Flipspace: Shades of Jade

By John Steiner

The Mockingbird crew are pulled off their training schedule when a distress call from their sister ship, the Magpie reaches Earth from the Kuiper Belt. In preparation for rescue and possible hostilities, Colonel Rama’s command is expanded with Medevac/Recovery Vehicle, two deep space fighters, a mysterious support crew and the Magpie’s AI named Monk. Yet, there lurks covert objectives beneath Rama’s emergency orders. During the rescue disaster strikes, and the ship suffers severely damaged. Survival throws the crew is thrown into crisis mode and pushes them all to their limits.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Melange Books, LLC
• Release date: Aug 21, 2014
• ISBN: 9781612359373

John Steiner

John Steiner earned his Associate of Biology at Salt Lake Community College, where he is currently working as a tutor in math and chemistry. He exercises an avid interest in history, science, philosophy, mythology, martial arts as well as military tactics and technology.

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Special Smashwords Edition

Flipspace #7

Shades of Jade

by John Steiner

Published by

Melange Books, LLC

White Bear Lake, MN 55110

www.melange-books.com

Flipspace: Shades of Jade, Copyright 2014 John Steiner

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should go to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

ISBN: 978-1-61235-937-3

Names, characters, and incidents depicted in this book are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or the publisher. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in the United States of America.

Cover Design by Becca Barnes

Table of Contents

Shades of Jade

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Spectres

S.E.T.I. Protocols, 2175 Edition

About the Author

Previews

SHADES OF JADE

by John Steiner

The Mockingbird crew are pulled off their training schedule when a distress call from their sister ship, the Magpie reaches Earth from the Kuiper Belt. In preparation for rescue and possible hostilities, Colonel Rama’s command is expanded with Medevac/Recovery Vehicle, two deep space fighters, a mysterious support crew and the Magpie’s AI named Monk. Yet, there lurks covert objectives beneath Rama’s emergency orders. During the rescue disaster strikes, and the ship suffers severely damaged. Survival throws the crew is thrown into crisis mode and pushes them all to their limits.

For August H. Steiner (November 23rd, 1939 – September 13th, 2012), who gave me the intellectual tools and freedom to reach for the stars.

To my father’s chosen branch of service, the United States Air Force.

Aim High ... Fly-Fight-Win ... in Air, Space and Cyberspace.

Chapter 1

Ships of a Feather

In a white flash, the sleek orbital supremacy fighter zipped by a balloon-suspended monitoring station at 40,000 meters altitude. Black skies stretched overhead. Blue sky stretched below it in a horizon-wide circle with the curvature of Earth beneath it all. A couple seconds passed before the ISS Mockingbird, banking hard left, raced by in pursuit of the smaller craft. The fighter shifted course, forcing the larger Intra-System Vessel to roll right for a high-gee turn into the new trajectory.

Weapons to OCS, the CIC officer called to Colonel Rama, Starlings talk-back as armed.

Copy, she acknowledged and selected the launch bay reserved for the missiles.

Colonel Sumitra Ramachandra had direct control over the ninety-meter long craft. The ship’s AI, Maggie, was busy cutting through jamming and encryption. The Self-Ware ensured all instrumentation read true and free of false code or distorted signal returns. Rama almost had a solid lock on the smaller and more agile craft.

Ops to OCS, we got a fast-mover on our Dorsal, Post, Post, Left, the operations officer announced. They’re just outside range of Flashpoint Defense.

The craft bore down on their dorsal side from above and at a designated attack angle, which referred to the left side of the rear quadrant. Noting the telemetry, Rama realized the new attacker must know of the Mockingbird’s modified Flashpoint firing range, yet it hugged close enough to minimize the microwave weapon’s response time for shooting down missiles.

Weapons, rotate queued Starling pylon, Rama ordered.

Roger that, came the reply, keying into arm the controls of his acceleration couch, Starlings to post.

Target is locked and solution plotted, Rama announced for the combat log. Fox Seven.

Signal’s good, the Comms officer declared. It’s a hit, OCS.

Now for your wingman, Rama muttered, as she altered course again.

A weapons warning sounded.

He’s locked onto us, the Comms officer advised.

The signal in Colonel Rama’s augments indicated a posterior dorsal-side ball turret was bathing the Mockingbird with weaponized laser emissions. A slow diminishing number indicated what percentage of liquiplastic armor turned ablative. Another more rapidly growing value warned of the energy flooding the nano-scaffolding that diverted as much energy as possible to onboard capacitors. Because of Stanley Goddard’s modifications, since made standard for all ISV-71 Raven class ships, the Mockingbird stood up to the harm far better.

Lidar is locked, Rama said. Fox Eight.

A few more seconds ticked past, before the icon over the fighter signaled a kill. Then, her displays added the advisory that the training exercise was concluded and congratulations were added by the commander for the 279th OSF Aerospace Defense Wing.

Under Rama’s hand, the Mockingbird proved itself against a flight of four faster and more agile fighters than the Tupolev Plutonium Antimatter Cosmonautical fighters from the Astraeus rescue mission.

Comms to OCS, we’ve got our landing corridor and emergency deployment orders.

Copy that, Comms, Rama responded, as she traded off flight control with Maggie. What’s the nature of the emergency?

"File reads as top priority. It’s the ISS Magpie, Comms answered, sounding grave. She’s in the Kuiper Belt and needs rescue."

The Mockingbird turned toward Kadena Base in Okinawa, Japan and found the traffic corridors cleared for their landing. Most of the crew was there for their respective training courses or secondary certifications. The ship’s extended Earth-side support teams were on-station for maintenance and logistics. Those crews immediately hustled into action, after the vaguely raven-shaped craft landed and