[Makebelieve] Brothers Of The Blood 25 {opinion, please]

[makebelieve archive]

Previous chapters can be found at
http://www.squidge.org/peja/cgi-bin/viewstory.php?sid=37198&warning=FRM

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

"Commander," Yama broke in. "I am detecting three intercepters approaching
from sector five-oh-seven. They are in attack formation. Coming in fast. I
strongly recommend bringing the battle computer online with all haste."

"Bring all stations to secondary alert," Dalton snapped, relieved that his
suspicions had been confirmed, but also disappointed. The attack damn well
confirmed his worst fears. "Yessenia, put those ships on the forward screen.
I want a look at our enemy."

"The ships are on screen."

Dalton pivoted his chair forward, studying the fast closing ships. "Maximum
magnification."

The image grew close enough to touch.

Dalton smiled darkly. "Just as I thought. Ian, do you recognize the insignia
of those ships?"

Ian shook his head. "'Tis na' standard Coalition, for sure. As a matter of
fact, they be na' of any affiliation I be familiar with."

"Anyone have anything else to offer? No? Yama, how about you? Do you have
any information on those ships?"

"Negative, Commander. I have no data in regard to them."

"Well now, I'd say that is quite interesting in and of itself, don't you?
Yessenia, how long before we're within their strike range?"

"At their current speed, twenty minutes."

"Dalton," Adric's voice, filled with desperation, filtered over the com link
again. "Dammitall, man, acknowledge me. Are you reading me?"

Arissa quirked her brow. "Well?"

Dalton sighed, nodding. "Open the channel. Looks like I play our ace card."

"It also looks like you are properly vindicated," Yessenia breathed.

Dalton chuckled drily. "Yes, I suppose I am at that."

"Channel's open, Dal."

Dalton grunted, but his guarded gaze was locked on the sleek, triangular
ships that approached them. There was something familiar about the general
design of the ships. Something, almost recognizable, threatened to betray
them, and yet it was not quite right. That subtle wrongness prevented him
from knowing and that was getting to be a damn dangerous habit.

"Dal, I have Adric for you."

Dalton nodded, forcing his thoughts away from the ships. "Adric, if you want
to come with us, now would be a damn good time."

"Now? You're leaving now?"

"Yes or no, Adric. We're a little busy up here."

"But we had a bargain, man."

"Bargain be damned, Adric. There are three intercepters coming in on our
heading. I don't intend waiting around for them to catch us up."

"But the base...."

"The base isn't likely to be their intended target," Dalton snarled. "I'm
willing to stake my life that they're after my ship. The signs all point to
it. Now, do you come with us, or do we go without you? Decide quickly.
Time's getting short from my point of view."

"Bring us up."

"Stand by." Dalton drew his finger across his throat, signalling the link be
broken. "Paris, teleport according to the coordinates I have preset."

"But we're only locked onto Adric."

"Exactly. Do it. Now."

"Adric isn't going to like this," Paris grumbled as he activated the
teleport.

A green haze filled the portal and Adric appeared, shadowed and illusive at
first, then solid and alive and lividly enraged. "What the hell are you
pulling, old buddy of mine?"

"You better grab a seat, Adric," Dalton snapped, then turned his attention
back to the business at hand. "Yama, take us out of orbit. Heading, zero.
One. Four. Level ten."

"Confirmed. Zero. One. Four. Level ten," Yama repeated.

"Dalton, have mercy," Paris groaned as the forced acceleration pressed them
cruelly back into their seats. "This isn't a safe speed for exiting an
orbit. Especially under test flight conditions. The pressure could tear...."

"Would you rather we waited," Dalton interrupted harshly, waving a hand in
the direction of the screens still filled with the in-coming intercepters.
"For them?"

"Well no, but...."

"There is an off chance I could have been wrong about their designated
target. If that's the case, it's up to us to lead them away from the base
and its people. By making a run at this speed, we should attract their
interest. Force them to follow us. If that hadn't been what they meant to do
in the first place."

"And if the ship doesn't hold together?" Yessenia demanded.

Dalton smiled. "Well now, child, we've cheated death many times," he purred,
stroking the fingers of his left hand. "We're all living on borrowed time.
It won't last forever."

"If it be any comfort," Ian glanced up from his terminal and grinned. "Lady
Luck seems to have decided to pay a call. The ship be handling like a
factory special. All systems are at peak and she's holding together under
these unusual stress factors. 'Tis thinking, I am, our little Hellequin has
acquired mega guts."

Dalton chuckled. "Not quite the same ship, is it?"

"What are you talking about?" Paris asked grumpily. "Of course this is the
same ship."

Dalton sighed. "Yes, Paris, this is essentially the same ship, but if each
of you will inspect your consoles you'll discover a multitude of
renovations."

"Renovations?" Paris said. "When did you find time to make renovations?"

"While Hellequin was torn down Domani and I took certain liberties with her
internal design. Her original compliment of weapons has been removed and
replaced with weaponry better suited for our purposes. I think you will
discover the Hellequin has been strengthened considerably." He waved a hand
toward Paris. "You, for instance, Paris, will find a series of traction
beams have replaced the single beam of before." A wicked grin transformed
his saturnine features. "In fact, I think we have just been handed an
entertaining situation for testing them."

Yessenia leaned over to study the new instrumentation in front of Paris.
"Those do look interesting. I'm eager to see what they can do?"

"All in good time," Dalton promised. "For your information, Ian, I've
managed to triple our power reserve while keeping to the same available
space and mass."

"That will come in handy," Arissa remarked. "I don't like being low on power
in a crunch. And we do seem to run low at the worst of times."

Dalton nodded. "I don't have time to give you a total rundown for obvious
reasons, but the improvements are self-explanatory. I trust none of you will
find occasion to blow us up if you happen to stumble on something I haven't
mentioned."

"Commander." Yama flashed brilliant red, sending shooting pain through
Dalton's light-sensitive eyes. "The intercepters have veered away from
Euzkadi. They are in pursuit, giving chase at level twelve."

"Dal, their particle discharge is red-line. They're definitely exceeding
their safety margins in an effort to intercept us." Yessenia met his cold
eyes and smiled. "Looks like you called them right again. Don't you ever get
tired of being right?"

"Only with the rest of you being consistently wrong," Dalton said. "Yama,
how long now before we're in their range? And how long can they maintain
their current speed without danger of self-destruction?"

"The Hellequin will be in range in four point five minutes," Yama droned.
"The interceptors can maintain speed for thirty minutes, after that their
engines will overheat and most probably explode."

"And there's no opportunity in that," Dalton mumbled.

"Increase our speed, Dalton," Paris whined, staring in an almost hypnotic
state at the screen.

"Oh, I don't think I'll do that, Paris." Dalton leaned across the frightened
man, registering several commands into the computer.

"What are you planning?" Paris demanded, dragging his eyes from the screen
to read the commands. He made a choking sound as understanding dawned on
him, and the color drained from his face. "Judes, do you mean to get us all
killed?"

Dalton chuckled darkly. "Being killed isn't included in my plan, but I have
allowed for it."

"Can't tell you how much confidence that admission instills in my heart,"
Paris sneered, scorn dripping from his words. "So why not explain this
brilliant plan of yours to us all?"

"Simple, actually. I plan to lead them away from the base, as I've already
explained," Dalton said. "We're trying to protect the base, remember?" He
dropped his hand on Paris' shoulder. "Take over the science station. I want
to try that little experiment."

"What you just preset? If they blow us out of space, how do we protect
anyone?" Paris assumed the abandoned science station, casting a mutinous
glance over his shoulder. "Besides, when did you start concerning yourself
with the lives of others. I thought your own survival was foremost on your
mind."

"It's a recent fancy of mine," Dalton assured the angry man. "And is only a
temporary aberration on my part, I assure you."

Dalton dipped his head forward, shielding his eyes from the flashing alert
beacons. "Dammit, somebody extinguish those blasted beacons."

The glaring lights died instantly as the computer responded to the command.

Sighing, Dalton dropped his hand. "Understand this, all of you. I expected
the attack we're currently evading, but I was hoping that by bringing Adric
into the danger zone I could buy us some breathing space. That whoever had
set the dogs on us, would pull them back to keep him off the killing ground.
It seems I misjudged his importance."
He sought Adric's eyes. "I mistakenly imagined you might simply have been
the bait to bring us to our death. I am now forced to assume you've always
been included as one of the targets. I sincerely regret my mistake."

"And your suspicion?"

The dark dragon's smile tugged at his lips. "I never regret suspicion."

"No, I don't suppose you would. But for you to have figured this so
accurately, you must have fingered someone." Adric said, a hunger burning
his amber eyes. A hunger to destroy those who would harm him and his. "Who
do you suspect, Dalton? Who do you think is trying to eliminate us?


end part 25



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