Orion Among the Stars

I spent nearly half that time at the computer screen, learning every aspect of the Blood Hunter, from engine rooms to weapons systems. I was particularly interested in the auxiliary ships that this cruiser carried. They ranged from tiny scouts to shuttles big enough to carry assault teams to a planet’s surface.

I found one that might serve for what I had in mind: a survey ship that had an adequate carrying capacity and enough range and life support to make it all the way back to Lunga. If I could get it off the Blood Hunter before the warship reached lightspeed.

I had to act quickly. I felt a momentary pang of regret that I would have to act against the captain who had tried to befriend me. But, as the reptilian itself had said, war is never pretty.

I had no weapons, but at least I had a decent uniform to wear: the blue of Earth’s sky, with a high choker collar and a wide belt of gold. The buckle was a sunburst symbol, I saw. The emblem of the Golden One. I grimaced with distaste but cinched it around my waist, wishing I had a pistol to hang on it.

Out into the passageway and straight down to the level where the Hegemony scientists were being kept. I passed several Tsihn of various sizes and hues; none of them tried to stop me or even acknowledged my presence in any way. Good. Let me be a nonperson among them.

The hatch to the scientists’ compartment was locked but unguarded. I simply unlocked it and ducked through. They seemed to be preparing for sleep; most of them were sitting on their bunks, a few huddled together in a corner of the chamber, talking.

“On your feet, all of you!” I snapped. “We’re getting off this ship. Now! ”

They dithered a bit, but once I told Delos that I was taking them back to Lunga he got them organized in quick order. Now came the hard part: getting all twenty-three of us down to the hangar bay where the survey vessel was docked.

“Stay close together and follow me,” I told them. “If we’re stopped, let me do the talking.”

It almost worked.

We marched along the passageway and down the power ladder to the hangar level. A few Tsihn passed us, but none bothered to ask what we were doing. There were no guards posted inside the ship, but we found a quartet of mechanics working on a damaged scout ship in the repair bay down at the hangar level.

“Nonessential personnel are not allowed in this area,” said the biggest of the mechanics.

“We’re just passing through,” I said.

It was not put off. “Security!” it called to the microphone built into the hangar bulkhead. “Unauthorized humans in the hangar bay!”

I smiled and said, “You’ve done your duty very well. The captain will be pleased with you.”

And walked my gaggle of scientists past him, toward the pod where the survey vessel was housed.

It sat in the pod, a bulky ungainly conglomeration of spherical crew habitats, cargo holds, equipment containers and propulsion engines. It was a true spaceship, never meant to fly in an atmosphere or land on a planet’s surface.

“Get your people aboard quickly,” I said to Delos as I flipped open the cover of the pod’s door controls.

“SECURITY TEAM TO HANGAR POD FOUR,” bellowed the ship’s intercom. “ON THE DOUBLE.”

No time to study the door controls. The Tsihn would override the electronic system from the bridge, anyway. I just reached in and smashed the control panel with my fist. Then I grabbed the overhead door and pulled it shut manually. It moved grudgingly, but within a few seconds I had it closed and manually locked.

The air-lock hatch was another matter. I sprinted into the survey ship and squeezed through its hatch.

“Seal the hatch once everyone’s through,” I said to the nearest scientist as I made my way forward to the cockpit. Delos was already in the pilot’s seat, powering up the ship’s systems. I slid into the other seat.

“You’re going to get us all killed, you know,” he said from between gritted teeth. But his fingers were flying across the control boards. Indicators were lighting up; I could hear the ship’s generators whining to life.

“We’ve got to open the air-lock hatch,” I muttered, directing the computer screen to list an inventory of the ship’s equipment.

“A ship like this doesn’t carry weapons,” Delos said.

But it did have a digging laser, I saw on the inventory list. A couple of touches of my fingertips and the computer showed me where the digger was stored.

I pushed out of the cockpit, commandeered two of the strongest-looking men, and went outside the ship to unpack the digging laser. Tsihn crewmen were pounding on the pod doors, and the intercom blared:

“ORION, THIS IS THE CAPTAIN SPEAKING. HAVE YOU GONE INSANE? STOP THIS MADNESS AT ONCE OR I WILL BE FORCED TO ORDER MY WARRIORS TO BLAST THEIR WAY INTO THAT POD AND KILL ALL OF YOU!”

“Captain,” I shouted, “I’m taking these humans back to Lunga to exchange them for my troopers.”

“THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE. YOU HAVE NO ORDERS TO DO SO.”

“I’m going to crash this ship through the air-lock hatch,” I bluffed.

“THAT WILL DAMAGE MY VESSEL AND KILL YOU.”

“This survey vessel is built pretty solidly. I think I can make it through the air lock.” I was working furiously as I spoke, helping the others to unpack the laser.

“MADNESS!”

“You could save a considerable amount of damage to your ship by opening the air lock,” I said.

“THAT WOULD ALLOW YOU TO ESCAPE.”

“That would save your ship from damage. Who knows, maybe this survey ship’s engines will overheat and explode when I try to push her through the air-lock hatches.”

By now we had pulled the laser equipment free of its container and were starting to connect its power pack and alignment optics.

“YOU ARE THREATENING TO DESTROY MY SHIP!” the captain bellowed.

“I only want to get back to Lunga and barter these scientists for my troopers,” I said.

“I COULD ALLOW YOU TO LEAVE THE BLOOD HUNTER AND THEN DESTROY YOU ONCE YOU ARE A SAFE DISTANCE AWAY.”

I hadn’t thought of that. “Yes, that’s true. You could.”

“Look!” shouted one of the scientists.

I followed his pointed finger and saw that the pod door was turning a dull red. The crewmen were working on it with a torch.

And then, with a rumble, the inner air-lock hatch began to slide open.

“PUMPING DOWN TO VACUUM,” said an automated computer voice. “THIS AREA SHOULD BE CLEARED OF ALL PERSONNEL IN TEN SECONDS.”

We left the digger sitting in pieces on the deck and jammed through the ship’s hatch. I pushed past the scientists crowding the main habitat sphere and went up to the cockpit. Randa was sitting alongside Delos.

“The captain’s going to let us out,” I said. Through the cockpit’s observation port I saw that the outer air- lock hatch was opening. I could see the stars out there.

“Yes, and then he’ll blow us to eternity once we’re clear of his precious ship,” Randa muttered.

“I don’t think so,” I said, thinking of the captain who shared a drink with me.

The air lock was fully open now. Delos touched the propulsion master-control key and the ship seemed to lurch once, then slide smoothly toward the open hatch, beyond it and out into the dark starry void.

I leaned between them and punched at the communicator panel until the Tsihn captain’s red-eyed face glared up from the screen at me.

“I’m sorry to betray you this way, Captain,” I said. “But this is something that I must do.”

It hissed. “I’m not even going to waste a shot on you, traitor. Let the Skorpis blow you to hell. There are plenty of them heading your way.”

I grinned at it. “Thank you, Captain.”

Its slitted eyes closed briefly; then it said, “Go with honor, Orion.”

Minutes later the Blood Hunter winked out of sight with a soundless flash of blinding white light, safely in superlight velocity, beyond pursuit by the Skorpis.

Which we decidedly were not. As soon as Randa turned on the ship’s long-range sensors, half a dozen battle cruisers showed on our tiny screen, heading our way.

Delos immediately began taping a message to be beamed to them. “This is Dr. Delos of the University of