"David Feintuch - Seafort 02 - Challenger's Hope" - читать интересную книгу автора (Feintuch David)

While he glanced through his papers my head spun with unasked questions. Challenger, the ship whose specs
I'd studied until my eyes blurred, was no longer mine. All I knew about Portia was that she was a two-decker,
tiny by comparison. And what of my crew? I'd had Alexi and Derek Carr assigned as my junior officers. And
Vax Holser. They'd all be lost to me. How could I cope with the demands of an unfamiliar bridge without their
dogged support?
Tremaine tapped his notes. "Portia and Freiheit will remain at each station until the rest of the fleet has Fused,
Their L-Model drives will allow them to arrive first at the next rendezvous, to clear any, er, encroachment."
So that was it. The only, er, encroachment we might encounter was the bizarre alien creature I'd come upon
during Hibernia's voyage to Hope Nation, after I'd been catapulted from midshipman to Captain upon the death
of Hibernia's seasoned officers. The skirmish with the fish still brought nightmares, which my wife Amanda
gently soothed away in the solitude of our cabin.
Lord God! Amanda had gone ahead to settle on Challenger while I struggled through Admiralty's refresher
courses and my briefings. She'd be unpacking in our cabin-now the Admiral's. The sudden change of vessels
would infuriate her-and I couldn't blame her.
I studied Tremaine glumly. Apparently he considered Portia expendable, so long as we protected his better-
armed flagship, The fleet would Fuse and Defuse seven times to make sure my sloop and Freiheit were always in
the lead to intercept a hostile force.
A gray-haired officer across the table intervened, "What will be our posture, sir, in case of unexpected
contact?"
I grinned sourly at Captain Stahl's choice of words. Like most Naval officers, he found it difficult to concede
that we'd really stumbled onto hostile aliens. At times I had trouble believing it myself, and I was the one who
found them. After all, in two hundred years of exploring, man had discovered no animal life other than the
primitive boneless fish of Zeta Psi. Thank Lord God our puter Darla recorded our contact. Without her playbacks
and the few other eyewitnesses from Hibernians bridge, I'd be confined to a schizo ward for hormone
rebalancing.
"Contact is highly unlikely," Admiral Tremaine paused, shot me an irritable glance. "However, you must not
undertake threatening maneuvers without absolute proof of the hostile intent of the other party,"
I blurted, "Absolute proof will likely result in the destruction of your ship." Unwise, but I couldn't stop myself.
The Admiral half-rose from his seat, his face red, "Flippancy and insubordination are what I'd expect from you,
Seafort!"
"I wasn't flippant, sir," My tone was meek, "As far as we saw, the aliens don't communicate by radio contact or
signals. The first sign of hostility could be their acid eating through our hull. It's what took out Telstar, and-"
"Admiralty chose to give you a ship, Seafort." Vinegar was in Tremaine's tone. "I wouldn't have. Frankly, I
doubt your whole report; puter disks can be faked. I don't know if you saw anything out there, but your report
conveniently diverted attention from Captain Haag's death."
I gaped. Before the entire squadron, my new commanding officer had accused me of lying, of faking my report,
perhaps even of murder. "I went through polygraph and drug testing before Admiralty offered me another ship."
My throat was tight. "Mr. Holser and the others saw-"
He grunted. "Yes, for what that's worth." Before I could object he added, "At any rate, Seafort, your orders are
to avoid initiating hostilities. Disobey and I'll relieve you so fast your head will spin." He turned away.
I sat through the rest of the briefing in a daze, doing my best to pretend calm. It was, I thought ruefully, a fit
end to my shore leave.
When I'd brought Hibernia home with the startling news of the aliens, Admiralty hadn't known what to do with
me. After they reluctantly accepted my verified report, Admiral Brentley, head of Fleet Operations, personally
intervened to reward me with another ship and the rank of Commander, though most of my classmates at
Academy hadn't yet made lieutenant.
When the gruff Admiral had concluded with me, I'd brought Amanda to Cardiff for a gloomy introduction to
Father; afterward we set out on our delayed honeymoon.
I don't know why we'd chosen New York, except that she didn't know when she'd have another chance to see it.
I'd been there and had no desire to return, but I held my peace for her sake.