Fourth Vector Ch. 01

"We're supposed to make allies of them so that they spear the Occitanians instead," said Jack, wondering if the words sounded as crazy coming out of his mouth as they did while forming in his head.

"No one who's ever gone into the vector has ever come out alive to tell about it. There's a reason why it's not even on the maps. No one knows what's really there!"

"I know, Abigail. I know." They walked together quietly back to the ships.

"This is quite the day for surprises," she muttered as they came onto the harbor dock.

"You can say that again, Lt. Commander Wainwright. So when were you going to tell me?"

Jack watched as her cheeks filled with color. "I was going to tell you until you told me that you thought Wainwright was a man. Then it just became a little game, I suppose."

"So that's how you knew we wouldn't be disturbed last night. I have to say I'm impressed, Abigail."

She let slip a little grin. "I was going to tell you this morning but then the bombs started going off and there wasn't any time."

"I hope that's the only secret you've held from me," said Jack with a raised eyebrow.

"You look so sexy when you pretend to be mad. I rather like it, Jack," she said, nudging into his side. "If I didn't just find out you were my new boss, I'd be tempted to let you take me back to quarters and fill me with more cum."

She gave a throaty giggle as she separated from his side and headed over to the plank of theDestiny. Jack could only shake his head as the playful and leggy brunette disappeared up the railing. Turning to look at theValiant, he could already see Twitch waiting for him at the railing. Squaring his shoulders, he turned toward the plank to alert the crew to their new mission.

*****

Later on that evening, Jack sat in his quarters on theValiant sending out a stream of new orders to the commanding officers of his task force. He hadn't yet moved his things over to theDestiny—there hadn't been enough time—and at the moment, he was still trying to determine just where he was going to put all the extra supplies that the commodore was giving him.

A sudden rap on the door caught his attention as Twitch stuck his head inside. "Commander Easterbrook, I have Lt. Cory Renner here for you."

"Send him in, Lieutenant. Thank you."

Twitch stepped aside and the young lieutenant made his way into the cabin. Lt. Renner was a younger man, only in his earlier thirties and he had the traditional Javan light brown hair and brown eyes. If Renner knew what he was here for, he wouldn't have needed to look so upset. The man had the look of someone who was about to be disciplined.

"Thank you for coming, Lt. Renner," said Jack as he stopped writing orders and pushed back in his chair.

"Of course, sir," answered Renner very simply and in a soft-spoken manner.

"Do you know why you're here, Lieutenant?"

Renner hung his head slightly before hazarding a glance back up at Jack. "I'm afraid so, sir."

Jack gave the man an odd look, wondering what was on his mind. "And why is that?"

"My service uniform, sir. I've had the same problem over and over again. I don't know why I keep losing my service cap, but it happens. I've received enough infractions as is but I don't know why I keep losing it—"

Jack interrupted the man with a laugh and held up his hands. "At ease, Lieutenant. That's not why you're here. I'm a little dismayed to find out you can't keep your service cap at close quarters, but I asked you here for another reason."

Lt. Renner looked greatly relieved and the sullen look dropped from his face. It was almost enough to make Jack smile. Almost.

"I believe you've heard what happened to Lt. Star this morning, correct?"

Renner hung his head. "Of course. The whole crew knows. Lt. Star was a good officer."

Jack nodded. "That he was. But unfortunately, we live in troubling times and troubling times produce causalities. Star was a good man, but he'll need a replacement."

"Sir? Do you know who will replace him?"

"Yes, Lieutenant. I'd like you to take his spot on the bridge as head of engineering division. Do you think you can do that for me?"

Renner blinked several times before responding. "Me, sir? You want me to take over?"

"There's not a better engineer on the whole ship. You come to me highly recommended by your peers. Hell, even Victor knew you'd have a bright future in front of you. That's why I'm giving you a service promotion. You'll no longer be a junior grade, and you'll be made a full lieutenant effective today. I'll allow you to pick your replacement for your old role but I need you on the bridge first thing tomorrow morning."

The man couldn't help but grin. "Yes, absolutely. I mean, thank you, sir! I won't let you down, I promise!"

Jack chuckled. "I know you won't. You're a good officer. Where we're going, we're going to need every good man we can get. I'll see you for briefing in the morning, Lieutenant. Dismissed."

Lt. Renner got up from the desk still wearing his grin and almost ran out of the door. Jack couldn't help but feel good at having the man on the ship, even if part of him still mourned the loss of Victor. With where they were going though, they'd have to accept that causalities would be part of life.

Jack went back to the small mountain of paperwork in front of him and worked until just after nine o'clock. Escaping his quarters for a little while, he snuck above deck for some fresh air. As opposed to last night, there were a lot more sailors out, all manning the lookouts and keeping watch over the harbor. Jack was thankful for them being there, hoping that nothing like this morning could surprise them again.

Satisfied with the security on the ship, he turned to walk down the plank, crossing the dock over to theDestiny. He was challenged once at the top of the railing by a sailor who quickly relented once he saw the commanding officer of the entire task force in front of him. Jack thanked the sailor for his vigilance and continued into the superstructure. Following the familiar path from this morning, he found himself outside of Abigail's quarters and gave a swift knock.

"Come in."

Jack stuck his head inside the door to find Abigail sitting at her desk doing much the same job he'd just been doing. "Good evening, Jack. Now why would you be disturbing my quarters at such a late hour?" Abigail wore a sultry smirk and quickly crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright after everything that's happened today."

Abigail nodded. "It's been a busy day but we'll get through it. I'm not psyched about the mission but luckily they didn't ask my opinion before assigning it."

"You're in good company. I'm not crazy about it either. I'd rather sail home and open fire on the Occitanian capitol of Montauban."

Abigail sighed happily. "That would be wonderful, wouldn't it? Oh well, not like it'll happen now. So did you really just come here to chat about the mission?"

"Just checking in on my favorite commanding officer," said Jack with a playful smirk.

"Checking in is what they call it now, hmm? I daresay you didn't think you could come here for a late night booty call, did you?"

Jack shrugged but kept his smile. "That wasn't just a booty call."

She laughed at that one, throwing back her head. "Don't tell me you're getting all sentimental on me just because we slept together, Jack. It's just sex."

"So that's all it was? Just sex?"

Abigail shrugged. "I mean it wasvery good sex but that's all it was. Besides, it can't happen again anyway."

Jack furrowed his brow in confusion. "Why's that?"

She stood to face him. "Jack, you're my commanding officer now. Yesterday it was just some fun with another man who might be leaving the day after and who I might never see again. But you're my boss now. How would that look to everyone if they knew we were sleeping together?"

"Nobody would say a word about it."

"That's not true and you know it. People would think less of me. The entire crew of theDestiny would look at me different. I told you yesterday I got into the navy because I had something to prove. I'm not going to let fantastic sex jeopardize that."

Jack thought about that for a moment before letting slip a smirk. "So it's fantastic sex now, is it?"

She swatted at his stomach. "Don't get cute with me, sir. Just remember if I wanted to, I could still suck you dry."

"I'll keep memories of last night's experience forever," said Jack, earning a giggle from her.

"If I had a quarter for every man that's told me that," she said before winking. She then gently pushed on his shoulder. "Come on, I need you to go back to your quarters before the crew starts talking."

"You almost sound like you're the one in charge here," joked Jack.

She stopped short of closing the door in his face. "Didn't you realize that when you were between my thighs?" She grinned one more time and then shut the door with an audible smack.

Jack shook his head playfully and began the slow, dejected march back to theValiant.

*****

Lt. Grover Burbank kept glancing back and forth between the open waters and the radar screen. The commanding officer of the small patrol boatLeopold, Burbank was trying to find the source of the radar disturbance that had sent them out past the jetty of Quiller's Cove and into the open bay in the middle of the night. Something was out there but so far their radar was only picking up broken signals and their spotlight had found nothing.

"Sir, is it possible it was just a fish?" Burbank's deputy, Lt. Milligan, shuffled to his side.

"I don't think so, Lieutenant. That radar isn't supposed to pick up wildlife. My gut feeling tells me something's in these waters."

Milligan shrugged and went back to operating the controls.

Burbank silently cursed his luck at being so disturbed from his sleep to chase after a ghost signal. Especially given the events of that morning with the attack, the last thing he wanted was to be going after a blip caused by faulty equipment. Yet this radar system was supposed to be top of the line, and he had a bad feeling that something was out here waiting for them in the deep.

TheLeopold drifted slowly through the quiet night waters. Milligan steered them off to port once they cleared the jetty before swinging wide to starboard. It made one circle of the entire bay before coming almost to a stop not far from the jetty. The radar was dead and it was eerily silent apart from the small boat's engine.

"Whatever it is, it seems to have left," said Milligan.

Burbank sighed and let the spotlight drop from its position on the water's horizon. In doing so, the spotlight swung down to focus on the narrow strip of water about a hundred yards out from the patrol boat's port side.

It couldn't have landed in a more fortuitous spot. Burbank's eyes merely glanced at the water until he did a double take, focusing on the illuminated spot to see something long and narrow slicing through the waves and heading straight for them. Grabbing hold of the spotlight, he pulled it closer to the ship, matching the path of whatever was headed their way. He nearly pissed himself when he saw what was coming and raised his voice to yell at Milligan.

"Torpedo to port side! Full steam ahead now!!"

Milligan reacted quickly and for that, Burbank said a silent prayer. The engine of the tiny patrol boat roared to life and lurched forward nearly causing the both of them to lose their balance. Burbank kept the spotlight on the torpedo as it narrowed the distance between them.

Fifty yards.

Thirty yards. Due to hit them amidships.

Fifteen yards. Now aligned to the propellers.

Five yards. Right near the stern.

Burbank flinched in preparation for the explosion that never came. The boat remained calm and rocked gently in the open waters. Opening his eyes, he looked at Milligan who seemed just as relieved as he was. They had narrowly managed to outrun the torpedo. Crossing to the other side of the boat, Burbank caught sight of its trail as it jetted past their craft and out into the waves. He said a silent prayer at outrunning the damn thing, but who the hell would've fired a torpedo at the small Javan boat?

"Occitanian fucks," Burbank swore as he swung the spotlight back up to follow the wake of the torpedo back to its source. It wasn't hard to follow and only about a hundred and fifty yards out, he spotted the telltale signs of a periscope.

"Occitanian submarine! Hundred and fifty yards to port. Prepare the depth charges!" Burbank roared. The ship gave a hard lurch to the left as it began to circle around while another lieutenant broke out the depth charges from the ammunition locker onboard. They were only entrusted with five of them on the whole craft so they'd have to make them count.

It wouldn't be easy. As soon as the spotlight landed on the periscope, the submarine dived and became completely invisible beneath the dark waves. Burbank motioned for Milligan to stop the boat right above the spot where he'd seen the periscope and grabbed the first depth charge. Ripping off the label that hid the fuse, Burbank turned on the explosive. He set the timer for forty feet and then let it slip over the side.

"Move forward, Lieutenant!"

The boat lurched again and in another twenty yards, he dropped another depth charge. Burbank repeated the same action until he was down to his last piece of explosive and waited to hear the noise.

The first explosion shook the entire boat, and despite being forty yards away, it was enough to cause the crew to hang on for the next one. Anything within forty feet of the surface would've been toast with the blast radiance of that charge. The second explosion was much like the first only closer, and Milligan throttled up to escape the blast of the next charge.

When the third charge came, there was a completely different sound. The scraping and twisting of metal followed by twin explosions right after the charge let Burbank smile in grim appreciation. They'd found their prey.

What preceded next would turn the stomachs of even the most seasoned sailor. A steady stream of bubbling erupting from the water as the air pocket of the submarine escaped from the depths. Next came the broken parts, the rattled machinery of the submarine that had enough density to float. Burbank looked around the wreckage as hats, shoes and paperwork bobbed to the surface. As with any depth charge, the last thing to come to the top, if it came at all, were the bodies. Several of them floated to surface face down, needing no inspection of whether they still carried life.

Surprisingly enough, Burbank heard several gasping breaths and waterlogged screams as men came to the surface. It wasn't many of them, but eventually seven sailors floundered in the oil-slick waters of the wreckage. Most of them were capable of treading water but a few were too wounded to continue to keep their heads above the waves.

"Lt Milligan, let's go closer. Let's pick those men up."

Milligan brought the ship closer after the last depth charge exploded, wading the way through the scraps of metal. Cutting the throttle, it came to a floating stop next to the closest man. Burbank grabbed several life preservers from inside the hull and began to toss them out to the still shaken submariners.

"Catch this! Keep treading water and we'll rescue you!"

Burbank tossed out all the preservers and then began the rescue operation. Five of the men came aboard with no other injuries besides being out of breath. Another man had clear lacerations all over his body, and Burbank knew he'd need to be rushed to the hospital soon. The final man's arm was only hanging on by a few tendons, along with more serious wounds. He would most likely expire before they even got back to shore.

What had survived of the men's uniforms confirmed the lieutenant's theory. Emblazoned on shoulder was the flag of the Occitanian Confederacy.

Burbank made sure to rescue all those that were still alive before taking the remaining survivors and securing them in the hull. Once the boat was secure, they began the slow journey back to the port.

"Those Occitanians are a rather quiet bunch," said Milligan as Burbank took his seat right beside him.

"I don't think you'd be very chatty either if you just had your submarine blown up," said Burbank.

"That sure backfired on them, don't you think?"

"The real question is would they have rescued us if the roles were reversed? Plenty of sharks in these waters. Would they have left us for shark bait?" Burbank asked rhetorically.

"What do you think is going to happen now, sir? They tried to attack us just now, and they shelled the base too. I think they want a war."

Burbank looked out across the bay to the shining lights of Quiller's Cove. To the giant masts of the warshipDestiny. "If it's a war they want, then we'll give it to the bastards."

*****

The next morning, Jack woke promptly at six. Getting out of bed and putting his uniform on, he made his way to the bridge of theValiant where he was greeted by the night officer, Lt. Kim Cross. Usually the commanding officers' deputies took turns managing the bridge during the evening hours, but with the heightening tension due to yesterday's attack, Jack wasn't surprised to find Kim there.

"A little early for you today isn't it, Kim?" Jack grinned as he strode into the bridge.

"I couldn't sleep, sir. Besides, I figured I'd give Aria a break for once," said Kim while giving him a tired smile. Aria, her deputy lieutenant, was a good officer and one he could usually find in command during the night.

"You should get some sleep now while you have the chance. Especially before we set off on our mission," said Jack.

"Oh, those Fourthies don't scare me," said Kim with a smile. "Maybe they're just misunderstood people."

"Somehow I highly doubt killing anyone who comes into their waters qualifies as a simple misunderstanding," joked Jack.

"Maybe once they see a few salvos from theDestiny's twelve inch guns, they'll be pacified."

"Perhaps. I doubt it'll be that easy though," said Jack as he sat down beside her.

"Too bad for Luke though. I bet he'd love to switch places with Wainwright for a chance to pilot that ship."

"I think he only wanted to fire those guns," said Jack with a laugh.

"I can believe that. It will be the first time he really got to fire a proper twelve inch weapon." Kim giggled and nudged Jack in the side.

"Ouch, poor Luke. What would he say if he knew you were up here slandering his character?"

"Oh, not his character, sir. Just his . . . other assets."

"You're terrible." Jack laughed alongside her as the sun began to rise over the bay.

Kim continued to giggle. "He can take it."

"I suppose a little abuse is good for the ego in the long run," said Jack.

"Well, since you're the one to say it, I won't feel so bad about it then."

Jack laughed heartily. "It's just too bad I won't be here to watch this personally. I'm transferring my headquarters over to theDestiny this morning."

Kim pouted. "We'll be sad to see you go over there but I don't think you'll miss your tiny room here."

"You're right, I won't. It felt like sleeping in a broom closet."

"It served its purpose though, right? Maybe I can requisition it and keep it as a place where Luke and I can work on his . . . fire control."

Jack chuckled and held up his hands. "Just wait until I'm fully transferred before you do that."

"Aye, sir," said Kim with a grin.

At that moment, another presence made their way onto the bridge and Jack turned when he heard the footsteps. Jack's brow furrowed in confusion when he saw it was Commodore Lucas's deputy, Lt. Settler, who immediately came up to salute Jack.