Ravanok the Unmaker by Anthony James

Author:Anthony James [James, Anthony]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-04-26T16:00:00+00:00

SEVENTEEN

“Captain, the molecular scan has not detected the presence of exit doors from this bay,” said Perry. “There again, the high-precision scans failed at Baltol.”

“I don’t believe the linking doors we’re looking for exist,” said Lanson, who’d just that moment reached a conclusion about what had happened to the Sagh’eld battleship. “Lieutenant Abrams – could those power readings you obtained from the topside cubes have been an indication that Indeston was preparing to send the Ex’Kaminar into void travel?”

“If we assume those cubes are enormous Galos power generators, then there’s every chance you’re right, Captain.”

“And if the Ex’Kaminar was transported elsewhere, might the same have happened to the Singularity warship we believe was either constructed or stored here at Indeston?” mused Lanson.

“We need access to the data arrays,” said Matlock. “If we can obtain the flight records, we’ll be able to follow the target vessel to its destination.”

“Lieutenant Turner, see if you can interface with the orbital,” said Lanson.

“I’m running a receptor sweep, Captain,” said Turner. “No receptors found.”

“That can’t be right,” said Lanson. “How the hell would a spaceship in this bay communicate with personnel on the orbital if there are no receptors?”

“I think I’ve found the answer to that, sir,” said Perry. “Look at this.”

One of the underside feeds was targeted on an area at one end of the bay near the floor. Here, the metal was charred and uneven around a shallow, one-metre crater.

“That’s too small to be a missile strike,” said Lanson. “It looks more like the result of an explosive charge.”

“Yes, Captain, and the same thing happened at the opposite end of the bay.”

“The Sagh’eld destroyed the receptors before the Ex’Kaminar entered void travel,” said Lanson. “They must have identified the Infinitar as an Aral warship and assumed we would have access to the Indeston systems.”

“We should be able to access the data arrays from a console within the orbital, Captain,” said Massey.

“I’m sure you’re right, Lieutenant, but that would require a deployment. It’s a delay we can’t afford.” Lanson had another thought. “I’ll bet the Sagh’eld from that transport have been ordered to secure the main control station for the bay.”

“There’ll be at least one other control station,” said Turner. “We don’t have to be in the main station to access the flight records.”

“If the Sagh’eld know what they’re doing, they’ll be able to initiate a lockdown of the bay,” said Abrams. “Once the emergency protocols are in place, they might be able to shut down the secondary control stations.”

Lanson was reluctant to believe that the Sagh’eld had the knowledge to operate the orbital, and even more reluctant to accept that they might have access to the Aral systems. Then, he remembered the new gen security breaker on the landing field above, and suddenly he was not so sure anymore.

“Lieutenant Perry, get on the comms to Sergeant Gabriel,” said Lanson. “Find out if he’s ready to deploy.”

“He is, Captain,” said Perry after a few moments. “The Sergeant has the Ezin-Tor with him, and he asks if that’s a problem.

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