Keeper Hunter

It was a short walk to the bridge. Frankly I was surprised we were so close I’d have thought the crew would have been better served being closer to the bridge. The bridge was a lot more compact that I thought possible with two doors to the side flanking the captain’s chair. It was twice as long at it was wide and built more like an Imperial than a Confederacy bridge. I’d been on the bridges of larger Confederacy and Imperial ships well an ex-Imperial ship the Valorous Star. There were no windows on this bridge, which I considered a design flaw on Confederacy ships. In their place were screens. Phedra sat on a high chair over looking the rest of the stations. In what I supposed was the helm station, which was the one furthest from me was a Fandaran. Vesna was on one side at what I assumed was the comms console it had that vibe. On the other side was an another console, which was the sensor console. Claudia sat at that her eyes intent on the screen in front of her.

“Captain?” I said to Phedra automatically going formal.

Phedra swung around in her chair and regarded me carefully. I had to admit I was standing to attention the lessons from my time in Security and the lessons Kelli had drilled into me while I was pretending to be an officer in the Alliance coming to the fore. Not that I did me any good Runa had seen right through my ruse.

“Please ‘G’ don’t be so formal this isn’t a warship,” Phedra said to me.

“Ok ‘P’ what’s this about?” I said relaxing my pose.

“’F’ show ‘G’ the starboard gun controls.”

That didn’t sound good if they were asking me to operate a weapons system. “Is it that serious?” I had to ask.

“We had a ship following us I just want to be prepared,” Phedra grimaced at that.

“Can’t you just jump?” I countered.

“Not if we ever want to come back here. I really don’t to break the privilege Lady Broaden gave us.” Phedra made a face. “ And I don’t want anyone boarding us.”

“I get that.” I didn’t really, what she was saying wasn’t making much sense. I decided it was best to follow orders rather than puzzle over it now. I turned to Frigga. “Ok ‘F’ get me set up?” I wasn’t sure about this I ’d never been trained in handling shipboard weapons and didn’t know what to expect.

Frigga led me to a door inside the bridge one of the doors I noticed earlier. I stepped inside and halt surprised by what I could see. It was a small room made smaller by the hemisphere of holographic screens that was in front of a chair with consoles on both arms. It seemed similar to the controls of a shuttle.

“Sit in the chair and the software will do the rest,” Frigga said to me.

I sat where indicated. Almost a once a large red circle appeared on the screen. The screen showed a view of space from the outside of the ship. Although it was impossible to see much the ship was travelling at speed.

“The red circle is your targeting reticle. And at the bottom is your ammo count.”

I’d been on a few ships but I’d never seen anything this sophisticated. Little wonder they hadn’t wanted anyone else looking too closely at this.

“I’ve got this,” I told Frigga.

“You’ve better or we’re dead.” She handed me a head set. “That’s so we keep in touch with the bridge.”

I settled the headset on my head wondering why out of the crew they’d picked me. “Why me?”

“Because you’re all we’ve got.”

I sensed she wasn’t telling me the full truth. I concentrated on the screen as Frigga left. Suddenly a list of numbers rolled down one of the screens too fast for me to see what it meant.

“Gun one,” Phedra spoke over the comms. “ And gun two arm weapons but don’t fire.” Phedra sighed sounding tired. “I mean that Frigga!”

Obviously Frigga had been trigger-happy before but I wasn’t about to ask that question. I searched my console. Finding someone had thoughtfully labelled the buttons for me. I found the button that said arming and pressed it. The screen flashed ‘loaded’ I guess that was that.

“Gun one armed,” Frigga said,

“Gun two armed,” I said guessing that I was gun two.

“Ok do not fire unless ordered,” Phedra repeated.

“Got it,” I replied.

“I wasn’t on about you ‘G’” Phedra responded.

“Yes, yes.” Frigga sounded disappointed.

I considered it typical Valkyrie behaviour. Another set of numbers flashed across my screen slower this time. I was impressed no ship I’d travelled on had such a sophisticated weapons system. Little wonder Phedra didn’t want to anyone to board her ship. She was risking at lot in not only showing me this but in having me operate it. I suspected it was an Ezaran design. Denassi had a lot of clever devices like the one that was so believable. The holo of a dropship descending was so life like it had our attackers attack it and run off. For now I focused on the task at hand. The data in the screen suggested that a ship was on an intercept course.

“We’ve got a ship on an intercept course,” I said unsure if the bridge was aware of that.

“Already noted ‘G’,” Phedra replied. She added. “’F’ repeat do not fire until ordered. I want to avoid an incident this time.”

Which implied to me that Frigga hadn’t waited the last time. I stared some more at the screen showing the incoming ship. The data said Imperial River Class Frigate. I knew those ship specs off by heart due to my dalliance in thinking about joining the Navy. Another of the military vocations I had thought about joining. In the end I took my father’s route and entered Security. It was moving a lot faster than a River Class should be. The rate it was travelling would have crushed the crew the inertial dampeners on that class of ship was notoriously unstable at high speed. It wasn’t a frigate but something else masquerading as one.

I commed Phedra with a cold feeling in my gut. “There’s something odd about that incoming ship?”

“Stay calm we’ve got this,” Phedra replied.

I got the feeling she didn’t believe me. “I’m not panicking just stating a fact.”

Phedra didn’t reply at first then I heard her say over the comms. “’CL’ take a look.”

All the while the ship was closing in too fast for the type of ship it reported to be. My inner voice spoke it was one I hadn’t heard for a while and quite frankly I’d forgotten it was there.

“Get out of here now!” I’d heard this particular voice before on Alfheimir when I’d been dumped on a snowy and freezing mountainside. I would have died where I lay naked and frozen. The voice had woken me up and urged me to move. At the time I’d thought to be one of the Keepers but this was had been different and with my inability to contact the Keepers not one of them. For a moment I thought I was going mad. The more moderate, more logical voice in my head quietly whispered in my mind that I wasn’t and I needed to heed the warning.

“Jump, jump now!” I called out over the comms hoping I was heard.

The lights flickered and the screen went blank. I’d been heard we had jumped to hyperspace. We were only in hyperspace for minutes the lights flickered again and the screens came alive showing only the darkness of space. We were light years away from Paranova. Before I had a chance to get my bearings Phedra stormed in her face full of fury.

“What in the Ancients did you do!” she yelled at me. “I’m the captain of the Independence not you!” She pointed a red painted chipped fingernail at me.

“Everyone calm down here!” Vesna called out stepping between Phedra and I.

“’V’” Phedra pleaded obviously not wanting to antagonise her sister.

“Please calm down,” Vesna appealed to her sister. “I’ve got ‘CL’ reviewing the sensor data.” She grimaced. “Whatever the result that ship did not order us to power down our engines for inspection. I was monitoring the comms.”

I noticed her eyes were on my bracelet.

“We should discuss this when all our heads are clearer?” Vesna continued.

“Ok, ok!” Phedra said exasperated.

“That ship was a danger,” I said. “Whatever you think it wasn’t what it was supposed to be.” I launched into technical explanation of the River Class Frigate and it’s disadvantages. “It was travelling too fast for the ship it was reporting to be. I am certain it was another ship disguise. I know a clever Ezaran that frightened off a group of attackers with a really realistic holo of a dropship descending.”

Phedra stared at me. “Is that possible?”

“If ‘G’ says it is it is,” Frigga stated.

“Not helping much Frigga,” I responded.

“On the contrary ‘G’ I am helping, you are wearing the Silver and the Elders don’t hand those out to just anyone.”

Claudia entered a puzzled expression on her face. The room not that large to start with grew smaller.

Phedra turned to her. “Well?” she demanded.

“I could hear you arguing all the way from the bridge. ‘G’ was right I’m glad ‘U’ did all those sensor upgrades I’d never spotted the anomalies until it was too late.”

“What anomalies?” Phedra asked going pale.

“An engine signature well out of specs,” Claudia told her directly.

“Shit!” Phedra remarked. Her eyes swept the assembled crew. “Everyone one back to their stations. We’ll sort this out once we’re in hyperspace.”

I settled back into the gun station while the rest of the crew hurried back to theirs. Moment later the lights flickered and we’d jumped into hyperspace. I was on my way to the Confederacy and into danger. Or was that away from danger only the future would tell and what I hoped were answers to my questions.