I stood with Sulu at the side of the transport hold, watching the first shuttle slowly move along the track toward the open doors. Apparently someone has christened it the Gaynelle---her name was painted on the hull in large, bright red letters. I choked up watching the shuttle and those huge letters rumble past, feeling the vibrations deep in my bones. One of the pilots signaled down to us from the cockpit that everything was clear.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqiy8bzJoH
"What would she have thought of that?" Sulu asked.
I couldn't answer just then. I had to struggle with the despair just waiting to overwhelm me. "I don't know," I said. "Probably she would have smiled and shaken her head and said nothing."
The shuttle's speed picked up slightly as it approached the energy fields across the open doors. Its nose made contact, and a rippling iridescent hole opened in the field; the launch mechanism cranked forward and the bow supports dropped away as the shuttle was propelled through the opening. The energy fields re-formed and returned to invisibility, and the shuttle was free of the ship.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2pwDiLGIwW
It drifted away for a minute, then the attitude rockets burned for a few moments; the shuttle's orientation turned, then the engines fired and it accelerated away from both the Enterprise and the alien ship. The acceleration was gentle, but soon the shuttle was gone from view.
I turned to the monitor screen in the bulkhead behind us, my heart racing. Ship cameras had picked up the shuttle, and followed it now as it moved toward the stern of the Enterprise, angled away from the hull. The flames from the engine cut off, and I held my breath, waiting----The shuttle continued on, velocity steady now, but with no other signs of life. No attack from the alien ship.
"Everything looks good," Sulu said, sighing with relief.
"Yes. For now."
For now. When each shuttle or harvester was ten hours out from the Enterprise, a number chosen almost arbitrarily at what we guessed would be a safe distance, it would hold until the others joined it. When we had all arrived and rendezvoused, we would change direction so we were headed for Antioch, then resume acceleration. This time acceleration would continue for some hours. Four and a half months later, if there were no disasters, we would reach Antioch.
I turned around and looked at the five other shuttles in the hold. Every one of them was loaded, packed, ready to go. There were another five shuttles in the second transport hold, and finally the three harvesters in their own bay.
I wanted to send them out two or three hours apart, but that would have been too time-consuming----for many reasons, not the least being the psychological stress on those desperate to leave. Instead, they would go an hour apart. Two more shuttles, then the first harvester; the other three shuttles in this hold, then the second harvester; the remaining five shuttles, then finally the last harvester, loaded only with cargo and manned by three pilots. Sulu and I would be on the third harvester, the last to leave.
If anything unexpected happened, if the alien ship came alive and attacked either the Enterprise or any of the shuttles or harvesters, the timetable would be abandoned, and everyone would launch immediately, one right after another, scattering in all directions. I prayed---to what or whom I had no idea---that it wouldn't come to that. At the same time, I could not really believe that we would be able to launch all those vessels without provoking a response from the alien ship.
I turned back to the monitor. The image of the shuttle was larger than I'd expected; but it had now cleared the stern of the Enterprise, and was slowly shrinking as it pulled away. I checked the running clock in the lower right corner of the monitor. Nineteen minutes. I breathed in deeply, then slowly exhaled. An hour was going to be a long time.
The tension heightened three hours later when the first harvester launched. Sixteen hundred people, all at once. The first three shuttles were safely away, with no response from the alien ship, but the harvester was so much larger, and filled with so many people----Sulu and I watched on the monitor as the massive cylinder dropped out of the side of the ship, topped by the bubble of the pilot's cabin. So large, and yet so small when compared to the Enterprise and the alien ship. Maybe it could get away unmolested.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqYy4qhe7aM
Attitude jets fired briefly, orienting the harvester, then the main engines came on, a ring of fire at the vessel's stern; they burned brightly and the harvester gradually gained velocity. After several minutes, the engines were shut down.
My heart was beating hard and fast, and I kept forgetting to breathe as we watched the harvester head away from us.
"How many more of these do we have to go through?" Sulu asked. "How many more hours?"
"Too many," I replied.
"No shit," he said. "I'm not sure I can take it."
We watched for the entire hour, by which time the harvester was only an indistinct fleck on the monitor. Nothing had happened.
I turned and signaled to the pilot in Galileo to prepare for launch.
When the last of the shuttles in the first transport hold was gone, Sulu and I headed for the harvester bay. Racine was in the second transport hold, and would oversee the rest of the shuttlecraft launches from there.
The Enterprise was so quiet it seemed dead. Soon, one way or another, it would be. I had walked through empty corridors before, particularly at night; I had walked for hours without seeing a soul. But the emptiness now as Sulu and I walked through those same corridors was palpable.
"We tried this once before," Sulu said. "Escaping from the Enterprise."
"Under very different circumstances. This time we're going to make it."
Sulu nodded. "Yes, it seems so. And it worries me."
"What?"
"Why they're letting us go."
"The aliens?"
"Yes."
"I've thought about it, too. Sometimes I think it doesn't make sense to try to understand them. They're alien."
"But you have some thoughts?"
"Yes," I said. "Maybe they don't realize the shuttles and harvesters won't return. Maybe they don't realize how many people are inside of them. Maybe they do realize those things and don't care, because they figure we're all headed toward Antioch, and they believe they can follow any time they want." I paused, not wanting to say aloud my greatest fear. "And maybe they want us to think we're getting away so that our terror is all the greater when they come after us."
Sulu nodded and smiled. "You have been thinking about it. I have, too, and I suspect the latter alternatives are closer to the truth."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh71RLOPb2S
"It doesn't really matter," I said. "It doesn't matter what they think, or what they plan to do. This is the only hope we've got."
The harvester eased out of its berth and onto the launch pad. Stars before us, and no hint of the alien ship, although it would become visible as we emerged from the bay. Sulu and I sat in the cabin with the three pilots, strapped into the reserve seats. In a little more than one hour, we would be the last to leave.
I felt as if we were abandoning those who remained behind. The fact that many of them chose to stay did little to ease the sense of guilt; I tried not to think about them too much.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMZtpZgMX9P
Shirl Lameda, Enda Zada Riveiro-Clatterbuck and Cornelius Mancinelli were the three pilots. I knew them only slightly, but enough to know they were good.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJA5bUCdwyA
"Pavel?" It was Jean-Luc, his voice coming through the cabin speakers.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21AppsKjdm
"Yes, Captain."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡidsFnHOANo
He hesitated a moment, then said, "I guess I'm still captain."
"As long as the Enterprise sails, you are its captain," Sulu said.
"Thank you. Everything ready?"
"Yes."
"The harvester, Shirl?"
"She's ready, sir."
"Video?"
"Everything's clear so far," Cornelius said. "But we're still inside. Once we get out, who knows?"
"All we can do," Jean-Luc said. "How soon to launch?"
Shirl glanced down at her console. "Ten minutes until the last shuttle leaves, then one hour after that for us."
"Once you lock down transmissions," Jean-Luc said, "you are to unlock for nothing, understand? I know we've talked about it, but I want it clear. Give them nothing to track. No matter what happens to us, I don't want to hear a thing from you."
"We understand," I said. "Radio silence, all the way."
We would still receive the command channel transmissions, which would be dispersion-broadcast so there would be no way to track them to us, as well as video from three different cameras and from a tracking probe the Enterprise would launch after we all were gone; the probe would maintain a constant distance from the ship as it accelerated toward the jump. But we would be unable to send anything to anyone. We would be mute. Another precaution that was probably pointless, but almost everything was impossible to be sure about; so we took every precaution we could.
"If I hear anything, I'll cancel all transmissions from the Enterprise." He paused. "And if something goes wrong here, I don't want you turning around and heading back. I know there are only five of you, but you've got a hold full of equipment, food, and supplies that could mean the survival of several thousand people."
Shirl smiled. "Don't worry, Captain. No matter what happens, we'll leave all of you here to rot."
"Thanks, Shirl."
We sat in silence. I swiveled my seat around in a full circle, studying the dark interior of the harvester hold. We were leaving the Enterprise, never to return. My home. Home for all of us. No longer.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjWsJZphbS1
"Captain, we've picked up something." It was Hernandez, on the command channel.
"What, Macha? From their ship?"
"Yes. Very subtle, Captain. A change in hull reflectivity. It's increased. I don't understand it, and I don't understand what it could mean."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfqycfSeKu
"Anything else?601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxnVkD8NBdK
"Not yet. But we'd better expect something. What's left to launch?"601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTedELwHV0
"The last shuttle in a couple of minutes, then the cargo harvester in another hour." He paused. "You think we should hold up on the shuttle?
"I don't know," Hernandez answered. "Maybe they should both go immediately."
"Pavel?"
"Let's not make any dramatic changes yet," I said. "Hold the shuttle for five minutes. If nothing changes, let it go."
"Sounds good. I'm switching over to their channel."
Silence for a minute, then Jean-Luc came back on.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHFhIJo8Bpn
"They're holding. Anything, Macha?"601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIX22Yvh83P
"Not yet."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGn0QIaB28q
Another five minutes of silence that stretched on and on, time dilating.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodzgj16s5C
"Off channel," Jean-Luc said.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNw6300turb
"Cornelius," Shirl said. "Bring the shuttle bay to monitor one."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH8d03gVGiN
We watched the shuttle slide out to the transport bay, drift away from the Enterprise for a minute, then fire its attitude jets, slowly swinging around. The jets cut, then the main engines fired.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmfu0S853N
A strange, rolling vibration went through us, ending with a sudden jolt.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdNZytnmDHE
"What the hell was that?" Jean-Luc shouted. "Macha?"601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGS5L23gORT
"I don't know, Captain. We're not detecting....no, wait, something's coming off the alien ship...I don't know what..."601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9qerLmPxdI
I looked at monitor two. Cornelius had the alien ship on it, and we could see a sphere of silvery light take shape, detach, then eject from the ship's surface with an incredible speed, headed for the rear of the Enterprise.
"What's that, Macha?"
There was no answer. Cornelius was switching images, trying to follow the sphere. It was headed for the shuttle. Seconds later, it struck the shuttle and burst in a shower of silver glitter.
The shuttle engines died. But the shuttle continued to move away from the two ships, although much more slowly than the other shuttles had, and there were no obvious signs of damage.
Crackling sounds, then someone's voice came over the command channel.
"We're hit! We're hit!" It was Zapato-Joynson, one of Columbus's pilots, breaking radio silence.
"Zapato-Joynson!" Jean-Luc barked. For a brief moment I thought he was going to berate Zapato-Joynson for unlocking transmission, but he didn't. "Damage or injuries?"
"Don't know, Captain. I....don't think so. There was no concussion----we could see it coming, but when it burst over us we felt nothing except a kind of tingling, and the engines died. All other systems are still functioning. And we're moving. Slow, but moving."
"Captain!" Hernandez again. "Here comes another one!"
On the monitor the silvery sheen was once again forming a sphere on the hull of the alien ship. The sphere detached and ejected from the ship, directed again at the Columbus.
The cameras followed its trajectory more closely this time, knowing what to expect. One zoomed in on it, and we could see more details. The sphere seemed solid, or at least opaque, its surface a glistening silver, electricity-like filaments sparkling across it.
It burst over the shuttle, just like the previous one had, doing no visible damage.
"Zapato-Joynson, what's your status?"
There was no answer at first. A minute passed, then two. Finally a faint transmission came through.
"We lost everything," Zapato-Joynson said. "Systems are back up, but only at three-quarters power."
Zapato-Joynson, try to refire the engines," I said. "If they start, tell everyone to hang on and blast out of here at six gees."
"Captain?"
"Pavel's right. Do it!"
"Enda," Shirl said.
Enda nodded. He knew what she wanted. He tapped away at the console and the harvester launcher lurched toward the open bay doors. There were no energy fields here, just the vacuum of space waiting for us.
The engines came to life on the shuttle, bright orange flaring on monitor one.
"We're on!" Zapato-Joynson said.
The Columbus's engines erupted, orange turning almost white and blue. The shuttle's speed increased, slowly at first, then faster and faster.
"Number three!" Hernandez shouted.
"Wait, Enda," Shirl said.
Another sphere was forming. Just before it reached full size, Shirl turned to Enda.
"Release!" Shirl ordered.
Enda triggered the launch pad release; there was a slight jolt, then we dropped through the open doors.
The sphere detatched. We drifted out from the Enterprise. The sphere shot away from the alien ship, again headed toward the Columbus. We weren't in its path, but we were much larger than the shuttle, and I knew what Shirl was thinking. And hoping.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE99ojGb2JS
"Ten-second burn on the engines, then shut them down. Shut down everything!"
We lurched with the sudden acceleration, but almost immediately it stopped. Then all the lights went out, and the cabin was on batteries. Even the monitors were down, but now we were outside the Enterprise and we could see the sphere coming.
What Shirl hoped for occurred. The sphere changed course and headed for us. Ten seconds later, it struck.
Like Zapato-Joynson had said, there was no concussion. Silver glitter penetrated the harvester, a shower moving through us, tingling like static electricity. A few moments later, it all faded away.
"Power up, Enda."
Lights and life support came up first, the monitors came to life, then he refired the engines. The vibration as they came to live was incredibly comforting.
"Lock down transmissions and go!" Jean-Luc ordered.
"Yes, Captain."
"Lock down now!"
"Good luck, Captain." Shirl nodded to Enda, and he locked down the transmission. "Kick them, Enda."
The seats locked into place, the vibration became a roar, and I was crushed back in my seat as we blasted away.601Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsi0MRW7MhM
