Chapter Two: "Dark Cloud"

            “Gentlemen! Rise and shine!”

            

The booming voice echoed throughout the small cabin where the four men slept as a flash of blinding light enveloped the room. The unsuspecting soldiers groaned with discontent and utter protest.

“Five more minutes, Capn’! C’mon man, it’s an off day!” a deep raspy voice called out in a think English accent from under the thin covers across from Nolan’s bunk.

            The tall brooding man with the graying buzz cut strode into the room as if he was gliding. He kicked the end of Rojas’ bunk with his boot jarring the large man fully awake.

            “Get your a*s up Rojas, fun day’s been cancelled. We have new orders.”

            Nolan sat up against the wall in his bed as the captain turned toward him.

            “What did we get?” Nolan asked promptly to avoid the same greeting.

            Captain Royce stood tall and straightened his back, “We’re going after the big one fellas. This is the real deal.”

            Nolan threw back his covers and slid out of the bed, stretching out is broad shoulders nearly toppling his bunk mate above.

            “The f**k Anders!?” screeched Kane, fully awoken by the abrupt capsizing mattress.

            Nolan smiled and grunted, gesturing towards Royce, now standing in the doorway, waiting rather impatiently looking.

            “Listen, ladies, if you’d rather sleep all day than go kick some Reign Down a*s, then I can find another group whinebags willing to get the job done.” Royce began firmly, still talking at an unusually high volume, “Now, I’m sorry your holiday plans were cancelled, but we have received intel regarding Reign Down Ops in the Tandom System, doing only God knows what.”

            The four men, now all up getting dressed, stopped and looked at him with intent.

            “Where?” Kane asked pulling his shirt over his head.

            “Tandom Rock,” the captain replied swiftly.

            “Doing what?” Dozer asked, making his bed from the top bunk opposite Nolan’s.

            A puzzled look came across Royce’s face. “We don’t know yet. That’s why we’re being called in.”

            Rojas clipped his holsters to his belts and slid his Bolt Pistols into them with a quick twirl, “Someone spot ‘em out there, Cap’n?”

            “A ship with no access codes came out of the hyper lane just over an hour ago, we’ve been told. It was last seen over Ro City.”

            “That’s an odd choice of location. What could they possibly want with Tandom Rock?” Nolan asked more so to himself than any of the others, “It barely has enough natural resources to sustain the small population that lives there. What’s there to gain?”

            Captain Royce turned his back and began to head for the bridge. “That’s a great question, Commander Anders. Why don’t you all join the rest of us in the Comms room and we’ll go over the plan of action.”

            “Yes, sir. We’re on our way.” Nolan replied with a salute.

            The others were finishing up getting ready as Captain Royce vanished around the corner in great strides. They were trying to quickly make their beds while simultaneously getting dressed.

            “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” Dozer said tying up his boots, sitting next to Nolan on his bed.

            “Me too. What could they want all the way out on the edge of the Expanse?” Nolan responded, pulling tight his laces, “It makes no sense.”

            “Unless they’re just trying to get as far away from SOLIS jurisdiction as possible. Makes sense to me.” Kane said now sitting across from them.

            “It don’ matta why they’re there, mates. It’s not good wot evah it is.” Rojas said with full conviction. “An I don’ care what day it is, any day is a good day to kill spineless thugs an murderers, if you ask me.”

            Kane agreed, “I’m with him. Let’s get in there and figure out just what the hell’s going on.”

            “You said it.” Nolan stood up, fastening his harness holding his weapons and gear.

They were ready to go. After months on deployment cruising through space, going through day after day of grueling training exercises and missions, it was finally time to take the fight to the enemy. It was about time too, Nolan thought as they made their way out of the living quarters and out into the halls of the X-9S Titan Cruiser. This ship was among the fastest in the entire SOILIS fleet and could vanish in an instant thanks to its revolutionary stealth drive. It was truly state of the art.

The light in the Communications room was even brighter than that of the living quarters they had just left. Nolan’s ears were ringing as they entered up the ramp and into the large circular room. There were many people scattered all across the room doing a multitude of things: Checking scanners, running calibrations, checking transit systems, and typing away on holo-pads of all colors. The ship was alive with activity as everyone was speaking at once. Rojas, Kane and Dozer fanned out from behind him once they entered, taking their places around the table.

            On the other side of the room, across the large metallic table in the center, the doors to the starboard bridge opened with a mechanical whine, allowing more to enter up the ramp and into the Comms room. Nolan looked up to see who had entered as he took his place around the well light table. His eyes met with Shuttle Pilot Nora Knox’s as she gracefully but confidently strode up to the table opposite of him. She starred him in the eyes with a cold fury.

            Still upset. No surprise.

            Nolan couldn’t blame her though, really. After all, it was him who had called it quits this time. They had always had somewhat of a complicated relationship, choosing to fight and bicker rather than coexist and work together. Oddly enough, though, secretly that’s the way they preferred it. Neither would admit it, especially now, but they cared deeply for one another. But there would always be the job for Nolan, and it’s one he took very seriously.

            Nora understood this, however, her herself being married to her work. There was not a better pilot in all the empire. No one could fly like she could. And it wasn’t just shuttles, Nora could pilot anything that moved, engines or no engines. Her skill was outmatched only by her striking beauty. She stood as tall as Nolan’s chest line, with short black hair pulled up in a tight bun. Her dark complexion only highlighted her already stunning crystal blue eyes.

            She was hailed from a nearly extinct genealogy, descending from the indigenous tribes of the North American continent, commonly known in history as the “Indians” due to a miscalculation by the Europeans who discovered the landmass in 1492. These tribes dotted the landscape from coast to coast, all varying in different ways but still very much the same. As history tells, they lost their land to invading Europeans who conquered them completely with their superior technology.

            The American Indians of the early 19^th century continued to fight for their home but the then growing United States of America became ever more powerful with each passing year. They pushed further and further west until eventually, the once proud and sacred home of the Native American people, was no more and they were either killed or placed onto small tracts of land known as “reservations”. Over the next two hundred years their numbers would continue to dwindle and tensions would only grow higher with the American government as they continued to police and dominate the world.

            Today, not many individuals carry the blood of the ancient Natives, but a few could be seen here and there, still primarily on Earth more than any other world. This was all rudimentary history to Nolan, who knew all too well of the genocide that devastated her people so long ago. Growing up, he had studied the histories of many ancient civilizations from official and unofficial sources. He knew more than most of the lies the governments of the world told.

            The tribes of the past may have been no more, but the warrior’s blood that fueled them for generations still flowed through the veins of people like Nora. She was proof that the human race was adaptive and persistent and she wore her ancestry proudly. Nothing could keep her from whatever she set her sights on and she carried that warrior spirit with her where ever she went.

            Nolan snapped out of his stupor just as the Captain made his way to the head of the large, sleek looking table. As he passed, he swiped his hand across its surface and the lights in the room automatically dimmed as a giant swirling hologram of the Milky Way galaxy appeared before them. The entire room fell silent. Captain Royce took a deep breath and began to address his crew.

            “This morning at 0300 hours, we received an encrypted message from Central Command alerting us to a potential hostile threat conducting operations in the Tandom system.” The holomap zoomed in to the local cluster, revealing all the star systems which had a human colony in it. It zoomed in further with another wave of the captain’s hand, this time on the Western Expanse revealing the Tandom System, a binary star system consisting of a red giant and a white dwarf that danced around one another in perfect harmony.

            “This is Tandom Rock,” Royce continued, “A small outpost on a desert world in the Expanse on the edge of SOLIS space. Population: three hundred. It is believed by our intelligence that the criminal organization Reign Down is operating somewhere on this planet. Reports have come in of an unauthorized entry into the system by an unknown vessel with an unknown destination but it is believed to have touched down about 9 clicks north of Ro City.”

            Nolan glanced over at Nora who was listening to Captain Royce intently. His attention shifted back to his commanding officer as Royce showed the holo of Tandom Rock. The indicator flashed on a point of the map showing the unknown ships last location.

            Royce made no mistake of indicating how important the mission was, “It is imperative that we locate this ship and determine its source of origin immediately. If Reign Down is involved, we will find them and put a stop to whatever the hell it is they’re doing out here.”

            Remember: We Locate, Assess, Neutralize, Extract. We stay in the L.A.N.E., and we all make it out. Do not break formation, do not even so much as blink unless you’re told to. We must be perfect as we always are. There is no room for mistakes on this people.” He looked at Nolan who was studying the map of the planet as if he’d never seen it before. “Commander Anders, what is it?” Royce asked with a puzzled look.

            Nolan thought for a moment before he answered.

            “I’ve studied this planet a hundred times Captain but I’ve never seen these kinds of readings.”

            “What do you mean?” Royce asked with an impatient tone.

            Nolan walked toward the head of the table, swiping his hand up, zooming in further on the planets surface. The light intensified as the small planet became larger and encompassed the entire table. “Look here at the temperature readings. The surface temp is a good fifty degrees hotter than what it should be right now in its current revolution around its parent star.”

            “Meaning?”

            “Meaning something unnatural is causing the atmosphere to retain more greenhouse gases at an accelerated rate causing the surface temps to skyrocket,” Nolan said confidently, “There’s also a large amount of methane in the air which should not be there.”

            “Simply put: something is definitely going on down there, yeah?” Nora asked impatiently.

            “Yes, you could say that,” he replied looking at her softly.

            It made sense that Nolan would notice these irregularities. He had studied the specifics of every colony world in SOLIS Space for decades. He knew them like he knew his own hands. They had become a part of him over time. But something more was bothering him, something he couldn’t quite put a pin on. It eluded him completely.

            “Then we know what to do,” Royce chimed in. He brought his hands together and the holomap closed, returning the room to its luminescent self. The crew’s eyes adjusted as they returned their gaze to Captain Royce.

            “As I look around me, I see some of the finest young men and women I have ever had the privilege of serving with. You all have earned your place among this ship and I have no doubt in any of your capabilities,” his voice turned heavy, “but we all know casualties are a cost of war and there will always be unknowns. I pray that none of us today will be counted among them, but if we are, then we will be remembered for the bravery and honor we hold as we give our lives to protect the future of our people.”

            Nolan’s face grew contorted in a confused look. Captain Royce never made speeches of this nature, feeling them to be more destructive that constructive. The heaviness in his voice made Nolan’s stomach turn as a great weight washed over him in an overwhelming wave. The darkness that haunted his dreams now seemed to have found him in the real world, pressing down on him like a boulder. He tried to shrug it off but couldn’t.

            “Let’s go get ‘em team.” The Captain ended finally.

            The room fell into dissent as everyone spread back out and returned to their stations some disappearing back through the blast doors and back onto the bridge while others returned to the lower deck of the room. Nora threw one final contemptuous look Nolan’s way as she too headed below deck to ready the shuttle. Rojas, Kane and Dozer followed her closely as they mocked Nolan, smiling and pointing at him, taunting him over the icy looks they had seen Nora give him. He paid them no mind as the sickness in his stomach grew.

            Captain Royce made his way to him through the sea of people scrabbling on the deck.  As he approached, Nolan was lost in his own mind, trying to understand the meaning of the feelings flowing through him like a stream.

            “Anders, you okay?”

            Startled, he looked up to see Royce staring him in the face, “Yes, Captain. I’m fine, sir.”

            “Really? Cause you look a little pale, Commander,” he said drawing closer to him, “are you good on this?”

            Nolan shook his head, clearing his thoughts, “Yes, I’m good sir. Just a little nauseous this morning.”

            “Well I hope you’re not pregnant, Anders,” He said jokingly, “I need you at top performance for this one. I don’t know what we’ll find down there, but I’ve got a bad feeling about it in my gut.”

            “I’d feel better if everyone would stop saying that,” Nolan confessed.

            “Let’s just get it done and go home,” Royce said, exhaustion dripping from every word. “I’d like to see my family for Hanukah this year.”

            “Me too, sir,” Nolan agreed, even though he was anything but religious.

            “Good. Wheels up in thirty,” he said patting Nolan’s shoulders as he let go of him.

            As Royce himself headed towards the docking bay, Nolan nearly fell to his knees. He gasped for air as all of it had left his lungs once Royce had departed him. He felt as if he’d been hit by freighter.

As Royce had released his hands from Nolan’s shoulders and began to leave him, Nolan was hit with some sort of vision, taking him far away from the small cruiser and Shadow Squadron. It felt as if all the air had been sucked from him and his sight was blurry; sound muffled just like in his dream. He found himself in large open room, with large wires and tubes hanging from the ceiling and walls, all leading to a center construct that looked like a vat of hot orange goo sealed inside a pressurized glass tank.

            Among all the holoscreens and strange looking equipment, two men stood talking to one another in what seemed to be a heated argument. One, he could see, was flailing his arms wildly, appearing to be shouting at the smaller man. The other, standing firm, repeated some similar gestures as he pointed to the vat. Nolan observed as the smaller man walked to the center of the room and seemed to enter some commands on a holoboard.

            What’re they saying?

            Suddenly, the center tube housing the orange goo, began to recede into the floor slowly as the larger man headed towards the entrance of the open, strange looking room. Before he exited, the man turned and said something to the other that apparently angered him greatly, for after the large man left, the other overturned one of the tables next to him, sending liquids and equipment clear across the room. He then stood for a moment assessing the damage, cursing himself for losing his head.

            Nolan tried to move closer to him, but he couldn’t move. The gray headed man ran his hands through his hair as Nolan often did, then typed a few more commands in a console adjacent to him. A holovid appeared before him, but Nolan was too far away to see what it was displaying. Whatever the image was, it seemed to greatly burden the man as he hung his head in shame.

            Then, just as quickly as it had come, Nolan was ripped out of the environment he had just been dropped into and back in the real world.

What the hell was that!?

Time seemed to be in slow motion as he recovered from his, well whatever it was that just happened to him. He tried with all his might and inner focus to regroup and put his mind on the task at hand. A distracted soldier is a dead soldier, a phrase he used all the time while training his crew.

I’ve got to get it together!

He removed his hand from the table that was holding him up and slowly began to make his way down the ramp and toward the cargo hold. He couldn’t think of the vision right now, he had to prep for the coming storm. Everyone seemed to feel it, but none more than Nolan. This whole day felt cursed to him, he thought. But now was not the time to dwell on such things.

He met his crew in the cargo bay, all of whom were in full tactical gear now, their amour as black as the void around them. Rifles and other equipment clicked and rattled as everyone did their final inspections before they loaded out. The X9-S Titan dropped out of the hyper lane into the far reaches of the Tandom system with a jolt, alerting the rest of the crew they had arrived at their destination. The dim orange glow of the Red giant was out shined by the white hot dwarf star that eclipsed it.

As the ship approached Tandom Rock, Nolan and the rest of the squad boarded the small shuttle ship that would transport them planet side. Nora and Captain Royce sat in the front cockpit while Nolan and the other four rode quietly in the back, everyone silent, either praying or meditating " doing whatever pre-combat ritual they had all perfected over the years.

Nolan was still trying to fight back the darkness that was clouding them, but nothing could have prepared him for what would come next.