Chapter 703

The Ship

... The First Officer hesitated. “Perhaps we should have brought a fire team with us, just in case.”

Or I should have trusted the Miadax males more and hence given my bridge crew more than just the minimum of weapons training, Jeff thought.

A second later, Jeff and the General passed a glance before Whitworth grinned. “Well, Colonel, it’s been a while since we’ve taken up arms together. Perhaps that day has come again. I think I can still remember which end of a pulse rifle to point toward the enemy. How about you?” he joked.

“Possibly,” Jeff returned with a chuckle, “but maybe it won’t come to that, and it’s just a simple cave-in caused by nature.”

“And if bullfrogs had wings...” the General returned.

Jeff sighed. “Yeah, I know, but if I remember correctly, cave-ins are common, at least in Earth caves and caverns. Some have been declared safe by structural engineers, but many have never been professionally examined. I would think that cave-ins here, as on Earth, could be caused by a number of things,” Jeff said as he frowned. “Water undermining the supporting structure, that same supporting structure shifting due to stress, limestone dissolving and that same supporting structure collapsing. Maybe an earthquake or volcanic activity far underground. On an on, I would think.”

“What I’m worried about is a deliberate act,” the General continued. “Although the primary survey determined the planet to be free of intelligent life, this dimension has an active interstellar presence — multiple space-going races — and there always seems to be those who want to prey on the weaker — as evidenced by the Graex attack a few hours ago. Also, a planet is, by nature, a vast place — lots of real estate in which to hide or just occupy. Our equipment is supposed to detect intelligent life. Still, the surveys weren’t done from orbit, but rather from smaller craft capable of being partially dismantled, sent through the Portal and reassembled on scene. Usually, the wingspan is the kicker.

“Supposedly, the equipment is capable of detecting animal life, and more importantly, it is supposed to be capable of detecting intelligent animal life. Just another of the items we were able to trade from another race that is well-advanced in that type of technology. But ... our survey teams have been surprised before when they thought they were alone; although, most of the time, that was because of races capable of space flight which detected our people from orbit. Unfortunately, those races also tend to be aggressive. When they perceive that a group is not sufficiently capable of defending themselves, they tend to attack.

“I think we should be very cautious, indeed, with our approach to the coordinates we received from my research team.”

Having led his fire team on rescue missions more times than he cared to remember, Jeff thoroughly agreed.

Ship dropped out of warp some 15 billion miles from the star they were approaching, still in interstellar space. Now confident that his calculations had been correct, the Navigator informed his Captain.

“Very well. Pilot, jump us forward another 5 billion miles, give or take, toward our destination. No need to be precise this far out.”

After only a few seconds, the Pilot said, “Course laid in, Sir.”

“Go.”

After breaking out of warp, they waited while Helen’s instruments scanned the system. In her secondary position as Science Officer, she said, “Ship has detected six planets. One is a frozen rock approximately four billion miles from the Primary, two are gas giants, and one is too near the star to even have an atmosphere. The other two are within the Goldilocks zone. We need to move closer before I can obtain more detailed information.”

“Pilot, warp us approximately 5 billion miles closer to the star.”

Course laid in, Sir.”

“Initiate.”

Reality blinked away again and was quickly back.

“Check for any signs of vessels, especially near the two planets in the Goldilocks Zone,” Jeff ordered needlessly.

After a few moments, Helen said, “The two planets in the Goldilocks Zone are opposite each in the system with the star approximately halfway between.” As she put a representation of the planets and the Primary on the big screen, “According to the coordinates the Science Team sent, this is our objective,” she continued as she put a red ring around one of the planets.

“Are we close enough to detect a ship?” Jeff asked.

“We might detect a ship breaking out of warp, but even that is iffy at this distance,” the pilot broke in to say, “not to mention the delay due to the speed of light.”

“All right. Chances are that the only thing wrong is a cave-in, but let’s be cautious, anyway. First Officer, bring us to General Quarters.”

With a touch of a button, the system blared out, “General Quarters. General Quarters.”

Not much had changed because almost all the stations were already filled, but now everyone was super alert.

“Navigator, plot a course to bring us within a million miles of the planet on the screen.”

A couple of moments later, the course was sent to the Pilot, and when he acknowledged, Jeff said, “Initiate.”

After giving Helen, the Pilot and the Navigator time to search the area around the planet with their equipment, Jeff asked, “Anyone detect anything of note?”

When they all responded negatively, “Very well. Pilot, approach the planet using our inertialess drive at a quarter-light. Take up an power orbit twenty thousand miles above the coordinates we were given.”

“Impulse drive at a quarter-light. Orbit at twenty thousand miles above coordinates, Sir.”

“All stations — stay alert for any sign of vessels.”

Jeff received conformations from everyone — even the General acknowledged as he peered intently at his screen.

After he had given the crew time to scan the surface, “First, do you perceive any reason not to move within hailing distance of the Science Team?”

“No, Captain. None of us have detected any orbiting ships. I suggest that we move to low orbit and try calling the Science Team.”

“Very well. Pilot, move us to a power orbit two hundred miles above the last known position of the Science Team.”

A moment later, the Pilot reported that they were hovering over what should be the Team’s position. Ship or Helen, Jeff didn’t bother to wonder which, put the Science Team’s last known position on the screen and magnified it. Ship’s powerful imaging showed the surface of the planet from a seeming height of five miles as she gradually increased the magnification, which gave the illusion of their moving toward the surface.

“Ship, hold the view when you reach a relative height of a quarter-mile,” Jeff instructed.

They saw nothing but rocks, deep crevasses, high cliffs, and a narrow river — the river was surrounded by a narrow band of vegetation which included sizeable trees as it wound its way through the rough terrain. Something that must have been a bird went by showing its ten foot wingspan.

“You’re positive these are the coordinates the team sent?”

“They are the same, Captain. And Jeff,” Helen went on, ‘the Portal’s last coordinates check with the coordinates the team gave as their location. Do you concur, Navigator?”

“Affirmative, Ma’am.”

“Pilot, please take us down to hover at a thousand feet.”

“Yes, My Prime. One thousand feet above the team’s coordinates,” the Pilot returned even as the image momentarily blurred before steadying without magnification this time.”

“The team has some type of transportation, don’t they, General?”

“Yes. A runabout — an all-terrain vehicle capable of carrying six passengers — albeit, not with a great deal of comfort, and ugly as hell, but it will go anywhere.”

“I don’t see any tents. Do you think they set up on the surface or in the cavern, Sir?”

“From what I read, after they found the entrance with their equipment, they, at first, set up their base camp near the river, a quarter of a mile away. They had discussed moving their base inside the cavern, which they did at some point. Eventually, they detected some general signs of an ancient civilization but had not made any major discoveries. Then they sent in the report of the cave-in and a request for resupply just before our Portal went down.”

“Pilot, do your instruments still show the area around us free of any vessels?”

“I detect neither any space-going vessels nor any planet-bound ones,” Sir.”

“I concur,” Helen said.

“Very well. Pilot, drop us down to five hundred feet above the surface.”

“Five hundred feet above the surface, Sir.”

“After the cave-in, I imagine the Science Team would have sought an area where they were near water and could find shelter, if possible. Which would have been their original campsite, I suppose.”

“Captain,” the First Officer said, I caught a glimpse of something as the view moved downward. It was just a glimpse, but...”

“Which direction? Point it out on the screen.”

The First Officer hurried over to the forward screen. There to the bottom left. Perhaps if the pilot moved us a bit to our left, it would show again.”

“Moving slowly to the left along the cliff,” the Pilot responded.

“There,” the First Officer said as he pointed to the screen. “Could that be the entrance to the cavern the Science Team was studying?”

Jeff raised an eyebrow as he stared at the shadow from an overhang that might have been an opening at the bottom of a rock face. “Pilot, take us down to two hundred feet and let’s try for a better angle.” In moments, the dark area near the base of the cliff became clearer.

The dark area resolved itself into an opening in the bottom of the cliff face that appeared to be some twenty feet wide and half that distance in height with a rugged overhang that made the opening hard to spot from above.

“Sir, do you suppose they went back inside after contacting Base?”

Helen spoke up. “It’s rather warm on the surface — 95 degrees Fahrenheit according to Ship’s sensors, and the oxygen and other gases are well within parameters. It would certainly be more comfortable in the shade, but the conditions outside do not present a hazard. I don’t know what the conditions are inside the cavern, but a tent under the trees, or this planet’s version of them, while near the river would be my choice, especially after surviving a cave-in. Surely, they didn’t go back inside.”