HAWK

CHAPTER TWELVE: CRASH (4/5)

Descent was smooth. While large, the asteroid was no way near big enough for the weak force that was gravity to make its presence felt and the two Wraiths guided the Calista down at an easy pace towards the dusty grey surface. Kas took quick and constant glances at the terrain but could see nothing of great interest.

The small fleet curved towards the surface and levelled off at precisely one thousand feet. They soon slowed as they approached a crater the size of the Artisseum.

Except it wasn't a crater; it was a hole.

The Wraith leading the way began a gentle dive into the chasm, taking the Calista and the trailing Wraith with it. Kas looked out the viewport, expecting to see maybe a landing pad or docking station ahead, but the hole became a tunnel that went on for several hundred meters before being drowned out by an all-consuming darkness.

It was impossible for Kas to tell how far or fast they were going; the tunnel seemed to be playing havoc with the Calista's already dodgy instruments. The Holo-HUD still hadn't recognised the asteroid as even existing and was flashing red to inform her there was an error. All Kas had to look at was the twin blue glows emitted from the leading Wraith's thrusters. The man's voice returned to give Kas her newest instruction.

'In a moment, you will arrive at a landing platform. The Wraiths will then untether you and remain airborne while you proceed to land. Do you understand?'

'I understand,' Kas replied.

'Once you have landed, power down your ship and await further instruction.' The tannoy crackled and the voice disappeared. Seconds later, the Wraith in front flashed its wing lights and the entire tunnel lit up in cold white light, revealing them to be in a pristine hexagonal shaft. Kas peered past the fighter craft ahead and spied a solid wall looming - a 500-foot wide black hexagon which Kas assumed to be the landing platform.

Once they came within a hundred meters of it, both Wraiths simultaneously detached their harpoons and pulled off to the side, allowing Kas an unrestricted view of the wall. At such low speeds, the Calista was a breeze to control. She lifted the Calista's nose to level the ship's underside with the wall and eased it in for landing. As she did, she was only too aware of the two Wraiths in her ship's peripherals. They had both turned and aimed their noses at her, presumably in case she suddenly got it into her head to try to flee.

C'mon guys, give me a little credit...

She set the Calista down on the platform with effortless grace and felt her ship pull taut against the gravity-enhanced surface. As she began powering down, she spied a circular hatch in the far wall split open. Out of its centre emerged twelve armoured soldiers, all wielding what looked to Kas like high-velocity plasma rifles.

By the time the Calista's engine had become silent, the twelve soldiers had formed a wide circle around her ship, adding to the more serious threat of the twin Wraiths hovering menacingly above.

'Calista,' came the man's voice over the tannoy. 'You are now surrounded by some of the finest soldiers in the solar system. They are armed, they are accurate, and they have not seen action in a long time. The weapons they are aiming at you are state-of-the-art, prototype plasma rifles. Said rifles at this distance will put more holes in you than string theory. Because we have a perfect history of non-violence here, we're giving you a single chance to come out peacefully. If we spy a single weapon, if we see or hear anything we do not like, we will bury you on the spot before your ass has hit the floor.

'In a moment, we will ask you to open your rear doors. You will do so and wait on your knees with your arms raised high above your head and your fingers splayed - that means open wide. Do not wear any protective spacesuit or breathing apparatus; we are deploying atmospheric grenades that will keep you alive for the short but foreseeable future. That's the deal. Now, is there anything you do not understand?'

'I think I got it all,' Kas replied, sounding calmer than she was. 'But there's something I should probably tell you.'

'What's that?'

'Well... the thing is - and don't freak out - but I'm travelling with a rogue X1.'

When the man answered, Kas thought his voice had lost some of its edge. 'Did you say an X1?'

'Don't worry, it's not dangerous.'

The man responded with silence. Kas looked out of the viewport and saw every one of the soldiers tighten their grips on their plasma rifles. She glanced up at one of the Wraiths and saw a single but substantial turret unfurl from its belly. The man resumed.

'How did you come to be in possession of an X1?'

'I captured it from a group of criminals known as the Black Chains. I was on my way to return it to Selva when it was destroyed. The X1 has since been badly damaged and is now inactive. It's not dangerous, I promise. It can't even move.'

'Why can't it move?'

'Its body has been melted.'

'Melted? An X1? Well, this I've got to see. I sincerely hope you're telling the truth, Calista, because if you're lying and the X1 is deemed to be dangerous, every single weapon you see aimed at you has permission to fire until there's nothing left to fire at. Understood?'

'Understood.'

'Good. Then I hereby give you permission to open your rear doors.'