A Brightly Flickering Flame (Confederation Reborn Book 5) Page 3

  "Kirn," Rahn said, rolling the name around in his mouth like a curse. "Who is William Kirn to think he can challenge me?" The man's records were nearly as impressive as his own–and eerily similar. Upon reviewing what intel they had, he had come to realize that their careers paths seemed to mirror one another in important ways. But there was obvious weakness in this human. He was no warrior. None of the pink skins were. This Kirn was soft. Prone to being merciful, to helping those not strong enough to survive on their own, and in doing so, weakening the rest. For Kirn to choose any Confederation code of conduct over his own personal glory, well, such a man would not have lasted in the Korgon Empire.

  But that did not make William Kirn any less formidable as an opponent. Or less dangerous.

  "He is a trickster, this one," Rahn said. "A fool who does not know when to give in. He will use any ploy at his disposal to try and beat us. He means to run us down and keep us as prisoners with his pathetic little ship."

  "What are your orders, Captain?" Dul asked. "The Endeavor gets closer by the second."

  Rahn smiled. The expression held no humor in such a hardened face. "We fight."

  Cho nearly missed it. If his eyes hadn't glanced over the forward scanner screen in time, the Endeavor might have raced past the Korgon ship. They wouldn't have known until after the fact, at which time the Endeavor would be systems away.

  As it was, his hands flew across the controls, slowing the Confederation vessel to keep pace with the Korgons, rather than overtake them.

  "Captain to the Bridge," he said into the audio pick-up to the side of the helm console. "Korgon vessel off the starboard bow. Repeat, Captain to the Bridge."

  Uthando looked on from the rear of the Bridge as they drew closer. Neither ship could fire while travelling at Hyperdrive, but that didn't make the situation any less tense. It was a guessing game of who would stop first. Who would drop from Hyperdrive and fire before the other knew what had hit them.

  "Did we nearly crash into them?" Ensign Sara Peters asked. Her hands were braced over the weapons controls.

  Cho shook his head, eyes trained on the forward viewscreen. "No. But we did nearly go straight past. We would have risked either losing them altogether, or having them sneak up behind us ready to open fire."

  Captain Kirn bounded onto the Bridge, followed by Commander Saris and Dr. Kelley.

  "Uthando, hail them," Kirn said, taking the chair.

  "Yes sir."

  He waited as she carried out his order. Dr. Kelley gave him a questioning look, and Kirn whispered, "Here goes nothing."

  "Channel's open, sir," Uthando said.

  "Captain Rahn of the Mensk. Stand down and prepare to be taken into custody."

  There was brief silence from the comm, followed by the low rumble of laughter from the other end. "So you know me and I know you, Kirn. I have had time to review your service record. A distinguished career . . . and a fine example of Confederation cowardice. You are a disgrace. It is a dishonor to be within the same sector as you, let alone have to beat you down like the mublah you are."

  "Flattery will get you nowhere, Rahn. I've had time to review yours as well and it's indicative of the lack of courage and mercy you displayed against the people aboard Farstation Ellison. Surrender immediately, or you can be an example of Confederation cowardice when your ship is obliterated."

  "My people have a saying, Kirn. All of our ends must come soon enough," Rahn said, a note of amusement in his coarse voice. "Why not seek them on the field of battle? This is how it is meant to be."

  "Agreed," Kirn said. He turned to Uthando. "Close the channel. There's been enough talking."

  "Guess I better get to Sickbay," Dr. Kelley grumbled as he headed for the lift.

  "We'll do our best to keep you bored, Doctor," Kirn called after him.

  Up ahead, the Mensk dropped from Warp. Cho anticipated Kirn's command and followed suit, bringing the Endeavor to a near-stop in empty space.

  "The enemy ship is turning, Captain," Saris said, face lit by the readout from his scanner. "They are locking weapons."

  "Red alert. Bring us about, Mr. Cho," Kirn snapped. "All hands brace for impact."

  The Endeavor swung around as several blows from Mensk thundered against the diffuser array as the attacking lasers were absorbed and scattered away from the hull. The Endeavor rounded on the enemy vessel

  "They're firing again," Saris said.

  "Get ready with those ventral lasers," Kirn said. "Cho, take us up and over. Dip down on the other side and back around so we get a clear shot at their belly."

  "Aye," Cho said. He threw the Endeavor forward at full speed, rushing upon the Korgon ship. The Mensk fired several energy bolts. They hurtled past, unable to compensate for the sudden shift in the Endeavor's trajectory and velocity. "Taking us up and over now, Captain."

  The Mensk turned to port, struggling to adjust as the Endeavor crossed over her hull. Cho maneuvered the great ship toward the Mensk's engines, and without breaking his stride, piloted them beneath it.

  "Fire!" Captain Kirn shouted.

  Ensign Peters slammed the weapons console with the tips of her fingers, firing everything she had at the underside of the Mensk. The powerful lasers sliced through the Korgon's defenses, punching straight into their hull with devastating power.

  "Now dive, Lieutenant," Captain Kirn said. "C minus ten thousand meters. Get us out of the way in case she blows up."

  They stared at the screen with rapt intent, watching billows of smoke pour out of the Mensk's shattered frame.

  "We did it!" Ensign Peters laughed.

  "The Korgon ship is losing power," Saris declared. "Their diffusers are failing." He glanced back at the Captain, "I'm curious as to how you knew where to target on their vessel?"

  Kirn shrugged, "It was a calculated risk, Mr. Saris. The Korgons have always placed their primary power conduits beneath the ship in previous designs. Makes them easier to eject in case of an emergency. However, it makes it a bit of an Achilles heel. You see, I assumed the Korgons were too focused on function to improve their design."

  "An assumption?" Saris said, somewhat distastefully.

  Kirk smiled at him and said, "Highly illogical, I know."

  Kirn was about to follow up with another comment that would surely ruffle the Valkar's feathers when something slammed into the back of them, hard. It jostled him from his chair, sent him tumbling against the backs of the helmsmen. He shoved himself away and stumbled for a moment, shouting, "On screen! What the hell just hit us?"

  The viewscreen changed to show the Mensk chasing them down, a stream of crackling energy spilling relentlessly from its front.

  "Brace for impact!"

  6.

  The Endeavor endured waves of impact, causing tremors through its entire length from stern to bow. The Bridge was thrown into chaos as emergency lights flickered on, then off again, suspending them in complete darkness.

  "Report!" Kirn cried out, clawing his way back to the command chair. "Auxiliary power."

  "Attempting to do so, Captain," Saris said in his level, calm voice.

  A second later dim blue light filled the Bridge. Smoke rose from one of the vacant stations to Kirn's left. Atmospheric cleansers came to life, sucking the acrid smoke from the Bridge. "Someone deal with that fire," he said. "I want full damage reports from all stations." He flicked a switch on his chair and called out, "Mr. Doone, report."

  "We have partial power, at best, Captain," the Chief Engineer's voice crackled over the radio. "Diffusers are gone. Weapons systems are not functioning."

  "Propulsion?" Kirn said.

  "Thrusters only. Minimal maneuvering ability, sir. They knew right where to hit us, sir."

  Captain Kirn grimaced. "Damn them." I underestimated their firepower, he thought. This serves me right for being too cocky. He flicked the switch again to tell Doone to give them something, anything to save themselves with, but the line was filled with static interference. His head snapped back at Utha
ndo, "Get him back."

  "There is no connection with engineering," Uthando said, flipping several switches on her console. "Internal comm systems are down, sir."

  He looked to Saris. "Commander, get down to engineering. See if you can help."

  The Valkar immediately turned away from his station and headed for the lift.

  Kirn rubbed his eyes, trying to get himself situated. "Where's the Mensk?"

  "Holding position port side aft," Peters said.

  "Waiting to see what we do next," Kirn said. "Probably expecting us to surrender."

  "We're not, are we?" Peters asked nervously.

  "Excuse me, Ensign?"

  "I meant, are we going to surrender, sir?"

  Captain Kirn lowered his hand and said, "Let me tell you something, Miss Peters. The Korgons don't believe in surrender. They believe in dying with honor and dignity. Going out in a blaze of glory. If we surrender, they will consider us worse than the lowest forms of life and we'll all suffer a fate worse than death. Believe me when I tell you, I would rather detonate the core of this ship and kill us all than put our lives in the hands of a Korgon."

  The Ensign swallowed. "I understand, sir."

  There was a rattle under the floor of the Bridge and several system consoles beeped and lit up as they came back online. "I hope that's a good sign," he said. He looked back at Uthando, "Can you get Mr. Kuryakin on the comm now?"

  She nodded. "On speaker, sir."

  "Ensign, what can you tell me about the prisoner policies of our friend Captain Rahn?" Kirn asked aloud.

  "Well, Kapitan, six months ago, Rahn captured a Benoluvan vessel. He butchered the crew after docking with it, and installed his own people to pilot the ship back home to the Empire as a trophy."

  Interesting, Kirn thought. So this is a barbarian who enjoys the spoils of war. "Is there anything else?"

  "Unfortunately there isn't much more, Kapitan. He's a traditionalist, schooled in the classic methods of Korgon combat. He clings to the old ways of his people."

  "I see," Kirn said. The beginnings of an idea were forming, somewhere deep within his imagination. "And what do we know about traditionalists, Mr. Kuryakin?"

  "Sorry, sir?"

  "They can't think outside the box." He nodded at Uthando and said, "Open a line to the Mensk. Tell Captain Rahn that I wish to discuss the terms of our surrender."

  Peters shared a look with Cho. "But sir," she said, "Didn't you just say what they would do to us?"

  "Miss Peters, I need you to run to munitions and tell them I want two torpedoes in the teleporter room, on the double. Set them for remote detonation," Kirn said. "On your way, gather as many members of security that you can find to join you there. Tell them to take positions inside the teleporter room." He looked at her after he finished speaking, "Now, Ensign. On the double!"

  "Yes sir!" Peters leapt from her seat at the helm and raced to the lift.

  Cho turned in his seat. "Sir, what's the plan?"

  "The plan, Mr. Cho? I'm going to give that Korgon Captain something to hate me for."

  7.

  "You wish to surrender to the mighty Korgon Empire, human?" Captain Rahn asked over the ship-to-ship connection.

  "I do," Kirn said from where he stood next to Uthando. "What can I say, Rahn? You've beaten me."

  I sure do hope that girl is getting everything together, he thought.

  "Prepare to be boarded," Rahn said eagerly.

  "Wait, Rahn," Kirn interrupted. "Can I have a moment, please? I need to explain to my crew why I've made this decision. Surely, you understand that. I'd like to ensure their cooperation and prevent any problems."

  "Fine," Rahn said. "I shall give you one minute to explain your decision to your crew, to further deepen your failure and shame. Then I will tell you the terms."

  "Very gracious of you," Kirn said. The channel went dead. "Uthando, anything?"

  "I can get a line to the teleporter room. Nothing to engineering. It must be the lower decks that are affected," she said, frowning. "But the teleporter room is reporting a swarm of security detail in there."

  "The torpedoes?"

  She nodded. "Getting placed into position as we speak."

  "Good. Put Captain Rahn back on, would you?"

  The speakers hissed to life. "You are ready to meet your fate, human?" Rahn asked.

  "Yes. Do you have a working teleporter?"

  "You won't need them. We will dock alongside you and take the vessel. The Endeavor will prove a worthy bounty upon my return to the Empire."

  "I'm sorry, but you can't. Your weapons destroyed our docking rings. I'm afraid all we're left with is the teleporter," Kirn explained. "However, I have a proposal I think you'll find acceptable."

  "Go on."

  "Both myself and my first officer will beam to the Mensk. To make my intentions of surrender entirely clear, you simultaneously beam your people here, to the Endeavor, to secure the ship." Kirn paused momentarily, "As I'm sure you already know, my first officer is a Valkar. They are a logical people. Immune to fear and so forth."

  "Of course I knew all of that, you insolent fool!"

  Kirn smiled slightly. No doubt, Rahn was already imagining torturing Saris, all the pleasure he would find in seeking that ultimate breaking point where the Valkar's carefully crafted wall of logic collapsed and raw emotion took hold. He waited for the Korgon's answer. Here he was offering them both on a plate–how could Rahn resist?

  "And you'll both hand yourselves over willingly."

  "That we will."

  "Then it is agreed. I will send you co-ordinates."

  The line went dead. All eyes were on Kirn. "Cho, prepare to detonate the torpedoes the moment they're aboard the Mensk."

  "Yes Captain. But what about the Korgons that are beaming over here at the same time?"

  Kirn felt under the command chair, found the pistol strapped there, and pulled it free. He activated it, heard it come online with a distinct whine. It was ready to fire. "I don't plan on ever allowing them to leave that teleporter room. As soon as you've detonated the torpedoes, get us out of here."

  "Understood," Cho said. "Just one thing. Why don't we teleport the Korgons straight into space the moment they arrive?"

  "We've got to buy ourselves a few seconds. Otherwise I'd wholeheartedly agree with you."

  Kirn headed for the lift and leaned in close to Uthando. "Do we have the co-ordinates?"

  "Yes."

  "Get them to the teleporter room and tell them to beam the torpedoes immediately. Prepare for hostiles in return."

  "Yes Captain," she said as he left the Bridge, weapon in hand.

  Ensign Peters watched the two torpedoes shimmer as they dematerialized in front of her eyes, to be replaced a second later by a half dozen patterns of light and sparkle. They coalesced upon the teleporter pad, transforming into six Korgons. Each with weapons at the ready.

  She felt a lump in her throat at the mere sight of them, at the bared teeth, their ridged foreheads. The piercings and scars and bionic arm replacements. She backed up. The moment they fully materialized on the teleporter pad, the security officers dove on them. Peters's hand went tight on the grip of her gun but she was immediately jostled to one side, knocked into a bulkhead as human and Korgon crew grappled with one another in close quarter combat.

  Captain Rahn stepped through the threshold to the teleportation chamber room as the two beam patterns coalesced to regain their original molecular pattern. He stopped dead.

  "Run! Run! Get out!"

  He turned to flee, waving his hands to alert everyone in the area to run straight for the end of the corridor. Before he reached the doorway, the room around him tore apart in a wild scream as the Mensk's innards were exposed to the harsh vacuum of space. The rear wall of the teleporter room broke free and was sucked into oblivion, scattered to the void like a child hurling a toy.

  Rahn's feet were giving out from under him, dragged by the enormous pull of the escaping air. He dove for the
nearest bulkhead, grasping it with the tips of fingers and clinging desperately. Emergency klaxons screamed in his ears but their noise steadily died down. No, he thought. That's just the oxygen leaving the corridor. He sucked in as much air as he could and held it tightly in his gut, trying to formulate a plan.

  Soon, I'll pass out, he thought. My fingers will go numb and I'll let go of this bulkhead and then, I will be cast into the darkness. He strained to pull himself forward. All he needed to do was reach the safety of the blast door. If he could somehow manage to pull himself through and activate it, the corridor would pressurize and he'd be able to breathe once more. Just another few feet . . .

  Lieutenant Cho watched the explosion tearing through one side of the Mensk and smiled with pride. The blast sent debris, crew and crystallized vapor scattering out with it.

  "Well done, sir," Uthando said.

  Feels good to be called 'sir,' Cho thought. Feels good to sit in the big chair from time to time, too.

  Uthando pressed her comm device to her ear, listening for anything resembling a distress signal, but none came. "No sign of weapons or defensive systems functioning aboard the enemy vessel," she said.

  "Or so it seems," Cho remarked. "Alert the Captain that we've scored a direct hit and request him back to the Bridge as soon as possible."

  He left the command chair and returned to his post at the helm.

  "I thought you'd sit in there long as you could," Uthando said.

  Cho shot her a look, a wide smile on his face. "One day, Lieutenant. One day," he said as he turned his attention to getting them out of there.

  The security guard lifted into the air a whole two feet, legs kicking wildly as the Korgon gripped him tight by the throat. Peters threw herself at the alien. She was small, but managed to hit the Korgon hard enough in the side to get it to release the man. The creature turned toward the young Ensign, yellow eyes burning with rage as he raised his weapon.

  Peters froze to the spot, the fight going on all around her, and didn't know what to do. Her gun was an impossible weight in her hand. Against every ounce of training, she closed her eyes. Waited for the shot.