“Anairsled!” breathed Gori. “Oh gods, Tim, what have youdone!”
“Did you see those murderers?” His teeth were clenched as he worked the beam to set the airsled down as gently as possible. “Those dirty, rotten, slimy - “
“Tim! That’s not the point! We’re supposed to be invisible!”
All the latent romanticism burst free. “We’re Fleet! We just saved lives, that’s what we’re supposed to do.”
“That’s not what the captain ordered us to do. Tim, you just told everyone, from the transport to whoever they’re meeting, that we’re here. That Fleet’s here.”
“So… so we’ll just… mmm… we’ll just tell them they’re under arrest, for… uh… attempting to…uh…”
“Illegal use of proscribed weaponry in a proscribed system is one charge you’re looking for.” Gori was punching buttons on his console. “Kipling’s copper Coms! The captain’s going to be furious, and I’ve heard about her being furious. She’s going to eat us alive, buddy, and it’s all your fault.”
“She’d want us to save lives…” Tim didn’t sound quite so certain now. For one thing, that transport had lifted, and then settled itself firmly on the grid. He sent the shuttle forward again, slowly, and wondered whether to stand guard over the airsled or threaten the transport, or what. It had seemed so simple at the time…
The voice in his earplug left him in no doubt. “I told you,” the captain’s crisp voice said, “to follow that transport down cautiously, with particular care not to be noticed. Did you understand that order?”
“Yes, ma’am, but - “
“Yet I find that you have engaged a possibly hostile vessel, making sure that you would be noticed; you may have damaged Federation citizens - “ That wasn’t fair at all; it was the crash that damaged them, and he hadn’t caused the crash… at least, he hadn’t shot the airsled, although his handling of the tractor beam had been less than deft. “Moreover, you’ve made it necessary for me to act - or abandon you, and if you were alone that would be a distinct temptation!” Gori smirked at this; he was getting the same tirade in his own earplug. “Now that you’ve started a riot, young man, you’d better stay in control of things until I get there.”
“But how -?” Tim began, but the com cut off. He was breathing fast, and felt cold. He looked over at Gori, no longer smirking. “What do we do now?”
Gori, predictably, had a reference. “Fleet Landing Force Directives, Chapter 17, paragraph 34.2 - “
“I don’t care where it is - what does it say?”
Gori went on, pale but determined, with his quotation. “It says if the landing party - which is us - is outnumbered or outgunned, and Fleet personnel are in danger of capture or injury - “
“They’re civilians,” said Timran. As he said it he wondered - but surely anyone on planet had to be civilians, or they would have known Fleet was down here.
“Really? Those look like Fleet duty uniforms to me.” Gori had a magnifier to his eye. “Shipboard working… Anyway, when personnel are in danger of capture or injury, and the landing party is outnumbered, then the decision to withdraw must be made by the commander of the orbiting ship, unless such ship - “
“She told us to stay here and stay in charge - “
“So that’s paragraph 34.3: In cases where rescue or protection of the Fleet personnel is deemed possible or of paramount importance, the pilot of the landing party shuttle will remain with the craft at all times, and the copilot will lead the rescue party - “
“That’s backwards!” said Tim, thinking of Gori’s character.
“That’s regulations,” said Gori. “Besides, if we just hover here we can keep anyone from bothering them. By the way, d’you have the shields up?”
He hadn’t thought of it, and thumbed the control just as the transport’s single turret angled their way. Gori was watching the plateau now, and commented on the people, clumped near the ship. “Native? This planet’s not supposed to be inhabited at all, but - “
“They might shoot, Gori,” Tim pointed out. He was glad to hear that his voice was steady, though his hands trembled slightly. He’d never expected that the mere sight of a blast cannon muzzle aimed his way would be so disturbing. Were shuttle shields strong enough, at this distance, to hold against a blast cannon?
Time passed. Down below still figures slumped in an airsled crumpled against the rocky face of the plateau. Above, the transport’s blast cannon continued to point directly at them. With only two of them aboard, Tim couldn’t see asking Gori to go out and check on the injured (dead? He hoped not) sled passengers. Should he hail the transport? Command them to send medical aid? What if they didn’t? What if they fired? Gori maintained a prudent silence, broken only by observations on activity around the transport. It felt like years before the com unit burped, and put the Navigation Senior Officer on the line. “Not long,” Bures said. “We’ve got a fix on you and the transport. How’s it going?”
Tim swallowed hard. “Oh… nothing much. We’re just hovering above the sled - “ “Don’t move,” Bures advised. “We’re coming in very fast, and if you move we could run right over you.”
“Where are you going to land?” But no one answered that question; the line had cut off. Gori and Tim exchanged anxious glances before settling to their watch again. Tim let his eyes stray to the clock - surely it had been longer than that.
Even through the shields they heard and felt the shock-waves of theZaid-Dayan’s precipitous descent. “Krims!” said Gori. “She’s using the emergency insystem - “ Another powerful blast of wind and noise, and the great cruiser hung above the plateau, its Fleet and Federation insignia defining the bow. Clouds of dust roiled away from it, temporarily blinding Tim even in the shuttle; when it cleared, Tim could see the transport shudder at its berth. “ - drive,” finished Gori, paler than before. Tim, for once, said nothing.
“The only good thing about all this,” said Sassinak, when they were back aboard, “is that I know you can’t be a saboteur, because you weren’t on board when the sabotage occurred, and it would have required immediate access. Of course you might be in collusion…”
Tim tried to swallow, unsuccessfully. It wasn’t that she bellowed, or turned red, the way some of his instructors had when he had been particularly difficult. She looked perfectly calm, if you didn’t notice the pale rim around her mouth, or the muscles bunched along her jaw. Her voice was no louder than usual. But he had the feeling that his bones were exposed to her gaze, not to mention the daydreams in his skull… and they seemed a lot less glamorous right then. Even, as she said, stupid, short-sighted, rash, and unjustified. She had left them hovering where they were until the locals (whoever they were) had extricated the injured and moved them into the cruiser. Then the cruiser’s own tractor beam had flicked out and towed them in as if the shuttle were powerless and pilotless. Once in the shuttle bay, they’d been ordered to their quarters until “the captain’s ready for you.” Gori had said nothing while they waited, and Tim had imagined himself cashiered and stranded on this malodorous lump of unsteady rock.
“I’ll expect you to recite the relevant sections of regulations. Ensign, the next time you see me. I’m sure your cohort can give you the references.” That was her only dig at Gori, who had after all been innocent. “You may return to your quarters, and report for duty at shift-change.” He didn’t ask where: it would be posted in his file. He and Gori saluted, and retired without tripping over anything - at that point Tim was mildly surprised to find out his body worked as usual.