[out of story] I know, I promised to go in-depth...
Well, that's not happening. Part of why that's not happening, is that I'd have to do, like, real-science research research and stuff, then go through the stage-by-stage, step by step mauling of a whole world...just to give it enough impact to make doing the research-research worth the effort.
I don't have near enough russian novelist in me to be that ****** depressing...so we're going to skip ahead a bit, kill a whole shit-ton of people off-stage, and move forward to after the 30 of April...
[/out of story]
Kowloon system, 5 May, 3065...
"We're getting a transponder, she's a falcon vessel." the Radioman for BW-2271 announced, "They're requesting clearance to approach the planet."
Lt. Arlene Rodecher 72 sighed. "Put me on..." she said. The quarters on an Aquarius are tight, the Kowloon variant didn't change that much-swapping the single-heats for fewer doubles freed up fuel tonnage, but actually made things tighter. "Falcon Vessel Mattlov's Pride, this is Coast Guard Bravo-Whiskey Two-two-seven-one, how many convoy for Hue, Over?"
"Bravo Whiskey 2271, this is Mattlov's Pride Actual, I have three for Hue, and it is official business, we have an additional dropship bound for Arluna pending response to an official request, Over."
"Mattlov's Pride Actual, this is Coast Guard 2271, did I hear you right? are you aware that Arluna is a Level Zero hot-zone, Over?"
the voice on the other end changed to a younger, male voice, "Coast guard, can you repeat that, I think you said Level Zero, Over?"
"As of six days ago we have confirmed the Arluna outbreak is a Level Zero biohazardous situation...and who am I talking to, over?"
"I am Scientist-Leader Jason "Barnaard" of the Medical Research subcaste, Our reports state you have a team in the hot-zone, and one of my objectives was contact and consultation with that team!..um, Over."
she grimmaced. "As of yesterday, we Had a team, Jason. Had. we do have data from them before they dropped out of contact with the monitoring ship in-system. Best guess based n last transmission from the dropship is nobody is alive down there...Mattlov's Pride Actual, your dropships are cleared on traffic vector Bravo One, stick to the guide beacons and they'll be able to make a clean, safe landfall, but I would advise strongly not proceeding to Arluna until further notice, Over."
"Coast Guard 2271, we appreciate the advisement, but we have our orders, Over." the Falcon captain was back on the channel.
"Then god protect and preserve you, Mattlov's Pride, be advised a follow-on expedition is currently being assembled, if you can wait a few days, Over."
"Noted, Coast Guard, we will be leaving on our schedule, but if you feel generous, you can send us information gleaned on the conditions at our destination, Over?"
"Roger that, Mattlov's Pride, I'll have my Radioman set up a link and you can download from our medical research group, give me a few hours for light delay, Over."
"Understood, 2271, standing by for datafeed, Over."
"****** idiots." she whispered, but sent the request back up the chain.
Clan Merchant class Mattlov's Pride (the most recent one)
Karl never won a bloodname, he'd had to content himself with accepting a post shepherding Clan merchant-caste and others along the frontier once he had gotten to an age where piloting an Aerofighter was too strenuous. Life as a member of the Merchant Caste was, at least, useful work. The little ship that he'd just spent precious time communicating with, would have been a rather poor target back in the old days-too slow and old to be a true threat. still, they must have done some work on it-those were never originally made for long-duration patrol flights...
His reveries were interrupted by a hushed sound from the overeager scientist he'd only allowed on 'his' command deck because the man's orders were from the Khan.
"savashri..."
Karl looked at the thirty-something scientist, and saw a look of unadulterated horror.
"What is it?" Karl asked.
"this is a world-killer. if this is what is down on Arluna..." Jason met his eyes, "it must be stopped...and we need to know what these spheroids are planning-if it is the wrong thing, this will be worse..." the young man's eyes unfocused, "I thought they might be exaggerating about a level zero-those are only theoretically possible! but if anything could be level zero, this is it...I must find out more!"
Karl snorted, then another alert light brightened and the technician manning the comm console put through a simple message from the ranking Jade Falcon officer in the system.
Karl sighed, and keyed the traffic-control channel. "I have one more dropship for landing at Hue after all, Coast Guard...this one will require an actual escort, Over."
"keep your escorts close to the vessel, and follow the beacons, then. Do you require a top-up on your helium tanks, Over?"
Karl nodded, "I do." he said, "Charge it to the Hue Garrison's account, and...ah, I meant, the vessel will require military escort. Over." The briefings had been painstaking, so Karl had to be a Merchant again.
"Stand by, Mattlov's Pride Actual. we get your meaning and the request from the Hue garrison's already been made, Out."
the smallcraft banked and did a seven-second burn out of the arrival path.
What flicked into existence was about fifty thousand tonnes, and bore lines resembling some of the earliest jumpships ever made.
"Mattlov's Pride Actual, this is Coast Guard Cutter Elaine, you have a priority delivery to the planet Kowloon, Over?"
"Aff..irmative." Karl said, as the merchant-class vessel's warbook displayed the likely armament, and sensors showed more. "How many gravities does that thing make?"
"Two point five at overthrust, but we've got a Battery, so we'll be taking your priority packet straight to the Ell-Five point between Kowloon and Green Cheeze, Over."
"that...that is a pre-dreadnought vessel!" he stated, "Where did you find it?"
"Retrofitted from an original colonial hull, the Rimjobs didn't blow them all up, she can only manage a fifteen-light max range on a jump, but we normally only need her for in-system anyway, send your package over, with bodyguards if you're worried. Once we're back in Kowloon orbit, we'll have to spend a couple weeks recharging the core and the batteries, but her next stop is the Arluna system, which is, if I might say so myself, one hell of a shakedown cruise for a ship that's been motionless in the Oort since the end of the Amaris War, Over."
Ten hours later, Hue Spaceport, Falcon Enclave, Kowloon...
"It was a bold measure of trust getting on that leaky thing." Morgan Icaza said, greeting both Karl, and Jason.
"Your command left me little choice." Karl stated, "they are sending a fifty-five thousand ton ship that was built centuries ago. How insane are they?"
"Very." Morgan told him, "Two thousand of their best have stepped forward to volunteer as guinea-pigs on the surface, since they consider some of their simulation data to be faulty and rats, to put it the way the late Commander Jennison stated it, 'aren't human enough to properly model the virus."
jason was horrified. "Human subjects?" he said, aghast.
"Voluntary human subjects-they are only allowing a fraction of the number that volunteered-the criteria included men whom have already fathered children, women whose children are already self-sufficient, and those that are for one reason or another, sterile and can not produce offspring...and they are asking us for assistance, to get the HPG on Arluna working again, because the Comstar crew and their com-guards are dead...in order to monitor the site by remote."
"You did not agree to that, quineg?" Karl asked.
"I...kicked their request up the chain of command." Morgan told him, "Frankly, that is a 'favour' far beyond my authority, however, the threat looks real enough to me, and if this is an elaborate deception, it is being played on these people as well-there is a graveyard growing on one of the airless moons here in the Kowloon system-filled with dead refugees whose ships arrived in the system with the infection...the disease, at least, is real, as are the quarantine measures they are taking-the locals fear this infection, more than they ever feared us."
