiting job despite the approved leave time. She sighed and looked out to the horizon over the sea. This far from any major city or settlement, there were no lights to dilute the beautiful starscape in the night sky. She craned her head upward, taking in a deeper view of the universe above her.

  She watched as a stray meteor streaked across her field of view and followed it as it fell and burned out. Her eyes rose once more, moving from star to star. Cody was out there on one of those planets, orbiting one of those stars. Maybe, even now, he was looking up at his night sky toward the Lumir system, toward her as she looked upwards toward him in return. Perhaps their star-crossed gazes transcended time and space, meeting each other and warming the cold void.

  With a smile, she continued her way down the beach. Her villa was just ahead, and the thought of getting some real sleep was very enticing. She closed the door behind her and entered a locking code. The door clicked. Nira stepped into the bedroom, pulling the sarong off her waist as she walked and let it drop to the floor. The swimsuit halter top came off with ease and she slipped the bottom off her hips and let it slide down her legs to rest. She left the flower in her hair. As she climbed into bed, the cool sheets slid smoothly across her bare skin. She pulled the blanket over her chest, turned out the lights, rolled onto her side and with thoughts of her husband, fell asleep.

  THE SOFT TOUCH of the flower’s petals brushed past her cheeks and instinctively, Nira brushed it away as she slowly rose back into consciousness. Her eyes opened and focused on the bouquet of roses sitting on the dresser.

  Cody sat at the foot of the bed watching her, a smile dashing across his face. He leaned forward and drew her to him as they kissed. “Good morning, sleeping beauty,” he said, after their lips parted.

  “Hey,” she cooed. “I thought you were on business.”

  She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and neck, keeping him at arm’s length so she could see him. He rubbed her arm and slid her hand off his shoulder, bringing it up to his lips to kiss once again as he looked her in her magenta eyes.

  “Wild horses couldn’t keep me away.”

  “How did you get in? Did I forget to secure the door?”

  “One, zero, zero, one, two, eight, two, seven. The code was pretty easy to guess.” he said, quoting the date of their wedding. “Give me a little more credit than that. Happy Anniversary.”

  “To you, too,” she said, pulling him down on top of her.

  Instead of kissing her again, Cody slipped from her grasp and rose to his feet. Nira sat up in her bed, allowing the rose petals and bed sheets to fall off her body. He produced a large box he had been hiding and handed it to her.

  “What's this?” She asked.

  “Just a little something for you.”

  She cocked her head and opened the gift, shielding her eyes as the light in the room reflected off the bolts of ruby, emerald, and sapphire fabric in the box. She knew instantly.

  “Halite Silk?” she gasped. “Cody...these are three bolts of Halite Silk. How did you get your hands on so much?”

  Cody smiled. “I have my ways. I take it you like it?”

  That’s an understatement. Thank you! I don’t know what I’ll do with it.”

  “Whatever you’d like. I’m sure you’ve got a couple of projects.”

  Nira closed the box and set it down beside her bed. “Care to join me?” she asked, sliding under the blankets.

  Cody said nothing, but instead removed his shirt. “There’s more.”

  She turned her back to him and nestled up against him as he extended his arm around her. “Oh?”

  “There’s a new assignment. A ship.”

  She turned towards him. “What ship?” she asked, not sure if she wanted the answer or not. But she already knew what he’d say. The sudd
en nature of the trip, the long hours he’d spent in and out of his office on various tasks, the pulling of nearly every officer record he had access to; all that fell into immediate context.

  “It’s the new battleship. The Mjöllnir. It’s scheduled to launch in a couple of days and I’ve been given command. The trips I’ve been taking have been to find and line up division commanders.”

  Nira smiled and rolled back into his arms. “Congratulations.”

  He hesitated.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  He offered her a soft smile. “Nothing at all. I want to ask if you would like to run the medical team as Chief of Staff.”

  Nira tried to turn again, but Cody held her in place. “I don’t know what to say, Cody...”

  “Say you’ll do it. I want a doctor aboard ship that I can trust.”

  “Why me? I mean, I’m your wife. Is the Alliance going to permit me to serve with you?”

  Cody sighed. He must have known this question was coming, as he did not waste any time in answering.

  “After the war, Central had to make some concessions and allow officer families stay together in order to prevent a surge of retirements. People wanted to take the uniform off and enjoy life. These days, as long as they’re not working in the same divisions, any officer can request a posting with his or her spouse or family member. Hell, they even let me assign Cassie as first officer.”

  “I thought the first officer reported directly to the commanding officer. How does that fit into the family policy?”

  “I asked Marr the same question when he gave me his recommendations. Apparently, he thinks that our strained relationship is enough to overcome any conflict of interest we’d have towards each other as siblings. And he wants her out of Central Command.”

  “That’s hardly a ringing endorsement,” Nira replied. “You brought her on why?”

  “She needs a fresh start. The least I can do is give it to her.” He kissed her neck. “But back to you...”

  “I come back to the same question. I’d report to you, and how would that not violate standing policy?” she asked as she stretched her back and shifted to a better position.