Read Online Omega Force: Savage Homecoming by Joshua Dalzelle - Free Book Online
Authors: Joshua Dalzelle
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turned to the other member of the crew that had been silently standing on the bridge. “What do you think, Lucky? Slow down and have the Diligent resend the message, or press on?”
“Since the message was not sent with high priority, I would say the risk is equal either way,” Lucky said from his station by the door.
“True,” Jason mused. “We’re not scheduled for our first throttle back for another twenty-seven hours. I don’t want to lose any more time on this trip than necessary; we’ll wait until then and have Captain Colleren resend the message.” When travelling long distances at such a high speed, Jason regularly called for a reduction in velocity so Twingo could inspect the engines and the reactor to make sure they weren’t about to break something and leave them stranded. He assumed the Diligent had some more intel to feed them so he didn’t risk slowing down for it. They would still get it well before they reached their destination.
*****
Crusher shuffled across the deck towards the galley at a careful pace. He had strained something while working out in the cargo bay and he was taking it easy for the moment, letting it heal up before they arrived over the A’arcooni homeworld. The long-burn flights were excruciating for the big warrior, someone who wasn’t a huge fan of space travel to begin with. He stepped up to the food processor and began punching in commands to get a post-workout meal so he could head to his rack.
A small shuffle caught his attention behind him and he spun quickly, expecting to see one of his crew trying to sneak up on him, but saw nothing. He tested the air with his nose and caught a faint hint of something that didn’t belong. He stepped away from the processor, breathing in long breaths through his nose, testing the air and blowing it out the side of his blunted muzzle. It was familiar, but he couldn’t place it.
He heard it again , something soft scraping along the deck, and it seemed to be coming from the hatch the service bots were stored in. “Rodents?” he asked himself softly, leaning down to peer into the dark tunnel that was behind the galley counter. When his eyes adjusted to the dark, he saw a pair of brown eyes that were too large for any normal shipboard pest. So what was it?
“Hey,” it said.
*****
“Did you hear that?” Jason asked Lucky. Both were on the bridge. “It sounded like someone just kicked a dog or something.”
“I did in fact hear— ”
“CAPTAIN, COME DOWN HERE!” Crusher’s bellow echoed up from the main deck without the need for the ship’s intercom. Jason leapt from his seat and raced off the bridge after Lucky. They ran down the stairs and saw a flustered Crusher standing over an equally flustered person who simply couldn’t, shouldn’t be there.
Taryn.
“You’ve got to be kidding me …” Jason’s sentence trailed off as Taryn gave him a slightly guilty smile and tried a half-hearted wave. She was disheveled and smudged with dirt, a testament to the locations of some of her hiding spots.
“Hi, Jason,” she said. “I know you’re probably mad at— ”
“KAGE!” Jason shouted, cutting her off. The Veran came stumbling out of his quarters at the bellowing of his name. Before he could even take in the scene, or ask any questions, Jason pointed to the command deck. “Get up there and bring the ship back to forty percent slip and contact the Diligent . NOW!” To Kage’s credit, he raced out of the common area and up to the bridge as fast as his legs would carry him. A moment later the pitch and volume of the engines changed and the muted vibrations through the deck faded.
“Now,” Jason continued calmly, “what are you doing on board, Taryn?”
“I knew no matter how many times I asked, you’d still say no to me coming along,” she started. “So I simplified things and made sure you didn’t leave without me.”
“What … why … how …” Jason pinched the bridge of his nose, collected his
“Since the message was not sent with high priority, I would say the risk is equal either way,” Lucky said from his station by the door.
“True,” Jason mused. “We’re not scheduled for our first throttle back for another twenty-seven hours. I don’t want to lose any more time on this trip than necessary; we’ll wait until then and have Captain Colleren resend the message.” When travelling long distances at such a high speed, Jason regularly called for a reduction in velocity so Twingo could inspect the engines and the reactor to make sure they weren’t about to break something and leave them stranded. He assumed the Diligent had some more intel to feed them so he didn’t risk slowing down for it. They would still get it well before they reached their destination.
*****
Crusher shuffled across the deck towards the galley at a careful pace. He had strained something while working out in the cargo bay and he was taking it easy for the moment, letting it heal up before they arrived over the A’arcooni homeworld. The long-burn flights were excruciating for the big warrior, someone who wasn’t a huge fan of space travel to begin with. He stepped up to the food processor and began punching in commands to get a post-workout meal so he could head to his rack.
A small shuffle caught his attention behind him and he spun quickly, expecting to see one of his crew trying to sneak up on him, but saw nothing. He tested the air with his nose and caught a faint hint of something that didn’t belong. He stepped away from the processor, breathing in long breaths through his nose, testing the air and blowing it out the side of his blunted muzzle. It was familiar, but he couldn’t place it.
He heard it again , something soft scraping along the deck, and it seemed to be coming from the hatch the service bots were stored in. “Rodents?” he asked himself softly, leaning down to peer into the dark tunnel that was behind the galley counter. When his eyes adjusted to the dark, he saw a pair of brown eyes that were too large for any normal shipboard pest. So what was it?
“Hey,” it said.
*****
“Did you hear that?” Jason asked Lucky. Both were on the bridge. “It sounded like someone just kicked a dog or something.”
“I did in fact hear— ”
“CAPTAIN, COME DOWN HERE!” Crusher’s bellow echoed up from the main deck without the need for the ship’s intercom. Jason leapt from his seat and raced off the bridge after Lucky. They ran down the stairs and saw a flustered Crusher standing over an equally flustered person who simply couldn’t, shouldn’t be there.
Taryn.
“You’ve got to be kidding me …” Jason’s sentence trailed off as Taryn gave him a slightly guilty smile and tried a half-hearted wave. She was disheveled and smudged with dirt, a testament to the locations of some of her hiding spots.
“Hi, Jason,” she said. “I know you’re probably mad at— ”
“KAGE!” Jason shouted, cutting her off. The Veran came stumbling out of his quarters at the bellowing of his name. Before he could even take in the scene, or ask any questions, Jason pointed to the command deck. “Get up there and bring the ship back to forty percent slip and contact the Diligent . NOW!” To Kage’s credit, he raced out of the common area and up to the bridge as fast as his legs would carry him. A moment later the pitch and volume of the engines changed and the muted vibrations through the deck faded.
“Now,” Jason continued calmly, “what are you doing on board, Taryn?”
“I knew no matter how many times I asked, you’d still say no to me coming along,” she started. “So I simplified things and made sure you didn’t leave without me.”
“What … why … how …” Jason pinched the bridge of his nose, collected his
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