Chapter 21

Considering the silhouette on the ground, one would be inclined to believe that some vast cloud had taken solace in the skies above the convoy. And yet the crews being swallowed by this unusual phenomenon simply couldn’t find the time to inquire about the shift in their surroundings. Least of which the security officer tucked away in the underbelly of C362, whose nerves had been stretched thin by a little bit of everything at this point and remained taut even now.

Yes, Gliel was ready to admit that he was in over his head. And to make matters worse, the woman he was supposed to be keeping an eye on in Cade’s absence had taken to scooching forward on her heels to free herself from the confines of the small wall compartment. Not so much an escape attempt as much as a means to avoid a second bump on her head. The first coming as the result of the Crusader’s unexpected lurch moments ago. A regrettable conseuqnce of covering the speaking tube and severing direct contact with the bridge.

“You’re not supposed to leave that storage nook. Please go back inside.”

But the raider ignored the sentry in favor of standing to stretch her legs. After which she traveled a short distance over to the opposite wall where she settled in an area void of engine components. Just as Gliel resolved to repeat the request with more authority, Cade walked back in and passed right between the two. Making a b-line for the speaking tube, he removed the buffer and returned it to his person.

“Looks like the cavalry is here. Feel like being useful yet?”

He directed the question at the ruffled party member.

“Well, well, well. Look whose come crawling back.”

The occupants of the engine room, save for Cade who was accustomed to it, shared a look of incredulity over the non-existent amount of time it had taken the pilot to pick up on the removal of the buffer.

“Yeah, sorry about that. Care to update me on all the commotion going on topside?”

“Where do I even begin; Cloud Nine’s popped in for another visit, the CO’s are caught up in a game of telephone, Faust won’t share his raisins. Oh, and someone turned off the sun!”

“Telephone? You mean Cloud Nine is jamming our comms?”

The engineer cast a side glance at the woman opposite him the small room. She raised her bound hands and narrowed her eyes in response to his unspoken accusation.

“According to Jericka the nature of the interference suggests something other than traditional jamming methods. Thankfully it’s not preventing comms outright, just muddling them.”

Gliel raised a hand.

“Um...what’s this about the sun being turned off?”

“I’d explain, but it’d be easier if you just stepped outside...”

“Go ahead Penton, I’ll keep an eye on her.”

The man gave a hesitant nod and slipped out into the corridor. The woman used this opportunity to clear her throat and step forward.

“I can corroborate your CO’s suspicions about the interference, it’s not us. Cloud Nine I mean...whatever.”

“Parapraxis is a bitch ain’t it.”

Cade waved the presence in the speaking tube off and gestured for her to continue.

“I know this because both Hite and the previous party leader subscribe to obvious jamming in lieu of subtle.”

“Part of their mind games I presume.”

“Correct. Because a convoy that knows it’s being actively jammed will wear itself out waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

Cade made a face in conjunction with sounds of skepticism from the speaking tube. The woman made to respond to their skepticism when the Crusader unexpectedly jerked to the side again. Not as much as the previous time, but enough to make her stumble back into the wall. The engineer on the other hand merely swayed along with the motion.

“Missed ‘em by that much...”

As if to flex just how unfazed he was, Cade picked right up where the discussion had left off.

“You can understand why we’d have our reservations. Baugh’s party and by extension yours employ talking drums frequently. Therefore the form of jamming they’d exercise doesn’t hold any of the conventional limits.”

“I’m not arguing that the current conditions don’t work in the party’s favor, but that doesn’t mean they’re the ones perpetuating it. At least if they are it’s evidently above my pay grade.”

“Sure your new leader isn’t just keeping things close to his chest? That is, unless your part of his faction?”

The raider didn’t answer right away. But it was obvious from her facial expression she was mulling over an appropriate answer.

“Cade, move the reversing level up one and double check the level of the working fluid in the boiler.”

“On it.”

The engineer swiftly saw to it that the main reversing lever was repositioned before shifting his focus to the modest water tube boiler occupying one corner of the engine room. So as not to get in the way the woman promptly swapped sides of the room with the young man and watched as he grabbed a damp rag from a small mounted rack. Crouching down, he used the rag to gain access to the sight glass on the front of the boiler without burning himself. Sliding open the small slot he confirmed the current level of the amber liquid acting as the engine’s working fluid.

Because despite falling into the category of a water tube boiler, this particular component of the Class 3 Crusader’s aeriform engine no longer relied on water as its working fluid. Having been replaced by a concoction that, while maintaining many of the same properties as water, produced more vapor per cubic meter of liquid at a lower boiling point.

“We’re all set, shift up whenever you’re ready!”

“All hands, make preparations to reinforce the vanguard!”

With that taken care of, Cade readdressed the woman once more.

“For what it’s worth we don’t give a crap about your prior allegiances. On a similar note, please excuse my brutish attempt at discerning your motives.”

The woman’s shoulders visibly relaxed and she clicked her tongue at her supposed adversary’s sudden display of maturity.

“But seeing as that we are literally in the dark at this point in time, any information you are capable of sharing will be invaluable to both sides.”

The raider blew a few strands of hair out of her face and met the engineer’s gaze.

“Your friend had better be able to keep her word regarding my treatment later.”

“You know part of me wishes she’d break a promise for once. Having such a reliable comrade sets a precariously high standard for us less inclined.”

The woman’s brow twitched.

“If this is going to work, you’ll need to refrain from the continuous flaunting of your youth in my presence. It started off cute, but now I’m THIS close to kicking you.”

Noting how close her fingers were, Cade turned sideways before acquiescing with a nod.

*

“Ignore the enemy behind you! They’re the rest of the convoy’s problem now!”

Rohner barked the order as he reloaded a fresh magazine, tossing the empty clip at the officer guilty of firing in the direction of the other Crusaders.

“Sorry! My vision is having a hard time adjusting to the darkness!”

But the gruff man had already shifted his focus to another matter.

“Didn’t expect I’d run into one of these again, not here...”

The seasoned veteran mumbled those words to himself mostly, feeling little sense of urgency to prime the CO on the nature of this phenomenon. Not that the current state of comms would’ve allowed the information to be disseminated in an efficient manner. That and Rohner might have ever so slightly been relishing the feelings of nostalgia being drummed up by the rare occurrence.

But that didn’t stop the pilot of C274, an inquisitive fellow according to his colleagues, from picking up on those murmurs via the front deck speaking tube. A speaking tube whose lid happened to be in need of maintenance but had been intentionally left unflagged so as not to delay the Galen Run. But even accounting for the lid’s ajar state, any words uttered would have been lost on a pilot without above average hearing or excessive attentiveness to the sights and sounds from behind the controls. The latter bringing one such pilot to mind as they also happened to be part of this convoy.

In this case however, the feat was owed to the part-time pilot’s auditory inclination. A product of his family’s extensive musical background and pedigree. Truly if anyone or anything was to congratulate or blame for this uncanny placement of actors, it’d be the convoy’s designation as a Galen Run and the exorbitant price of custom-made instruments.

Regardless of how it had come about, the fact he could finally draw upon this gift didn’t go unappreciated as he’d been unable to make any worthwhile contributions towards the goal of solving the party’s war drums. Hence the immediate decision to inform one Officer Swarek who’d been struggling to coordinate efforts without a reliable group channel frequency.

“Your certain?”

“Of the words, yes. Though I can’t be sure what they’d been directed towards.”

This tidbit jumped to the front of the queue that had formed in the CO’s head.

“I appreciate you bringing this matter to my attention. I’ll see to getting more details. In the meantime focus your attention on piloting us through this mess.”

“Of course!”

Although he’d conveyed a tone of optimism just now, Kircher was doubtful he’d be able to glean much from a man like Batten Rohner. And given the constraints of an active raid attempt, a direct confrontation would be difficult to achieve without pulling an integral member of the security team off deck for a spell. The alternative was equally unappealing as it meant supplying their security representative with a headset he would be unlikely to give up afterwards.

It was as he considered these options that a patchy transmission over the group channel reached his ears. Audibly the message was near impossible to discern, but it coincided with Crusader C362 closing in from behind and positioning itself just off their rear. The deck officers onboard the offset Crusader wasting little time in scattering the approaches who’d only just circled back around after the initial drive by.

This maneuver’s primary purpose was to give C274 a moment to breathe and reorganize as it had been shouldering the bulk of the engagement thus far. But it also gave Kircher the window he needed to pass off the secondary headset.

“Hayes!”

He called out over the back deck.

“You look like you’ve got some free time! I need you to deliver this headset to Officer Rohner!”

The displaced security rep growled in contempt but rushed over to snatch the headset all the same.

“With comms down I have to wonder who has more free time...”

Interestingly enough the CO felt a small bit of relief at being on the receiving end of such a jab. Because if the dynamic between Hayes and himself was still intact, perhaps a fracturing of the crew’s loyalties wouldn’t come to pass after all.

Not that such a trivial interaction was enough to keep Kircher’s troubled mind from planning contingencies. All of which hinged on maintaining absolute control over the bridge. Something that would benefit greatly from the backing of at least one security officer onboard. And given the current circumstances, the role of said officer would likely fall to Hayes. The subconscious main reason he’d avoided refuting the crass man’s jab.

That’s not to say the CO felt as if he couldn’t trust the other two security officers. It was more that their dispositions and lackluster service times would make them more susceptible to going along with the whims of a decorated veteran officer. The fact Rohner had already usurped the role of security representative giving credence to this theory. And it meant he’d need to be conscious of which deck officers chose to visit the bridge or hover around its entrance.

On that note, providing this hypothetical faction the second headset now would mean one less excuse for visiting the bridge in the future. It also gave the impression Kircher trusted Rohner enough to keep him in the loop.

“What's this about giving me a headset?”

Speak of the devil. They were fortunate each individual Crusader’s local comm channel was still functioning within reasonable parameters.

“Sorry to make Hayes temporarily vacate his position, but I thought you might be able to draw on your extensive years of experience to shed some light on this unexpected development. In the literal sense if you don’t mind.”

In lieu of responding to the appeal right away the elder man turned so he’d be facing the bridge. His gaze seeking that of the CO’s on the other side of the treated glass before shifting over to the pilot who wouldn’t have dared to look anywhere but the road ahead. What concerned Kircher was that this didn’t come across as an intimidation tactic. It’d been more akin to someone confirming something relatively benign. Like checking to see if you’d put your name on a test before turning it in.

Then, rather abruptly, the security officer produced a run of the mill lighter from his person and held it to his right eye. And with one flick of the thumb, the small flame produced by equal parts flint and butane ignited the kindling that was the man’s lash and brow. Both occupants of the bridge jumped at the impromptu facial immolation with Kircher going so far as to reach for the nearest handheld extinguisher. But it was all for naught as the hair on the man’s face refused to catch, nor did his face betray any discomfort despite the proximity of the flame.

“Fun parlor trick ain’t it.”

Briefly inundated by feelings of chagrin and anger, the CO struggled to maintain the composure in his voice.

“Not even remotely...explain.”

“We call them Eidols. Though other parts of the Expanse may refer to them differently.”

From the other side of the glass Kircher watched as Rohner returned the lighter to his pocket and turned away from the bridge, seemingly resuming his duties while carrying on the conversation.

“We?”

“Well traveled field personnel.”

“Are you suggesting that those of us unfamiliar with the subject are by extension novices to the trade?”

“Will answering in the affirmative move this along faster?”

Ah, he must consider this a hassle. But that might be a good thing. It implies that these ‘Eidols' either don’t pose a significant threat, or the threat they do pose is only short term. What I need to figure out is if this hassle has the potential to burgeon into a problem.

“No, you have the right of it. Please continue.”

“Think of them as breathing shadows, big ones. Make no mistake, encounters are rare but periodic enough to have set a precedent.”

“So you say. But taking into account how extensive federation networks have become, I can’t help but question why such encounters haven’t been circulated more.”

“What would you have them report? ‘A shadow followed us a little ways.’ How do you think that network of yours would receive such an overt statement?”

I guess shadows do tend to follow people don’t they...

“Regarding what ‘we’ know about these things; they operate within established territories, latching themselves onto structures large enough to accommodate them. Speaking from experience they find abandoned buildings particularly enticing.”

“The castles...!”

“Most likely. And this is purely conjecture on my part, but this one was probably residing in that first castle we passed on the route until recently. Cloud Nine knew this and wrecked it to chase it further up the route. An added benefit of diverting us I’d wager.”

“And you think this Eidol moved to the castle on top of the motte...but assuming you have the right of it, why leave it’s accommodation to follow us?”

“Pretty sure I just mentioned these things are territorial, and the last group to encroach on said territory destroyed its home. Safe to say it’s acting in the interest of preserving its new one.”

“Can I assume based on your negligent reporting on the matter that these entities are of minimal threat to us?”

“I’ve never been attacked by one at least. And unless Cloud Nine knows something I don’t, they’re probably just using it to help conceal themselves and sow panic. In an effort to avoid the latter I saw fit to keep quiet on a subject I know comparatively little about.”

In truth officer Rohner knew more about the Eidols than he was willing to divulge at this time. Having both browsed historical accounts of the entities and drawn from his personal encounters with them during his time as a soldier. For example; he knew that the Eidols were excellent distributors of heat, with them being able to both recognize and draw energy from spontaneous and pre-existing heat sources. That heat energy would then be scattered proportionately across the whole of its form as a means of vitality. Hence his parlor trick with the lighter. Something Kircher seemed to have let slip from his mind in the wake of Cloud Nine’s scheming.

He’d also learned that the entities were most prominent in folklores to the North. Wherein groups of primeval nomads would compete in coaxing the Eidols to take up residence in their homes as a surefire way to survive harsh winters. This was another one of the reasons Rohner had opted to remain silent on the matter as he was aware that Convoy Commander Dandridge hailed from the northern regions. The veteran officer wanting to see whether the northerner could connect the dots and apply that knowledge. As in doing so he’d be demonstrating an ability to draw on personal experiences beyond the scope of field service. A necessary step in the development of a CC’s unique identity, and perhaps a precursor to them coming into their own. In essence, Batten Rohner’s way of urging his junior to prove his initial assessment of the Sable had been wrong.

“Well, now that we’re all on the same page about what we’re up against, what do we do about it? Can we do anything about it?”

“We follow the example I was setting before you foisted this headset on me, nothing.”

“Nothing...?!”

“In an ideal world we’d bring the thing with us to the castle we’ve styled the ‘gatehouse’ and let it take up residence. In a siege scenario the added darkness and confusion would play in our favor. Its presence would also deter future occupations of the castle by hostile groups.”

“The fact it hasn’t already implies the ‘gatehouse’ might be outside its territory...you’re sure you don’t know of a way to lure it?”

A scoff sounded over the headset.

“Just so we’re clear that motion wasn’t meant to be taken seriously. You need to understand that this thing is no different from a wild animal you chance upon in the woods. There’s no way of knowing how it’ll react to you or what might set it off. Which is why we’ll leave a wide birth and continue on our way, business as usual. Is that clear?”

The edge to Rohner’s assertion was palpable. It also spoke to his preference that this discussion remain between them for the time being. Not that there was a practical way to convey this degree of information with comms in their current state. Not subtly at least.

It was only after Kircher came to terms with this fact and the situation they were caught up in that he experienced a minor epiphany of sorts; that Batten Rohner had the makings of a capable Convoy Commander. At the very least he wasn’t the type to take orders from someone. From claiming the role of security representative to taking small but calculated steps towards insubordination. Something that would have worried the CO a lot more if he hadn’t already relayed the matter to C362 prior to the appearance of the Eidol.

But with the first half of the route serving as a baseline, it had become increasingly apparent to Kircher that the man had the convoy’s best interests in mind. At heart? He couldn’t say for certainty which was calling the shots. On a related note, an abundance of shots could be heard being exchanged along all sides of the convoy. Now that he thought about it, every other sentence from Rohner had been punctuated or interrupted by rifle fire. Something you’d normally take comfort in during a raid attempt if not for a sentient shadow enveloping the battlefield.

Could it feel what was going on inside of it? Would misses and stray bullets harm or anger it?

Looks like Kircher wasn’t cut out for the illustrious and occasionally coveted job of doing nothing after all. Thankfully Rohner wasn’t a Convoy Commander despite having the makings of one, so he wouldn’t have to.

*

“That’s the Crusader with Emica onboard isn’t it?”

The fourth year Volt out of Bazoche gestured from his position ahead of Matus, the one in charge of the sort.

“Don’t point, I’m can guarantee their sharpshooter has taken out members for less.”

The raider promptly dropped his arm and stared straight ahead.

“...do you think they noticed?”

“I doubt we’d still be having this conversation if they did.”

If the report from the first visit was anything to go by, the sharpshooter in question was a force to be reckoned with. Making the decision to give them what was essentially free reign of the formation a sensible one. What’s more, Matus hadn’t been explicitly instructed to target the Crusader carrying their comrade to begin with. The choice of when and where to attack being left entirely to his discretion. Though an impromptu attempt could be justified if signs of sabotage manifested themselves.

But there were no such signs thus far. And the man was dubious Emica would try anything at this stage of the route beyond planting a few seeds for later. Yes, call him old-fashioned, but Matus liked to believe that she was still on their side. Though he’d readily admit the woman’s allegiances had never been as clear-cut as one would expect for someone who’d stuck around the same party for so long.

With one last fleeting glance in the direction of C362, Matus signaled his drum major to begin the next composition. He then watched as the various Crusader crews swiftly carried out their own rotations and formation adjustments in response. None of which raised any alarm bells that their drums had been deciphered. Or exposed by a certain captive. In other words, the LCF didn’t know what was coming.

“What do you say we show our hosts that a state of bliss isn’t so easily achieved!”