The Twice and Future Caesar by R. M. Meluch Page B

station. “We have a dead pirate ship trying to open us up.”
    Calli snapped, “Say nothing that is not useful, Mister Vincent. Location of the starfish penetration.”
    Systems reported, “Field penetration sternside of the Spit boat SPT 1.”
    A loud bang jolted everyone on the command platform. It sounded as though it came from somewhere inside the ship.
    Calli: “Identify that.”
    Systems: “Unknown event. Source was inside the Spit boat.”
    â€œStatus of the Spit boat,” Calli demanded.
    Systems: “SPT 1 is hard docked inside
Merrimack
’s energy field.”
    â€œEngineering. Reinforce the field at point of starfish assault.”
    â€œAye, aye, sir!”
    Calli turned to her exec. “Commander Ryan. On one mark, this is to happen: Lock the Spit boat’s air lock
open—
both hatches. Retract
Merrimack
’s force field from the Spit boat. Cast off the Spit boat. Seal our inertial field solid around
Merrimack
. Execute as soon as you have it coordinated. Don’t wait for my go ahead.”
    Dingo gave a brisk nod and got to it.
    Before he could execute, a double crack sounded, like the first sound but louder. Everyone ducked.
    Calli: “Is that a hull breach?”
    Systems: “Negative. Negative hull breach. But the starfish is progressing. Sixty percent through. I am adding layers at point of assault.”
    The energy tendril was insinuating through the ship’s shifting energy layers, just as gorgons used to do.
    Calli couldn’t afford to let the pirates get so much as a hair’s widththrough the ship’s energy shell. Any opening could allow an antimatter insertion. She didn’t know if the pirates carried antimatter, but she knew that the leopard
Bagheera
never left survivors on any vessel it attacked.
    A third crack sounded. Loud.
    The sound affected nothing but made the technicians flinch.
    The bangs almost sounded like displacement—the sound of air closing into the void left by matter abruptly ceasing to occupy a space. It was a sound exactly like a thunderclap.
    Systems reported, “Sir. If those are actual displacement claps, you know they’re screwed.
Merrimack
’s displacement jammers are on full strength.”
    No. Calli wasn’t sure she knew that. Something else was wrong here.
    She heard the Dingo give the command, “Execute Severance.”
    â€œSeverance, aye. We have separation from SPT 1. Inertial field is solid.”
    â€œStatus of starfish!” Calli demanded.
    He needed to breathe
now
.
    â€œWe shed the starfish with the Spit boat. We have negative starfish.”
    Someone cheered.
    Not celebrating yet, Captain Carmel ordered, “Helm. FTL. Random vector. Execute.”
    â€œFTL, aye. Random vector.”
    The ship jumped to FTL space. Made two more random vector changes. Only then did Calli order a return to normal space and ask for the status of the cast-off Spit boat.
    Systems reported happily: “SPT 1’s air lock is open. Negative inertial field around SPT 1. Sir, we let the vacuum in.”
    Merrimack
returned to the site on high alert, prepared to jump to FTL on an instant’s notice.
    Calli hailed her drone operator. “Mister Raytheon, confirm that the prisoner on board SPT 1 is dead.”
    â€œNegative confirmation,” Wraith responded.
    Calli felt a chill. It wasn’t exactly shock. It was a dread come true. “Mister Raytheon, is that negative confirmation because of a detection failure, or are you telling me the prisoner is still alive?”
    â€œCaptain. The prisoner is not on board SPT 1.”
    â€œMister Raytheon, check your detection equipment for malfunction. The prisoner was immobilized in restraints. His body has to be there.”
    Dingo suggested, “The pirates could have displaced him out of there. Those bangs had the sound of displacements.”
    â€œWe have jammers on. If they tried to displace him out,