Occupied Earth (The Sequel to First Encounter) (Ascension Wars Book 2) by Jasper T. Scott

Author:Jasper T. Scott [Scott, Jasper T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Anthem Press
Published: 2020-03-15T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 29

It didn’t take long for Keera to find her mother’s most recent mind scan. It was just five months old. Good enough, she thought as she patted the front pocket of her flight suit, feeling through the fabric for the black box that her father had given her and the matching one with her mother’s mind scan data on it.

Keera’s boots rang on the vented floor panels of the Sovath. Officers nodded to her as she strode by. None commented on the metal case she carried or the flight suit she wore, and none of them dared to ask where she was going.

She made it to the hangar without incident, and waved a hand to open the glossy black canopy of her Lancer fighter. The cockpit slid open, revealing a relatively cramped interior with two seats, one directly behind the other, but she wouldn’t be taking a co-pilot on this flight. Climbing a short ladder, Keera stowed the metal case back there and then clambered into the pilot’s seat. She hurriedly buckled her flight restraints and pulled the red lever beside her right arm to close the cockpit canopy. It slid over her, revealing a high-resolution display on the inside of the armored alloy canopy. It was clearer than glass, to the point that the canopy actually looked invisible. Keera diverted her eyes from it and ran through a quick preflight check. That done, she keyed the comms: “Helios One, to Sovath Flight Control, requesting clearance for launch.”

“One moment, Helios One,” a male Chimeran voice answered. Lieutenant Drake.

Another familiar voice replaced his just a second later. “Admiral, what do I tell Overseer Damos when he asks where you are?” It was her XO, Commander Treya. Her prying for details wasn’t as subtle as she probably thought. Treya was looking for any excuse to get her into trouble.

Keera’s eyes narrowed. “You tell him that I left to handle a personal matter, and that I will be back within a day.”

A hesitant pause answered. “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather share your flight plan with me? Secrecy begets questions.”

Keera clamped down on a frustrated hiss. “I will answer them when I return. That will be all, Commander.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Lieutenant Drake’s voice returned. “You are cleared for launch, Admiral. Thaedra’s blessings for your flight.”

Keera gave no reply as she fired up the grav engines and hovered off the deck, turning on the spot to face the open side of the hangar. The fuzzy white glow of its atmospheric shields blurred her view of the towering spires of New Houston below. Inching the throttle up, she roared out of the hangar bay and pulled up hard, burning for the stars. The amorphous glow of the city fell away below her, and shadowy clouds enveloped her cockpit.

Keera set course for the jump gate at Lagrange point one, and entered the queue of vessels waiting to use the gate. Pulling up a holographic star chart from the nav, she selected the Aldrian System, or Kapteyn’s Star, as Humans knew it.

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