The Final Hie of L'Amato del Re

Posted on Sun May 2nd, 2021 @ 4:03am by Lieutenant JG Matthew Plumeri

2,899 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Episode 109 - The Dust Settles
Location: Thirty Clicks Beyond the Boundary Line
Timeline: Now

[ON:]

This part of space was chaotic. The asteroids numbered in the thousands and they spun in all different directions. There were fewer stars here and that gave the region a haunting aura of extra creepiness. What had happened here? So long ago that now space itself hung with open wounds? The debris of worlds unknown, like so many shards of glass twisted in the void. There was a single star here, Celatia. A black dwarf star with long tendrils of gas leaking out of it and spiraling, like blood, towards a dark, lightless void. And while there was some force at work here, it was not gravity. And the void was not a black hole. Surrounding Celatia was a kind of gray mist. An ether of unknown origin and in that ether hung the asteroid belt. And in that asteroid belt was a ship.

L’Amato Del Re was way beyond the Hawiesan Boundary Line. Warp engines did not work here. They never had. There was something about this region that was dreadful. One could not establish a stable warp field. Communications were sporadic and sub-space transmissions rarely worked. L’Amato Del Re flew so fast now, even at this distance. Weaving in and out of the asteroids, occasionally glancing one, the sparks of the impact on her hull sent vibrations throughout the ship.

Very faintly, through a sub-space radio a frantic, desperate call for help is made.

“….this is the L’Amato Del Re urgent, we are under attack. Requesting all aid. Our position is bearing 010 by 630 by 270….” The static resumes and the rest of the call for help is garbled.

L’Amato Del Re - Bridge

“Go faster! It’s right on our ass!” Danta shrieked.

“I know, I know! I am. Transfer weapons to the aft power cells and give me auxillary control!” Elvo said from the pilot’s seat. Danta, tears of fear in her eyes, somehow managed to work the controls.

Elvo looked over at her, “Stay with me baby. Focus and we’ll get out of this!”

“Marrant?! Are you at the guns yet?”, Elvo the pilot called back to the gunner.

Inside the aft gun turret, Marrant put on the headset and buckled himself in. His hands were shaking, “Dammit!”, he said as he fumbled the seatbelt. There was no time. He sat in the seat and the guns came alive. He took the controls and aimed and fired. Blindly, wildly he fired. He fired to save the ship, he fired in fear for his life. He fired at it.

Behind the ship, was a shapeless malevolent form. It was a Strega. It moved like a hunting spider. Fast, it walked, it flitted along the asteroids as easy as if it were a web. It had many tentacle-like appendages and no discernable face or head. There was, from time to time, what looked like a mouth. Gaping and opening as it grew closer. The shadowy substance seemed like a gas or a liquid. The weapons that Marrant fired seemed to have no influence. The phaser pulses were tiny compared to the size of the Strega. Marrant fired again and again, “I see IT! Possiamo – help us!”

In and out of the asteroids, up and down, there was nowhere to run. The small ship, about the same size as a Federation Wallace-class scout ship, could have not had a better pilot than Elvo. Even som this time, he thought, he really thought that they might not make it. This job was too much and they had bitten off more than they could do. Hindsight is always 20/20 as they say. Elvo looked at the navigation array, what was left of it at least. In under ten clicks they would be on the other side of the Hawiesan Boundary Line and back in Fontalan space. If they could make it past the barrier, they could go to warp and maybe….maybe they could out run it.

“Danta! Try the radio again. At this point I’d rather spend a few years in a Fontalan prison than anything else!”

She nodded. Danta tried again, her voice seemed distant almost dreamlike as she frantically called for help. The ship seemed so small in the void, and the radio…it was so faint. And the Strega was getting closer.


Meanwhile, back in Fontalan space - FNS Trovatello – Bridge

The Fontalan Naval Ship Trovatello was on patrol two sectors away in the Iragianna system. The sleek design of the bridge and command module gave way to the more sturdy hull and array of armaments along the hull. Assigned to protect the shipping lanes from piracy and the unstable nature of Fontalan politics, the ship just picked up a faint transmission.

“Captain?”, the young Fontalan officer said from the communications console, “I have a distress message. Ship in distress sir?”

The Captain turned her head and set down her digital pad, “What’s the distress?”

The comms officer answered, “They say they are on the other side of the Hawiesan Boundary Captain.”

Captain Andari swiveled in her chair to look at him, “Let’s hear it.”

The comms officer put it on the bridge speakers, …help us! Please help us. This is L’Amato del Re we are five clicks from the Hawiesan Boundary Line…we need help. Urgent. We are being pursued…strega… and the transmission repeated with garbled voice at different places.

Andari stood up and went to the navigation station, “What is that bearing?”

The navigation computer calculated the bearing and distance from the comm signal and displayed the information. Andari looked at the stellar map that was being displayed and frowned, “My god. What the hell are you doing out there?”

“Sound alert condition, notify Belgiosa Station that we’re attempting a rescue near the Boundary.” The comms officer nodded and contacted the sector command and relayed the information. Captain Andari ordered, “Helm? Make your course 230 by 010, best speed possible” The navigator keyed in the course and answered, “Aye Captain. Making my course 230 by 010. Setting warp five.”

The Fontalan Fiori-class frigate answered her helm, and came about to her course. As she did so, her engines started glowing brighter and in an instant, she leapt to warp. Back on the bridge, Captain Andari answered “Very good. Mister Calva? What do we have on the L’Amato del Re?

Science officer Calva replied, “L’Amato del Re” an older scout ship. Registered to the Navicellans. Numerous warrants and violations. A smuggler.”

Andari nodded, “And the Strega?”

The Science officer, even though he was not Vulcan gave a disapproving look and replied, “A mythical creature. A being of darkness, enslaved witches to Pahthumma if memory serves. Various sightings and most are apocryphal. It would be more likely that we heard a garbled word for other pirates.”

Captain Andari took her seat, “Well whatever they said, I don’t like being this close to the damn Boundary. Get the security forces ready. And charge weapons.”

BACK ONBOARD THE L’AMATO DEL RE

“Come on, dammit! COME ON!”, Elve said as he pressed every gigawatt of power through the engines. They had just cleared the asteroid field and up ahead…thank the gods…were stars. They were near the Boundary. Suddenly, the ship shuddered and the firing stopped. The weapons system went offline. Power was re-routed to the engines. Elvo looked at Danta. He punched the COMM,

“Marrant? Did you kill it? Or did it give up?” Evo asked.

There was only static on the comm.

“Marrant? Quit screwing around and get your ass back here? Now!”

There was no reply, but their ears popped as cabin pressure changed. He transferred control to Danta, “I’ll go take a look. No matter what happens, you make it across the line. I’ll take care of…” his voice trailed off and then he got out of the seat. Hesitating a moment, he opened the door to the corridor that went to the aft part of the ship. The lights were flickering and there was smoke. He figured that something must have blown out the comm system and maybe the ship had been damaged in the fight.

The door closed behind him with a hiss and he was alone in the corridor.

Danta opened a comm channel with him, “Elvo? What’s going on? Don’t leave me, OK? Keep talking so I know you’re alright?”

Elvo drew his phaser pistol and slowly walked the corridor, “No problem baby. Nothing to be scared about. This job though has earned us all a nice vacation. Maybe, when this is all over, we go to the Federation huh? We’ll have enough money then. We can get the hell out of here and these Fontalan hicks and their…shitty….creepy….magic shit can kiss our collectives asses.

Danta piloted the ship as fast as she could, the aft sensors were offline and so she couldn’t see anything. A light came on and that was the signal that the warp engines were charging up again. Ahead, she could see stars and the Hawiesan Boundary line marker beacons were in sight. She smiled, and secretly thanked the gods that they were almost to safety. “Hey? I’ve got good news too. I can see the marker beacons. We’re almost across the Boundary. Isn’t that great babe? Just like you said. We’re in, we get the package and we’re back out. Easy money.” She laughed nervously, “Oh thank ye gods.”

“Yeah, that’s real good to hear..” Elvo stopped just this side of the cargo hold. The doors had been bent inward and off their mountings. These were pressure doors too. For the hold. Something had pried the doors open from this side of the hold.

Elvo began to feel dread. He licked his lips. His sweat now glistened on his face and skin. He could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest.

In the hold, just out of sight, he could see the ornate sarcophagus. It was the remains, allegedly of course, of Pamphato. The so-called ‘White Snake King’. And sitting beside the sarcophagis, like almost kneeling in worship, what this dark, shadowy, tentacled…thing. It was all just horseshit to Elvo anyway. But the Fontalans were paying them a premium and then a ticket out of the system. This was the last job they would ever have to do for these country bumpkins. He thought about just opening the airlock and dumping their cargo. I mean honestly – he was done. But he couldn’t now. There was no way he could open the doors from here. He looked to the aft gun station and only saw sparking lights and smoke. He decided that he was going to make a run for it. Open the cargo hold and then sprint back as fast as he could to the bridge.

He moved forward, lifted the cover to the emergency airlock and that when he saw another Strega. It was standing there in his blind spot. There were two of them. “Oh..sh…” was all he said before it engulfed him.

Danta heard the muffled scream and the phaser pistol fire. “Elvo? Talk to me dammit! Elvo? Babe? Marrant?” She started to cry in panic. She locked the bridge door. “oh god, oh god…” she cried to herself. She was shaking all over and feared the worst. The ship crossed the Boundary and navigation, engines and most systems started to recharge. Danta put on the auto-distress beacon and, despite her intense fear, was going to go and find what happened to Elvo and Marrant. She picked up her phaser rifle, armed it and from her station aimed the weapon at the door. She pressed the button and the door hissed open.

Only darkness was there.

Then, a tentacle and then two.

She screamed and fired. The Strega grabbed her and she struggled to break free. Danta managed to hit the warp drive and the L’Amato del Re warp drive engines came online and the ship leapt to warp.


FNS TROVATELLO

“Captain? I have the L’Amato del Re on sensors. They are at warp and fast approaching” said the helm.

“They may be trying to run past us?” offered the helmsman.

Captain Andari considered their options, “Any other vessels in pursuit?”

“Negative Captain. Just that ship. Same course, same speed. We have to be on their long range sensors?” said the weapons officer.

“Hail them. Wave them down.” Andari commanded.

”Attention L’Amato del Re this is the Fontalan Naval Ship Trovatello. You are ordered to stop and surrender your vessel. Please acknowledge. You are ordered to surrender your vessel. Prepare to be boarded. L’Amato del Re stop and surrender. Please respond” the communications officer tried.

Captain Andari said, “Keep trying.”

She got up from the Captain’s chair and looked over the shoulder of the helmsman. “She’s on a collision course with the Chanessa moon. Options? How can we bring that ship out of warp?”

The science officer, Mr. Calva, responded first. “We could generate a sizeable field with the shield and tractor emitters. If their ship is undamaged, the navigation computer would either alter course or drop out of warp.”

The weapons officer offered, “We come alongside and board the ship. We’re going to have to board it anyway.”

Calva said, “That could work. However, I recommend that we extend out warp bubble to include the other ship. Once we have them inside our warp field, their warp field will collapse and we can safely bring both ships out of warp and into sub-light speed. Then, board it.”

“Agreed. See to it Mister Calva” the captain ordered.

Making as few course adjustments, the larger Fontalan frigate came alongside the smaller scout ship. Extending the warp field worked and the smaller ship fell out of warp alongside the Trovatello.

“Helm? All stop!” Captain Andari asked the comm, “Anything?”

The helm replied, “Aye Captain. Answers all stop.”

“Nothing Captain. No response. They have a channel open, so they can receive us. But I’m not getting anything back.” The young man replied.

“I don’t like it. A ship that was screaming for help suddenly goes silent. They come out from behind the Hawiesan Boundary and now nobody’s home? My gut is telling me that something isn’t right. Scan for lifesigns?” The Captain said.

Science did the scan and Calva looked up. “Sensors are ‘indeterminate’ lifesigns” he said.

“Weapons? Energy readings?” Andari asked.

Calva looked again and then said, “Nominal. There is an energy…fluctuation in what I think is the cargo compartment. A state of matter flux within a state of sub-space sub-strate.”

Captain Andari looked back and came alongside Calva, “Subspace substrate?”

“Yes Captain. An unusual occurrence to say the least. Theortically, if matter was exposed to a high enough energy state for a long enough period of time, given the right conditions, it could change it’s phase. From this phase, this dimension to another phase and dimension” Calva answered.

“The right conditions? What would those be?” she asked. Calva speculated further, “It’s hard to say exactly ma’am. I’ve heard of some experiments done on very small particles. More than a phase shift, they move between…our world and somewhere else.”

Andari lifted an eyebrow, “Hazardous?”

“Possible. Sure. It’s an unknown” Calva answered.

“Well, it’s at least worth a peek aye? For once Starfleet doesn’t get first crack at everything.” Turning to the Security Officer, Captain Andari said, “Board that ship. Find out what happened to the crew. We’ll tractor the ship into hanger bay one. Be careful, it may be an ambush.”

The Security officers nodded and left for the hangar bay.

The aft part of the L’Amato del Re was ripped open. But there were no signs of life. The guards sealed the hangar bay and wore armored suits to protect them from weapons fire. They were used to boarding pirate ships and prepared for bobby traps. They raised and reading their weapons. The lights on the phaser rifles came on and were aimed at the airlock door to the captured ship.

Opening the door, it hissed, and smoke came out. Then, Danta’s dead body fell out and onto the deck of the hangar bay. Darkness peered back at them. Their lights, fell on nothing. Then a single tentacle appeared. And then another.

The guards screamed as their bodies were crunched and squeezed and then tossed. The scream was heard all the way onto the bridge of the Trovatello. Captain Andari’s hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she stood to her feet. Science Officer Calva grew ghastly white. The communications officer’s hand trembled and fear gripped everyone. It was a scream like no other and it echoed through the ship. The Strega were loosed upon the world.

And the reign of the White Snake King was at hand.

[OFF:]


LTJG. Matthew Plumeri
ACSO/Historian
SB400

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