Tech Planet (Project NightStorm Book 2) Read online

  Tech Planet

  Project NightStorm Book 2

  Colin Dean

  Tech Planet

  Project NightStorm Book 2

  By

  C E Dean

  Copyright © 2019 C.E. Dean

  All rights reserved.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  1. Plan

  2. Encounter

  3. The Cross

  4. Guide

  5. Behemothic

  6. The Town Outside

  7. Law One

  8. Time Freeze

  9. Returning to The Outrider

  10. Pre-party Nerves

  11. Party

  12. Docks

  13. Drifting to Madness

  14. Underwater

  15. Water Base

  16. Ray and March

  17. Enter the Shark

  18. Awake

  19. Water Escape

  20. Vote

  21. Out of Service

  22. Four Stories

  23. Winds

  24. Search and Repair

  25. Confrontation

  26. Last words

  Epilogue

  Also by C. E. Dean

  About the Author

  1

  Plan

  The office was minimalist containing only a comfortable looking chair, long wide desk and a small Zen rock garden. Arri stood quietly, head freshly shaven in preparation for an operation that hadn't happened. He kept having the urge to run his hand over the stubble.

  The chair creaked slightly, unlike all modern chairs this one had wheels, instead of floating it rested directly on the floor. The man sat before him was one of the most powerful he had ever known. Admiral Fenton never seemed to change, always immaculately dressed no hair out of place. His face bore the lines of age with dignity, there was steel in this man, an unbreakable will.

  "Admiral, have you considered the plan?" Arri asked.

  "Already done, if they have spies here they will discover the location Marcus provided. If they do discover the location then I have a bigger problem," Fenton took a sip from his coffee cup. "If the opportunity presents itself capture the professor alive, I would really like to ask him some questions."

  "Sir," Arri raised his hand in salute then his image blinked out of existence, the holo-projection falling away. Without thinking he resumed running his hand over his head.

  His cabin was more cluttered now than ever before, several devices had replaced the functions of the overlay, the computer in his mind that had once provided access to the connected world. He had a roll-up tablet for news and movies. A VR headset so he could jump into his favourite games in his off time. Tidal had created him a small phone unit that sat just behind his ear allowing him access to calls and messages.

  Projected onto his desk was the formal letter from the hospital admissions team, postponing the operation needed to fix the scaring in his brain. Arri had sustained the brain injury back on Titan A25, he wasn't completely sure how it had occurred, certainly he had been subjected to a very unique energy source.

  "Third time this has happened," Arri thought, "its, well it is what it is. The war is getting closer Corvalor is on fire." He closed the open letter on his desk by pinching his fingers together over it. He could use the overlay in a sticky situation, it just now came with a price.

  He had been cooped up in his room too long, writing reports, reading reports going to review after review. The death of his friend had been a personal blow, professionally there were a lot of questions he was unable to answer.

  Thinking of Niko brought a sharp memory to mind, he was in the cockpit of a fighter craft, laser light dancing all around his head. Either side of his view large lumps of broken jagged metal whizzed past. He gripped the stick tight forcing it over to one side causing his fighter to veer, dodging at the last second.

  Arri was back in his room, the memory went as quickly as it had appeared. One moment he was sure he had been in a fighter. His heart was pounding in his chest, the thrill of combat heightened his senses.

  As the excitement passed he set about wrapping the foldable tablet device around his forearm. When the edges touched together the machine altered its dimensions, adjusting to form a perfect fit. Small pale blue circles spun with creative designs to let the user know the device was ready, at a glance he could now tell the time, his heart rate and a host of other useful information about his current state and day.

  Arri slipped into his chair on the bridge, his muscles ached as he had pushed a little too hard in the gym. Sweat beads still pooled on his forehead and he took a second to wipe them away. The device on his arm illuminated as he moved catching his eye, his mind always hungry to consume data. He stretched then easing out the tension in his shoulders, rotating his left arm in a complete a circle as he could manage in a sitting position. Not even a twitch of pain, the healing process had been flawless, he made a mental note to thank the doctor.

  Placing his hands on the arms of the chair he glanced back down at his data device, the display of which projected through the material of his jacket into a slightly curved screen of perfect definition just above his arm. This device used the same thought commands as the overlay which was one of the big selling factors in his purchase of it.

  "Jenkins, are we on target for the scheduled departure?" Arri asked.

  "Well sir we are waiting on the new guy, there was a slight delay in his transport but I am hopeful he will make it on time." Jenkins stood near the centre of the bridge, floating all around him were data screens there for the benefit of Arri, this bypassed the need to use his overlay.

  Arri glanced down at his new device, An alert on the war captured his attention.

  "The war in Corvalor rages on, Rebel forces have taken control of the Menetax corporation's large energy plant. Sources on the ground have reported seeing giant battle mechs taking up defensive positions around the facility. If true this is a major victory for the rebels and gets them one step closer to their goal of overthrowing the incumbent government.

  "I have not been able to confirm these reports with my own eyes as I am currently bunkered down in a small town some thirty miles northeast of the plant. This is Brendan Speigood for Galx-Tech news."

  Arri watched the footage noticing the stress in the reporter's voice and his now dishevelled appearance. As he signed off the video report, explosions like thunder could be heard rumbling in the background, there might have even been a shake to the camera.

  Arri rubbed the bridge of his nose, he had an unshakable feeling that he was going to be drawn into the war. His government had kept diplomatic channels open but had so far refused to support either side.

  Turning his attention to one of the displays that hovered around Jenkins, Arri watched as the newest member of his crew sprinted towards the ship. A smile pulled at the sides of his mouth as Johns vaulted over a small container, knocked into a spin a confused looking dock worker, before finally hitting the ramp at full speed. All the while carrying a very large backpack that no doubt contained all the possessions he would need for space travel.

  "I think its time for me to greet the new guy," Arri said.

  "Very good sir, perhaps you could speak to him about his timing," Jenkins said.

  The Outrider wasn't a large ship, the distance from the bridge to airlock took around fifteen seconds to cover. The ship had twenty cabins situated over two levels. The top level contained the bridge and break out area. The bottom level contained the cargo bay, medical area, and engine room. The engine core actually spanned both levels at what Arri thought of as the rear of the ship.

  Each cabin was designed with military comfort in m
ind, a shower toilet unit, functional bed and large locker that spanned floor to ceiling. At the back of each room facing out into space an escape pod was parked, the ICNH cycle which also acted as a personal transport.

  Arri's own cabin was slightly larger, one of the perks of being the captain, he had a small meeting table surrounded by chairs and a cooking area.

  "Tech specialist," Arri greeted Johns noting his appearance differed slightly to his profile picture. The photo on file was old, the face before him had aged gaining a few lines in around the eyes and forehead. Johns' eyes were perhaps the most striking feature about him, they were jet black.

  "Captain," Johns said, swinging his large backpack which he had hooked over one shoulder to the ground and offering a crisp salute.

  "Good to have you with us, your last commander spoke highly of you," Arri said. He noticed for the first time the scar that ran down the side of Johns neck. A knife wound that had been stitched up by an amateur, it was surprising he hadn't had it erased with cosmetic surgery, there must be some story behind it.

  "Thank you," Johns said, "I am looking forward to the assignment sir."

  "We are just about to depart for a destination you might find interesting."

  "Oh," said Johns.

  "You are in cabin 17 go drop off your gear and meet me on the bridge, top floor. Your armour arrived yesterday."

  "Captain," Johns saluted again, despite all his running his suit was perfectly pressed.

  After watching Johns head off in the direction of his cabin Arri decided it was time to take a walk around the ship. He missed the constant flow of information from his overlay and craved conversation, news and contact with people.

  His overlay still functioned at some level and if needed he could access it at any point just that it came with a cost, brain splitting headaches.

  Arri took the stairs down to the lower level, there were elevators at either end of the ship but he felt like stretching his legs, he had been sat still too long.

  The ship was light on crew cut down to the bare minimum, Arri was being tight on credits, there were certain ship upgrades that he wanted. Each ship was given a budget controlled by the captain to cover crew, running and upgrade costs. Some missions provided extra credits, the more dangerous and complex the higher the reward. The downside to dangerous and complex, the medical bills and chance of death.

  "Captain," Tidal said.

  "Hows things in the warmest area of the ship?" Arri asked.

  "Not bad, no issues to report we have barely taken her out for a spin," Tidal rubbed at his dirt-stained uniform adding more dirt and grease to the mix. "Captain after this mission, I would like to book a couple of weeks off."

  "OK send me a note and I'll pencil it in, any reason in particular?"

  "Going on a holiday with my daughter, she's in a gap year from her degree."

  "OK," Arri took one last look at the powerhouse of the ship. The engine itself was hidden behind high shiny panels. Lights blinked on and off giving the impression of activity. Arri knew that all the displays, reports, and non-hidden controls existed only in the virtual world. He had no doubt that Tidal had them all displayed in his mind even as they spoke.

  From engineering, Arri went in search of an old friend. He had heard reports that Ray had been withdrawn in recent days keeping mostly to himself.

  The outside to Ray's cabin molded perfectly with the ship's wall. The solid looking doorway would turn translucent allowing a person to pass through. Arri grimaced, he used to know how that worked, correction he could ask the net how it worked, pulling detailed information about atoms, right up to how the door turned translucent. Without the overlay, the knowledge wasn't there.

  His right hand softly gripped his left wrist a gentle reminder of the foreign device that still allowed him access to all information. Without the overlay, he had another problem, how to notify the person inside the cabin he was there. He decided to knock.

  "Captain," Ray said, he had lost quite a bit of weight in the last couple of weeks. His uniform no longer tightly pulled across his stomach.

  "We are about ready to leave, it will be some adventure," Arri said.

  "Looking forward to it, bought a new heavy armour suit. The latest model, all new technology and looks great," Ray said, his eyes opened slightly wider as he spoke. His hair was wild like he had just been sleeping.

  "Make sometime later and we can spar, give you a chance to test out that armour."

  "Sir," Ray looked like he was about to say more but didn't, he was normally very talkative one of his endearing qualities.

  Arri left with a wave, looking forward to a sparring session with Ray. On autopilot, he walked into the break out room. March sat chatting with Galdan and he couldn't help but drink in her beauty.

  March was wearing her hair shoulder length today and had selected a dark blue colour which matched her eyes. With makeup, she had altered those eyes with a thick black outline and dark eyeshadow.

  "Guys," Arri greeted them both.

  "Captain, looking forward to getting back to work," Galdan said.

  "We will be departing shortly," said Arri flashing a smile at Galdan. He turned to March she was studying him a slightly distracted look on her face. "Are the upgrades ready?"

  "Sir, the new shield matrix has been installed. Tidal and Jenkins completed the work yesterday," March said.

  "Great news, now lets hope we don't need it," Arri said, he looked back at Galdan "How is that new suit of armour treating you?"

  "It's not new sir. In fact it's very old designed by one of my people's great armourers, developed for a much darker time. It was blessed by the light priests and spent two years under the mountain of Hopira on my planets third moon.

  "The suit itself was upgraded with the latest technology. It came through the last battle without a scratch so am confident it will be great. I hope one day to be worthy of the armour," Galdan said bowing his head slightly.

  "Why is the armour so old?" March asked.

  "It belonged to my grandfather, upon his death he sent it to me as part of his will."

  "Departing in five," Arri said as he stood leaving March and Galdan to get ready. The gym area of the ship had been cleared a little, replaced with an all in one combo machine. Arri wasn't sure how he felt about that as he headed to the bridge.

  He watched the crew silently take up their positions, their minds connected with the ship, interfacing with its controls, monitoring all its many status reports.

  "Captain, to get to our destination we will need to make three jumps through space and we will need to recharge the engines between each hop. The location provided by Marcus is beyond the great nebula and further out than we have been before," March said.

  "The planet we are heading too is one of the old Tech planets," Jenkins said.

  "My friends we didn't know this one even existed until Marcus. We are heading into the unknown," Arri said.

  "Taking us out of the station, and preparing for scorch drive ignition," March said her voice reassuring to Arri's ear.

  "Marcus needs our help and this planet might be the key, there will be danger I am sure but we will face it together," Arri said.

  "Scorch drive firing in three, two, one."

  The ship blinked out of existence, freezing the crew in a timeless unmoving void, Arri's eyes caught between blinks. Then one hundred and twenty-one minutes later the Outrider reappeared the first jump complete, the edge of the great nebula filling the display screens.

  "Every time, it takes me by surprise," Galdan said, "guess I need a few more jumps to get used to it."

  Arri flashed him a smile, "don't think there is any getting used to it. We were never designed to travel at such speeds. Ok, I am a little fuzzy on the details how long will it take for the engine to recharge, and umm why does it need to recharge?"

  "Sir Tidal can explain it better, but think of it like a glass of water constantly being filled by a tap. To move through the other space the engine
constantly drinks more water than the tap can produce. Once emptied we need to wait for the glass to refill. Then we can start the process all over again."

  "Can't we get a bigger glass?" Arri asked.

  "I am sure we can but they are expensive if you want to spare the credits," Jenkins said. March struggled to contain a small laugh.

  "OK, well its something to think about," Arri said, he didn't really like to spend credits. "So how long will it take to recharge?" he asked again.

  "Thirty minutes give or take," March replied as Jenkins had become lost in a sea of data monitoring every aspect of the ship's systems.

  "Thank you, Ray want to test out that new armour."

  2

  Encounter

  Arri admired the heavy armour, comparing it to his own. He noted how much bulkier the design was. Each arm was at least twice as thick as his, the chest and legs thicker still. The helmet recessed slightly into the shoulder plates giving the impression the suit was always shrugging.

  "Comfortable in that?" Arri asked.

  "Perfectly captain," Ray replied, "you know this suit was designed by one of the top corporations NGMAX. State of the art battlefield protection with all the home from home comforts you could wish for."

  "You sound like an advert," Arri said.

  "Just thought you should know what you're up against. Ready?"

  "Ready."