“It’s a bit different from swimming,” Pierce said to her.
“Goddess help me,” Nereid mumbled.
With Nereid’s body stable, Pierce helped her float into the cockpit, the battle outside in orbit made her want to come watch as they neared the action. “That’s the Architect’s ship?” Nereid asked Chang.
“Yep.”
“Then what were those ships that we were attacking?” Pierce said. “They look different.”
Chevallier looked at the Architect’s ship, then began to think about the ship she single-handedly shot down. They were indeed different from each other, similar weapons, but that was it. “He’s right, the designs of these ships are different, like they were built by two different cultures—”
More sparks flared up as the transport took an unexpected hit from behind. Chevallier checked the computers and noticed additional red dots appear in sensor range behind them. They were closing in fast.
“Well, right now, these ships see us as a target,” Chang said as they took another hit. “Yeah, you might want to stay away from any computers back there, this ride is gonna be a helluva rough one, starting now!”
Chang commanded the transport to once again engage in slick maneuvers, this time maneuvers that would allow them to dodge the fire between the Carl Sagan, the Architect’s ship, and the three or four oval-shaped drone ships from behind.
Fifty evasive rolls later they saw the interior of the Carl Sagan’s transport bay as they neared, and hoped that once they crossed past the irised shields of the Carl Sagan the bogies behind wouldn’t come on in for the ride.
They neared the opening in the shields, Chang increased their speed and plowed toward their freedom.
Ten seconds left.
Five seconds left.
They crossed, and the shields and overshields behind quickly contracted. Everyone waited a half second in anticipation for what would happen next.
The four drone ships collided with the shields and exploded on impact.
24 WILLIAMS
ESRS Carl Sagan, Bridge
SC-149 AKA Meroien orbit, Sirius C system
May 22, 2050, 02:54 SST (Sol Standard Time)
“The transport is safely docked.”
A smirk appeared on Williams’ face, it prompted him to spool up the sub light speed engines. “Getting us out of here!” he said, while his fingers activated and established a communication link to the recently docked rescue team. “Chang, get up here on the double, I’m not an ace pilot like you!”
It pained Williams slightly to see the Architect’s ship move out of view as the Carl Sagan moved to break orbit. Foster, if she was still alive, was still aboard and if the recent battle proved anything, fighting the Architect head-on wasn’t going to get her back. Pound for pound, the Architect’s ship was stronger in both offensive and defensive departments. Williams was going to need a new plan, one that hopefully Chevallier would be able to assist with. After all, she was with Foster during their disappearance, so perhaps she knew more about the situation than he did.
This was all under the assumption they lived to see the next hour. The Architect’s ship was faster than the Carl Sagan, and its weapons continued to fire and create havoc on its aft shields during their not so successful escape out of the sector. Williams hoped Chang’s skills at the helm would give them a better advantage, for he was all out of ideas on how to escape from this situation, Williams was a commander not a pilot.
“Commander, it is imperative you do not let that ship get any closer,” Tolukei said.
“It’s faster than us. FTL versus sub light speed, this is going to be a one-sided race.”
He heard Tolukei sigh, and remain silent for a solid minute. He was focusing on something; something that had to do with his psionic powers, that much he could tell. “Do not bother to engage the sub light speed engines,” Tolukei finally spoke.
“Why?”
“We are surrendering to the Architect.”
“Like hell we are!”
“I have ceased protecting the ship with overshields, I suggest you come to a full stop and prepare to be boarded.”
Not the plan Williams was expecting; never mind the fact Tolukei was acting as if he was in command calling the shots. If Tolukei had suggested they should surrender, yes that would be different. But he didn’t suggest anything, he straight up forced it to happen without Williams approving. It did nothing but piss him off and probably put the whole ship at risk.
“Tolukei, what are you doing?”
Williams got his answer as brilliant blue light flashed and brightened the bridge. Once it subsided he saw that armored Architect soldiers had boarded via a teleport, the same ones they had been battling since they arrived in the system. None of them fired any of their laser weapons, they simply aimed them at the crew. Williams knew the drill, so he stood up and raised his hands, there was no security aboard after all, the Carl Sagan was officially a POW and there wasn’t a damn thing anyone could do about it.
Amongst the Architect intruders stood an individual that projected the demeanor of a supreme leader. It wasn’t like the overlords who stood behind the grunts, this one was different. Its armor was red with sharp spikes protruding from the side of its large helmet, while two spear-wielding overlords stood either side like bodyguards.
Tolukei moved away from his station and stepped toward the spiky crimson-armored leader. “This is the psionic mind I spoke of, Commander,” Tolukei said to Williams. “This is the mind I spoke to, this is the Architect.”
“Tolukei . . .”
“Please surrender the ship to him. Please do not make me look like a liar.”
The Architect clapped his armor-clad hands three times signaling to his soldiers to detain everyone on the bridge and move out to the rest of the ship, most likely to capture the rest of the crew. Williams noticed that Tolukei was the only one on the bridge that didn’t have weapons aimed at his head as he was dragged in front of the Architect by two grunts, and forced to bow in front of him like he was a god. Williams tried to resist fighting off the two undead that held him down, only for his body to become numb, paralyzed via telekinesis. His body sank, his head lowered, and his knees and hands flattened against the surface of the floor.
Afterward Williams’ felt his head forcibly shift upward to glare at the large helmet the Architect wore. He wasn’t a Hashmedai. The mind shield would have prevented him from teleporting aboard, and from using his powers on the bridge. Poniga perhaps, since they confirmed his soldiers were one. The only problem with that theory was that Tolukei said the Architect’s mind was familiar. Poniga minds shouldn’t be familiar to Tolukei especially with the language barrier, unless he was lying this whole time.
The Architect began to speak to Williams, his voice sounded like an angry warlord yelling into a rusty tin can. Tolukei provided a translation. “He wishes to know what became of the Nereid and Dr. Pierce.”
“The ner-what?”
“He will release the Captain and control of the ship in exchange for those two.”
Williams snorted. “I got nothing to say to him.”
More chatter came from the helmet of the Architect. “He says you have one day to comply.” Tolukei translated as he moved in closer to join the Architect and its two body guards. “As they say on your world, Commander, farewell.”
The Architect and Tolukei vanished from the bridge during an unexpected teleport. Williams felt his body return to normal as the telepathic paralysis faded away. The Architect soldiers remained onboard, their weapons still aimed at him and all bridge personnel, while the rest of their soldiers pushed through, deeper into the Carl Sagan. Williams hoped that the crew did the smart thing and stayed safe.