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PART THREE
The doors to Hangar 3 opened wide as the Phoenix lined up to enter the safe haven the Artimus provided. The retro rockets underneath the blue and red ship fired, lowering the craft to the deck with barely a sound. The Phoenix was battered, streaks of black criss crossed the ship. In places, armor had been sheared away, a containment force field closing the gaps. The doors closed quickly as the hangar was pressurized. A contingent of honor guards, led by Admiral Kovacks, entered through a bulkhead at the far end of the hangar, and waited below. The bubble hatch on the top of the Phoenix opened, the team leaping to the deck in front of the Admiral. He smiled at the team and spoke, his voice deep and confident.
"Great work, my friends. The blockade is established, and for now, there's no sign of Spectran reinforcements. Is there anything I can do for you?"
Mark smiled.
"If you don't mind, we could do with some repairs and weapons reloads."
Kovacks nodded enthusiastically, and gestured to the team. They began to walk towards the hangar's exit together.
"Not a problem. I'm sure we could have defeated that Super Mech without you. It doesn't seem like much, though. Is there anything else?"
Mark saw Tiny and Keyop exchange a quick, hungry look. The commander of G-Force chuckled.
"Well...maybe we could use something to eat."
Everybody laughed at that, even Tiny and Keyop, who were blushing a little. Kovacks gestured grandly at the corridor before them.
"Come with me, friends. I hope you'll find our galley suitable."
"I'm so hungry I'd eat Spectran chud algae," said Tiny.
"I'm not sure we have that, but I can put in a request."
Laughter echoed through the walkways of the giant ship as the team, escorted by the Admiral, made their way to a victory dinner.
The others were still eating at a large table filled with officers and the G-Force team, when Kovacks motioned to Mark, to join him in a small chamber away from the noise and camaraderie. Mark excused himself and followed the Admiral, the doors closing behind him.
He found himself standing in front of a floor to ceiling plasteel porthole, gazing out at the clean up operation in progress. The clean up operation had three purposes. The first one was that high speed travel in space gets dangerous when hunks of steel debris are floating everywhere. The second was that recycling the captured materials lessened ecological burden on Federation planets. Thirdly, the debris was combed for clues to Spectran design and operations. Mark stood there, stunned at the enormity of the job. Kovacks stood beside Mark, observing.
"It's all automated, you know. People used to do it, but it's such a monotonous task, that they'd go a little nuts. Now it's all robotic. Please, sit down."
The two men sat opposite each other, a smooth, black table between them. The Admiral lit a cigar, offering one to Mark, who declined politely. Mark checked the clock in the heads up display in his visor. 19:41:23, counting down. Still a few hours before the next phase of the mission. Kovacks blew smoke rings towards the ceiling.
"Well, Mark...this job Anderson's got you on seems pretty tricky."
"We've done this kind of thing before. We'll be fine." Mark poured himself a glass of water from an icy pitcher on the table, and replaced the pitcher back on top of the dewey ring, exactly where it had been. He drank as Kovacks spoke again.
"I know you will. Your father and I went on a mission like this, once. You're like him."
"Thank you." Mark paused, thinking of his father. "I wish I had known him better, you know? It's like he's some hero that every kid looks up to, growing up. One day I find out he's my dad. And then he dies. It takes some getting used to."
The Admiral nodded and sighed, looking out into space.
"Why do they do it, do you think?"
"Spectra, you mean?"
"Yes. Why do they do what they do? If they'd only join us, instead of fighting us, they could share our wealth. Instead...so many people killed uselessly. Makes no sense."
"Zoltar...he and his 'Luminous One' don't seem like the sharing types." Mark sipped his water, a sad smile on his lips.
The Admiral chuckled.
I suppose it's not up to men like us to question why...we just do as we're told."
Mark nodded silently and stood up, Kovacks did the same.
"I hate to eat and run, Admiral, but as you know...we're on the clock."
"Of course, Commander." Kovacks extended his hand across the table. Mark grasped it strongly in his own, drawing strength from the elder.
"Thank you...for everything, Admiral."
"Your father...he always had a picture of you. I never had any children myself, you know. I envied him. He was proud of you, Mark." Kovacks paused, clearing his throat. "Good luck, son."
Mark nodded, then straightened, honoring the praise with duty.
"Hold the line, sir. Galleran III will be out of Spectran hands soon enough."
There was a silent moment as the two men looked at each other, then Mark left the room. he approached the table where his comrades sat. Jason was chatting with a lovely, blonde pilot. He turned to look at Mark and frowned momentarily, before turning back to the blonde. A few words to her that made her blush, and he stood up and approached his friend.
"I guess we're going, huh?"
"Sorry pal. You get a number?"
"Of course. She asked me where the zipper was on my bird style armor." Jason chuckled and ruffled his wings. The other members of the team joined in. Keyop had some kind of sauce all over his lips and face. Princess grabbed a napkin and struggled with him to clean it off. Tiny smiled at Mark, satisfied. His stomach jiggled as he let off a belch.
"Well, team...I hope you enjoyed this little interlude, because from here on in. it's overtime." Mark looked at each member of the team meaningfully.
"Does that mean we're finally getting paid to do this?" Jason smirked and looked back at his new friend. She smiled seductively at him.
Mark ignored the comment, but smiled. It seemed he had gotten over Princess fast enough. Mark looked at her, to find she was already looking at him.
"Is everybody ready?"
The team nodded.
"Then let's go!"
Mark started running for the hangar, the rest keeping pace with their wings flapping behind them. They came to an observation area that looked down into the hangar. Passing some unsuspecting admirers of the Phoenix, the five soared into the air, over the railing, and glided to the entry hatch of the ship in perfect formation. The engineers and mechanics watched the feat in amazement, for even the oldest among them had fantasized, at one time or another, to be a member of G-Force.
The transparent shell closed around them as the lift descended inside the Phoenix. Tiny grinned with approval, noting that the ship hadn't looked this good in a long time. He fired up the engines, and waited for traffic control to give him clearance. Jason nodded as he sat in his normal place, noting that the weapons compliment was fully restored. Princess and Keyop checked in with communications, life support and other vital functions, all at 100%.
The hangar doors opened, and the ship lifted out of the Artimus and angled towards Galleran III. Once clear of the fleet, Tiny activated the space warp controls. Tiny locked in the autopilot, and left his chair to join the rest of the team at the mission table. Mark began to outline the plan.
"Tiny, when we get there, you have to follow this flight plan exactly the way it's programmed." Mark handed him a data tape. "Basically, Princess and I will be jumping in from 5,000 meters, landing some 25 kilometers outside of Tirabon. From there, we make it on foot.Intelligence says that the new Spectran interim government is accepting prisoners on a walk up basis."
Keyop interrupted.
"What's th.th.th.that mean?"
Jason leaned down and looked into the little guy's eyes.
"It means that if you surrender, you get to live. If you make them come looking for you...you die."
Keyop gulped and looked at Mark, for confirmation. When Mark nodded, Keyop's breath hitched in his throat, and his eyes grew moist.
"Those p.p.p.p.poor people..." He slumped down into his chair, trying not to cry. Princess put her hands on his shoulders, in support. Jason did the same.
"I'm sorry I said it that way, buddy. But we have to make sure that no one else gets hurt there, right?"
Keyop nodded, and sat up, stronger now. He wiped the tears from his eyes.
"I know...but s.s.so many of them..." He trailed off, shaking.
Mark kneeled in front of Keyop and spoke softly.
"I know it hurts, Keyop. But you have to be strong. It's all up to us. You think you can do it?"
The youngest member of the team took a deep breath, and smiled bravely.
"I have to, d.d.don't I? I'm in G-Force!"
Mark rubbed the boy's helmet affectionately and stood up, addressing the team again.
"When Princess and I land, we'll be transmuting out of bird styles, and making our way towards Tirabon. Hopefully, we can hook up with one of the traveling bands of refugees and blend in. Once we're interred in the camp there, we'll be meeting with Pintail... and only she knows what comes next."
Tiny went to his navcomp and fed the data tape into it. After studying a readout briefly, he spoke.
"Your insert point is going to make it...2 am, local time. It's a new moon there...lots of darkness."
"What are we supposed to do while you two have all the fun?" Jason's tone was joking, but underneath, Mark detected something else. Jealousy? Concern? With Jason, it was hard to tell.
"Anderson will be transmitting further orders once we're underway. It's compartmentalized, for now. To protect all of us...understand?"
Everyone nodded.
"OK, then. We've got a few hours to get there. I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to meditate and get some rest." Mark went back to the small sleeping pods and entered his without another word.
Tiny sat in his chair, and checked the controls one more time.
"That's a good idea...gotta sleep off all this food."
Princess made way to her own sleep pod, and got inside.
As Tiny began to snore, Keyop and Jason shrugged, and entered their own pods without a sound.
Mark was awakened by the sudden change in the feel of the ship...it meant that they were coming out of space warp, and that the mission was about to begin. He quickly checked the chronometer in his visor. Four minutes until orbital insertion. Mark activated the hatch on his sleep pod and exited, moving to the pilot's chair. Tiny was busy making course adjustments, and looked up as Mark stood beside him.
"I decided to let you sleep...who knows when you'll get a chance to do it again." Tiny smiled at Mark, then turned back to the controls.
Mark clapped him on the shoulder.
"Thanks. big guy. Where's -"
"Here." It was Princess, holding Mark's backpack out for him. Using the powers the cerebonic implant gave him, he forced his wings to stiffen, and stand up behind him. He quickly shouldered the pack, and let the wings fall over it. The pack was small enough that it wouldn't make a big impact on their aerodynamic signatures. Tiny looked back at them, as Keyop and Jason exited their own pods, and joined the team.
"Ready to g.g.go?" Keyop yawned once, and grinned, covering his mouth.
"Almost. You going to be okay, Keyop?" Mark crouched down to look him square in the eyes.
"Just be careful, Mark." Keyop blushed and went to his station, and began monitoring the scanners. Mark stood up and looked at Jason . His eyes carried a message. "Look after the little guy." Jason nodded. Tiny checked his instruments and slowed the ship.
"We're at five thousand meters, Commander."
"Thanks, Tiny." Mark looked at Jason. "Be ready for Anderson's transmission. Should be coming in soon after we're gone." Mark gestured to Princess and they began walking towards the lift to the bubble hatch. Jason followed them.
"Just so that it's on the record, I think splitting the team up on this mission stinks." The Condor sighed, frustrated.
"I know, but it's important that you follow Anderson's orders. This is only going to work if everyone does what they need to do. I trust you, Jason." Mark and Princess stood on the lift.
"I've half a mind to fly back to the Artimus and let Candy find my zippers." Jason smirked. Princess made a face as the lift started to rise. She looked down at Jason.
"Candy? You're after a girl named Candy? God." Mark and Jason laughed with her.
"What can I say? I've got a sweet tooth!" Jason watched as the lift locked into position, then turned back to the bridge. On the monitor, he could see Mark and Princess standing in the bubble, waiting for the right moment to go. A small alarm sounded, then, signaling Tiny that they were at the proper co-ordinates.
"Hang on Commander...it's time." Tiny flipped the switch and the bubble cracked open. Mark and Princess braced themselves as their wings fluttered violently in the wind. Jason watched as the two looked at each other, nodded, then leapt over the side of the ship. Instantaneously, Tiny altered course and headed back into deep space. Jason looked at the monitor where they'd been.
"Good luck," he whispered.
In the blackness of night, two white streaks made their way to the planet below. They had their wings wrapped tightly around them, turning themselves into living arrows. Mark activated the night vision in his visor with a thought, and looked below. He spotted their landing site below, a small, abandoned farm house on 10 or so acres of grassland. He could see a few fires here and there, scattered throughout his field of vision. He could see no vehicles, or people. On the horizon, lighting up the sky, was Tirabon. He looked over to Princess and saw her taking stock as well. Mark adjusted his trajectory until they were very close together, and yelled over the howling wind.
"It's cold! Are you alright?"
Princess nodded, and yelled back.
"We'll be down soon!"
Mark checked his visor clock. There was a setting for the parajump. When the clock hit two minutes, they had to unfurl their wings and begin a controlled descent. It was now at forty five seconds. He reached out to her, and grasped Prin's hand. He pulled her close, holding her against him. They maneuvered so that they were now pointing head first towards the ground. Their faces were only inches apart, turned awkwardly to accommodate their visors. The air screamed past them; they could both feel it pulling at their bodies.
Mark watched the countdown intently. Finally, the clock hit the two minute mark, and the two winged heroes separated, and unfurled their wings. According to the readout in his visor, they were now 1,000 meters from the ground. He and Princess began spiraling towards their target, allowing their speed to decrease to a safe, landing velocity. He scanned the area below him again, and saw that it still seemed as clear as before. With the new moon though, there wasn't enough natural light to use the night vision to it's fullest capacity.
Their target came close, and they swooped in low, putting the barn between them and the nearby road, and rustling the grass with their flight. The grass of the meadow had grown tall, as the farm had been abandoned for some time. They landed in the grass and crouched low, listening closely for any sound. Princess gestured to her bracelet, eyebrow arched in question. Mark shook his head and used hand signals to tell her to wait where she was for a minute. He disappeared into the darkness, and checked the area out.
Both the barn and the house were abandoned. Mark signaled to Princess, and she joined him underneath a boarded up window at the side of the house. He used his birdarang (and since Keyop had first called it that, he couldn't help but think of it that way. He grinned.) to pry the boards off of the window. The two of them went inside, silently.
Once inside, they looked around, and saw the dust on the floor, and the small animal tracks through it.
"No one's been here in a long time, Mark. We're secure." Princess extended her wings and shrugged the pack off of her shoulders. She laid it on the floor and stretched, rubbing her arms with her hands.
"That drop really iced me up." She stamped her feet a few times, causing mice to scurry from underneath musty furniture and head for small holes in the walls and floor. Prin squealed in disgust. "Remind me not to sit on the couch."
Mark smiled and took off his own pack.
"We're not going to be here long. Are you ready?"
"I guess so...we've got to get to it, don't we?" She was toying with her bracelet. Mark could tell she was nervous about transmuting into civilian clothes.
"Don't worry. We're well prepared. Don't get me wrong, I hate it too, but as long as we're together, everything will be fine."
Princess nodded and they both crossed their arms across their bodies, activating the transformation.
Instantaneously, the molecules transmuted into their alternate configuration, leaving Mark and Princess in their civilian clothes. They took off their bracelets, and stowed them in their packs, in a small compartment that was almost undetectable.
Mark removed a small pair of night vision binox from his pack and went to the window. He scanned the area again, and then looked back at Princess.
"I guess we can light a fire, and warm up a little, okay?" He found an old drape and fixed it over the window, to block any light that would escape, and went to help Prin break up a couple of chairs for the fireplace. Prin removed a small lighter from her pack and ignited the dry wood easily. The two sat on the floor in front of the fireplace, absorbing the heat, and wondering what the future held for them.