Duty, Honour, Love
Chapter 7

The sounds of an alert blaring through the speakers in her quarters woke Karasena with a start. She reached over to the bedside cabinet and grabbed her comms link. “What’s happening?”

“Relay seven detected a ship,” the male voice on her comms said.

It took a moment for her still sleep filled brain to register what was being said. “ID?”

“Unknown,” the voice of the other end of her comms link stated.

“I’ll be there in five minutes.” She put the wrist unit back on the table and got out of bed. Like most T’Arni she had slept naked. “Lights!” she called out. Blinking at the sudden influx of light she staggered to the washroom and splashed cold water onto her face, a blast of air dried it and she felt more awake. Hurrying back into her bedroom she grabbed her uniform from the closet and dressed unlike most of her people she wore underwear. A hangover from the time an officer tried to molest her. She quickly closed her mind that was twenty years ago. Dressed she gave the rumpled bed a regretful look and hurried out she would have to clean up later. Her quarters had a washroom, bedroom and a living room the privileges of being an officer. But that was where her privileges ended she was expected to keep her own quarters clean. Outside a wide corridor stretched past several doors the dull duracrete walls leant a sombre mood to the place. At one end was the stairs and next it to the elevator. She stood for a moment and considered her options. The stairs would be quicker and she needed the exercise.

Five flights of stairs and several blast doors later she entered the comms room breathing hard. Several soldiers were already there, some of them in full combat armour. The comms room was a rectangular room the walls of which were covered with screens and underneath them were sets of consoles each monitoring a different sector of the local Comms Net. She marched past them to a T’Arni male with black hair and dark skin at one of the comms consoles.

“Report Rhiedice,” she said to him.

“Ma’am,” Rhiedice said his eyes on the screen in front of him a comms device covering one ear, “Relay seven reports a ship unknown ID in its vicinity.”

“What’s it doing?”

“Nothing, well it did activate a distress beacon but that’s stopped. At the moment it’s not moving.”

“Ok,” Karasena said half to herself. “Did the relay detect its exit from hyperspace?”

“That’s just it. The relay didn’t pick it up at first it’s like it just appeared.”

Karasena didn’t like the sound of that. The Erikino system was close to the core where the ancients had retreated after their war with the Rhosani. They said the core belonged to them and do not trespass. A number ships had gone in and never returned. The last she could remember was thirty years before she had been posted here by Com Ops and that was a Terran ship. “Are you sure that the relay isn’t malfunctioning?” she had to ask the question knowing what the answer would be.

“Sent it a test burst signal and it is functioning within acceptable perimeters.”

Karasena saw Dee slip through the door. There was no point on telling her anything she could already read it from their minds.

“Captain,” she saluted.

“Unknown ship,” Karasena said simply adding. “Where is relay seven?”

“That’s the one close to the core side of the system,” Dee told her. She could read the speculation in Karasena’s mind. The Ancients had said nothing was allowed to go into core but that didn’t mean they were stopping anything from leaving.

“Can you get any more data from the relay?” Karasena asked Rhiedice.

He suddenly leaned forward. “They’ve reactivated their distress beacon. I’ve got an ID on the type. It’s Terran.”

Karasena stared at Dee confusion on her face matching the confusion in her mind. “Terran?”

“What’s a Terran ship doing here?” Dee demanded putting the question in Karasena’s mind into words, “That the only one.”

“We haven’t detected any others,” Rhiedice told her.

“Full alert raise shields.” Karasena ordered. “Lieutenant Dareia comm the Security Chief in Hawthorn and Hawthorn General put them on alert as well?”

Hawthorn General was the biggest of the planet’s hospitals and the closest to the base. They handled all the base’s medical needs. If there were any fighting any casualties would be evaced to there.

“Yes ma’am,” Dee replied with a salute. Even though she knew what Karasena was about to say before she said it she let her take the lead following the chain of command.

“You think it’s a trap?” Rhiedice enquired with a nod from other soldiers.

Karasena considered what he was saying. The Orsini were well known for trickery even going so far as to turn captured equipment on its original owners. She had heard the reports of Anoxi that had been a disaster from start to finish. “I’m sure it’s genuine but be on stand by,” she reassured her soldiers. A slight nod from Dee told her that it was the right thing to say.

Rhiedice looked thoughtful. “If it continues on that heading?” He indicated the screen on his terminal. “It will pass close to relay four.”

“And?” Karasena glanced at Dee, she already knew the answer but she wasn’t going to reveal it. Dareia was Karasena’s ace in the hole. She could envision using her abilities against the Terrans. Dee’s expression was slightly annoyed. Karasena realised the way her thoughts were going and silently apologised.

“Relay four was upgraded last year it has the newest sensor and vid package. We’ll be able to get better info on the ship.”

“Good,” Karasena said with an affirming nod. “I’m going to send a flash report to Com Ops, pass me all the current info you have. Someone will have to wait for their response.”

“I’ll do it ma’am,” Ino said. A pretty looking female T’Arni with bottled red hair.

“Do so Private Ino,” Karasena looked to Dee, “Lieutenant Dareia you are with me once you’ve commed Hawthorn.”

“Yes ma’am.”

Karasena stepped out of the comms room her hands and legs shaking she couldn’t admit to her command that she was frightened. Dee would be well aware how she felt. She straightened herself up and took a deep breath she couldn’t let herself go under. She had defences to prepare and troops to rally. A rational part of her mind told her that her soldiers were probably just as scared as she was. No matter what she thought inside she had to show a brave face and face down her fears. With that in mind she hurried out of the comms bunker into the bright sunlight of a summer’s day.