Chapter 2

I slipped out of the wormhole on the edge of the system and set course for the third planet. I switched on the com, “Fleet control, this is the starship Night Scream.”

I waited for the delay and watched as my active scans showed two battleships and four battlecruiser heading towards me. The comm came to life, “Night Scream, this is fleet control. State your allegiance and your home system.”

I smiled, “I am a citizen of Grer.”

There was another long pause and I saw my combat scan flash red. The warships had targeted my ship and I waited until the comm came back on, “Night Scream, state the nature of your ship.”

I snorted, “Fleet control, Night Scream is a warship.”

This time another voice came on, “Night Scream, this is the battleship Grendal. Come to a full stop and prepare for boarders.”

I looked straight at the display, “Grendal, this ship and its contents are classified eyes only. Do you have a flag officer that can meet me?”

There was a long pause while I brought the ship to a sudden stop that would be ringing bells, “Stand by Night Scream.”

Grendal came back on the comm a minute later, “A shuttle is on its way. You can speak to Admiral Peters when he boards.”

“Thank you Grendal.”

I looked at the glowing display that represented Allie, “Allie, light up the starboard docking hatch.”

Her display blinked, “Done my husband.”

I shook my head and headed towards the hatch. I knew when the shuttled docked, the whole ship shivered. The hatch cycled open and two armed men stood looking at me and started to step into the ship. I raised my hand, “You are not an admiral and you are not authorized to enter.”

They ignored me and kept moving only to freeze as my pistol stopped moving pointed at them. They did not even twitch as another man moved forward. He wore the uniform I recognized as an admiral, “Drawing a weapon on an imperial soldier is punishable by death.”

I smiled, “Entering a restricted eyes only area without permission or need to know is punishable by death.”

He looked at me and his lips twitched, “You have a point.”

I holstered my weapon and he nodded and gestured for the two men to step back, “I am Admiral Peters.”

I held out my hand and he shook it, “Captain Charles Knight.”

He looked at me and I smiled, “Allie close the hatch after the admiral and monitor the shuttle.”

Allie’s quiet voice startled the admiral, “Yes my husband.”

I shrugged, “Now I can show you to the galley and explain a little about why we are here.”

He nodded and I led the way while Allie closed the hatch. I used the synthesizer for two cups of coffee and sat across the table from the admiral. I took a sip while he did the same and cleared my throat, “First I am here because of what happened at home.”

The admiral did not even blink as he continued to look at me. I kept looking at him, “We had a Talis Battlecruiser destroy all the biospheres in orbit before launching assault shuttles to the planet. They killed seventeen hundred and ninety two unarmed civilians. I am here to see if you know the location of a Marshal Thomas. I want to return him to Grer for questioning and trial.”

He shifted and finally sighed before pulling a small comm device out, “Grendal this is Admiral Peters.”

There was a short pause, “Is everything okay sir?”

He chuckled, “I am fine. Patch me through to Admiral George.”

It was only a couple of minutes before... “What do you have out there Henry?”

The admiral kept looking at me, “A request for assistance in locating Marshal Thomas.”

There was a delay and then, “You know that is classified.”

Admiral Peters gave me a small smile, “You know his location is always changing. Captain Knight is here trying to find Marshal Thomas on a matter related to a mass murder in Grer.”

There was another delay, this one longer. Finally, “Our last report was that he was en route to Petel, but you know he will only be there a few days.”

I stood up, “In that case I need to get going.”

Admiral Peters sighed, “Captain Knight, it is a seven day trip to Petel. I had him tell you to show that there was very little possibility of you catching Marshal Thomas.”

I only looked at him, “I can be in Petel in four and a half days.”

He looked at me in surprise and I gestured for him to follow me. I led him back towards the starboard hatch, “Allie, open the hatch for the admiral. Plot a least time course to Petel and have it ready for me on the bridge.”

“Yes my husband.”

The admiral was quiet as he stepped through the hatch and turned to look at me, “You are not going to have a chance. You do know that don’t you?”

I looked into his eyes, “They tore my father and my wives apart. I will either take him into custody or kill him.”

I hesitated, “My mother teaches at the royal college. Tell her dad is dead.”

I closed the hatch and turned to walk back to the bridge. I felt the shuttle separate before I reached it and slid into my seat. Allie had the nav display up, showing her route. I checked everything and hit the comm, “Fleet control this is Night Scream. Thank you for your help. We are leaving on a direct course for Petel. Please keep traffic clear of our route.”

I brought up the drive and pushed it to max. I knew fleet control and every fleet ship was going to have bells and alarms going off since we were moving faster than any known vehicle could. We reached the heliopause minutes later and I opened the wormhole projectors and switched to jump drives. I sat back with a sigh, “Watch the systems Allie. I am headed to the shuttle bay to check out my combat suit and the shuttle.”

There was a pause, “Are you sure this is a good idea Charles?”

I smiled as I slid out of my chair, “Probably not. We will find him and bring him back if possible.”

The next four days were spent in quiet talk as I checked and prepped my combat suit and the assault shuttle. We came out of the wormhole on the edge of the heliopause. I switched on the stealth systems and headed in system at max. My passive scans had picked up six battleships, eight Battlecruisers, six heavy and six light cruisers and twelve destroyers, “Allie, look for fixed positions.”

“Yes my husband.”

It only took three hours to reach the fourth planet. I had pre-plotted firing sequences for both fixed sites and any ship within range of our weapons. I made sure the battle screen was up along with the shield and shut down the stealth systems. I hit the comm, “Petel control, this is Night Scream. I am in high orbit and would like to speak with Marshal Thomas.”

There was a long silence before, “Enemy ship this is Talis fleet control, surrender now or we will destroy your ship.”