Alpha One - Chris Burton [153]
The pre-flight briefing was still six hours away. Steve lay down on his bed and tried to sleep.
* * * *
The Halo 7 neared the wormhole fissure. Hoskins gave the order to slow to thrusters, as it slowly began to dawn on the crew of the Halo 7 exactly what had happened to those ‘disciples’ who were left behind when Hoskins made the decision to go after Winterburn. There were over one hundred ships, all completely still and all lifeless. Some still had power, others were split in two, but all were the same. The bodies each contained were completely lifeless.
The bridge lay silent as they took in the spectacle. It was Hoskins who broke the silence: “We must catalogue each vessel and identify the inhabitants. This will be their graveyard but we have to take some time for these people.”
Hoskins tried to reason that he acted under orders, but somehow it didn’t cut. He made the wrong decision. He should have been here for these people. This massacre could have been prevented. The least he could do was give them some time, while they still could. How long did they have?
The gathering Kryl armada showed on the short-range scanners. They were not moving forward; he presumed they were preparing the fleet for an advance. Hoskins was clear in his mind. If they advanced, he would enter the fissure immediately. Obeya would have to find her own way home.
The Eagle was being tolerant and held steady at one hundred ninety-five thousand kilometers per hour. Jake had the comm and rechecked the various system integrity levels for the tenth time today. It was 11.00 hours and, according to both the NAVCOM and Jake’s manual calculations, they should rendezvous with the Halo 7 in approximately three hours. He monitored the scanners closely. He was aware of the buildup of Kryl warships on the horizon and he knew the defenseless Eagle could be extinguished in seconds should the Kryl elect to do so. He just needed to keep going and concentrate on getting the ship back to safety.
Obeya was in the co-pilot seat and was in a pensive mood. She had just spoken to Jonathan Hoskins again. The conversation was brief and to the point, for fear of identifying their position. Jonathan made it clear he would leave without them if he must, but would do everything possible to hold off. Obeya felt sick to her stomach. Why had she agreed to go on this stupid mission? All she could do was wait and let fate make its choice.
The identification process was complete. Two hundred thirty-six more lost souls and Hoskins blamed himself for every one of them. He must save those still with him. He would reflect on all the losses attributable to his actions later.
The Kryl fleet moved slowly forward, and he knew he could not wait much longer. Obeya was still some forty-five minutes away. He had a hard decision to make. If he waited for her, the Kryl fleet would be on top of them; but if he left her, it would surely be the last time he ever saw her. His crew were expecting him to give the order and Jacques, in particular, looked edgy and impatient. He just needed to hold on a little longer.
“Jonathan.” Jacques had tried speaking to him and he had not heard him. “Can we take a few moments in your ready room?”
Hoskins put his hand to his face and sighed. “No. I know what you want to talk to me about, and I appreciate your attempt at diplomacy. We have to leave.”
“It needn’t be. We could dispatch a Rapier to them. They could then leave the Eagle and come through the wormhole in the Rapier. We would be gone, but they would stand a chance in the blue wormhole in a ship that is not falling apart. We send it remotely and they can pull it in via their tractor beam. It’s a risky strategy, but Obeya is a great pilot. That would give them the chance they need.”
Hoskins had not thought of that. It could work. The Rapier might be destroyed by the Kryl before they had a chance to enter the wormhole, and yet it was still the best option.
“Okay, I agree. See to it personally, Number One, and let them