The Black Derelict

By Fred Files

After the events of the Serpent Fleet, Captain Stand and the crew of the Trawler have taken a nice little vacation, but it isn't long before Paul lines up another assignment. While unusual for a salvage crew, they agree to locate and rescue a lost colony ship. It isn't long before that assignment leads them into something far more dangerous. It could be the salvage find of a lifetime, or it could be an alien deathtrap ready to ensnare all of humanity. In addition to the salvage work, an investigation is underway into one of the Trawlers crewmembers in association with a war crime that nearly escaped detection.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Mar 21, 2020
• ISBN: 9781678026288

Book preview

The Black Derelict

The Black Derelict

Other Books By Fred Files:

Fighter in the Sands

The Serpent Fleet

The Black Derelict

Castle of the Golden Eagle

The Black Derelict

E-Book ISBN: 978-1-67802-628-8

ISBN:  978-1-79487-370-4

Copyright  © 2019

All rights reserved.

Prologue

All of your former squad mates would refer to you as ‘Happy’ Malone, The bearded therapist said while looking over his notes.  Why was that, given you’re so unhappy now?

The therapist’s office was as stereotypical as it was possible to get with wood paneled walls, shelves full of reference books, a fake tree in the corner, and framed certificates on the walls.  There was even a sofa along one wall that was seldom used.  The therapist sat in his high-backed leather desk chair, while Malone sat in another less impressive looking chair.  The nameplate on his desk read Simon Beck.

Back then, I would joke around a lot; I would make lite of everything… because I knew that if I thought about any of it too long, it would get to me.  Weigh me down.  When I got out, I tried to keep doing that, but there was nothing to focus on instead.  That’s when I turned to other things to take my mind off of those bad days.  I did drugs and booze but, in the end, I realized that stuff just wasn’t for me.  I had to grow up sometime right?

A lot of veteran soldiers in your position turn to such vices as coping mechanisms.  It’s quite impressive you were able to move past them and achieve any level of normalcy.

I guess… but now, there’s nothing for me to do but think and I don’t like thinking.  I don’t want to remember those things, but I can’t not remember.

What is it you don’t want to remember?

I remember.

Remember what, exactly?

You know, Malone fidgeted in his chair, I’ve already told you what we did during the war.

You did a lot of great things during the war.  Your efforts served to weaken the Party.  You weakened the strangle hold the Party had over Terra Sphere enough that it could be overthrown, and the war brought to a close.  You were a hero and should be commended.

I don’t mean the good missions.  Liberating some of those prison camps is the only thing that lets me live with myself.  I keep waking up thinking someone’s about to jump me, like when we were doing deep field work behind enemy lines… but the real thing that keeps me from ever getting to sleep, or being happy again was New Avalon, and that wasn’t the only one.  How can I have a family, or even think about kids, after the things we did there?

Ah.  I see, but don’t you think that the good you’ve done, balances out the bad?  You need to forgive yourself.  Everyone else already has, the therapist’s voice was soothing.

"I used to feel like the scales were balanced, but those ghosts won’t rest.  I keep seeing those missions when I go to sleep.  I keep seeing the ghosts.  Even after all this time, they won’t let me rest because of what we did!   That’s why I came to see you, doc.  I had to tell someone.  I had to let someone know what we did…

And that was good, this is a safe place, the doctor reassured him, you can discuss everything that bothers you here, with me.

I know doc, but now I’m thinking maybe it’s not enough.  Maybe its time everyone else knew too.

Many of the people who were attached to those operations have expressed similar concerns, Happy, but they know the importance, even now, of keeping those classified operations top secret.  You must never speak of them to anyone outside of this office.  You do understand that, don’t you, Happy?

Yeah, I understand, it’s just… I don’t think I can do that anymore.  I just can’t keep living like this.

The therapist exhaled between his steepled fingers.  Our time for today is just about over.  Will you promise me one thing Happy?  Don’t talk about this to anyone before our next session, okay?  Then, if you still feel this way, we can discuss the best way to go about it, okay?

Yeah, okay.  I’ll try, Doc, Happy Malone finally said.

Dr. Beck stood, offering Malone a helping hand out of the chair, which the combat veteran really didn’t need.  I look forward to our next session.

Yeah, me too, Doc, Malone shook the doctor’s hand, and allowed himself to be pulled up, but instead of letting go, Beck continued to pull, and wrapped his arm around Malone’s neck, but keeping the one arm stretched out.  Before the retired war vet could put up a fight, Dr. Beck jabbed Malone in the arm with a needle at the joint of his elbow.

Malone struck back, flipping him over, the therapist’s legs overturned the plant.  He followed that up with a good kick to Beck’s side.  He staggered on his feet.  He turned to run, but his legs gave out from under him.  A moment later, Malone wasn’t aware of anything at all.

Chapter 1

Sally Stand was stretched out on a lawn chair, sunning herself in the shade of a huge gnarled tree typical of the rest of the plant life on the world of Kutuzov.  Not far away, her husband, Paul, was busy pacing back and forth between two trees.

Sit down, she said, Relax.  You’re on vacation.  Sally’s hair was growing out, she needed to get it cut short again, but she kept putting off a trip to a hair stylist.  Their first day of vacation, she spent on the town, shopping for new clothes, as her old ones were starting to get a bit too tight.  It was one of the disadvantages of not being as active as she had been while in the military.

Yeah, but relaxing would be so much more productive if we were out there, with our scanners on the lookout for… stuff!  Paul Stand, the Trawler’s captain, was a tallish man, with hair that was both greying and balding.

Some people, referring to herself and most of their small crew, find it more relaxing to spend some down time on a planet, where we don’t have to worry about instant death from a sudden hull breech.

She ignored Paul grumbling something unintelligible to himself about the Trawler’s structural integrity and took in an exaggerated breath of non-recycled air to show him just how relaxed she was.  In truth, she thought the air smelled funny after spending so long aboard a ship, but after all the effort she put into pushing Paul for this vacation time on a planet, she wasn’t about to tell him that.

This isn’t a resort planet, you know, Paul said.

Does it look like I’m poolside?  I’m making the best of it.  Why don’t you ask if you can borrow some books from the researchers here so you can locate some more shipwrecks for us?

I tried, Paul plopped down next to his wife.  They said I was too annoying and kicked me out.

So what does that tell you?

I need to relax?

I knew I didn’t marry an idiot!

Paul moved to sit down at the base of the tree behind Sally.  Relaxing is stressful; are you sure we can afford this?

Did we not just salvage a complete warship, with full hangers and armory? Sally asked.

Yeah… the salvage deal of a lifetime, Paul said.

Well, we have enough money from selling that lot that we can afford to take a few days for ourselves.

You’re right, love… I just don’t react well to this… vacation stuff.  Oh, what about the thing?

Don’t worry, I had my brother keep one of each vehicle aboard the ship.  He will see to it they are transferred to our corporate HQ.

Wait, we have a corporate HQ?

Dear, I am relaxing, so don’t even mention the hassles I have to deal with in running our corporation, Sally said.

I thought incorporating was suppose to make things less stressful?

Yes, but then we went and bought a town… and remotely running a town is more stressful than you can imagine.

Wait, I thought you were joking when you said you had bought a town before, Paul said.

What did I just get finished saying about discussing work and the corporation? Sally said.

Okay, okay, Paul lamented.  I’ll be quiet now.

A tone sounded.  Sally chose to ignore it.

It sounded again.  Paul?

Yes, dear?

Your phone is ringing.

Oh, Sorry, I meant to turn it off.  Paul got up and fumbled through his bag, finally he held the phone up to his ear.  Hello?  Yes, this is Captain Stand….  Okay, that sounds good.  I’ll connect with you again in… Paul looked down at his watch, Lets say 1400 hours tomorrow… Okay, sounds good.  I’ll see you then.

Paul sat back down at the base of the tree, grinning from ear to ear.

Okay, what? Sally demanded.

We got a job.

You better not expect us to cut our time here short.  Harry has been looking forward to visiting this planet for too long to cut it short on him now that we’re finally here.

I wouldn’t do that.

Yes, you would.

Okay, yes, I would—but I won’t.  That wasn’t a formal job offer yet anyway.  I’ll meet with him over the VR link for a full rundown on the job he is proposing.  We are only going to be here a few more days, I’m sure that whatever special preparation I need to do to get the Trawler ready will take that long.  You can even sit in on the meeting.

Okay… Sally said, but she didn’t really feel that confident he was going to keep his word.

*****

Harry Trope looked up at a massive statue of a knight that was still buried up to it’s knees.  The Kelvin design influences on it were obvious.  Statues like this one were often found in front of the main entrance of Kelvin cities, but this statue was larger than most, and further away from the main entrance to the city.

The city ruins were where the main archeological dig was taking place, it was that dig that prompted Harry into encouraging Paul to take some time off on this world.  Fact was, he had come close to begging his Paul to let him come here.

He didn’t like spending time in the woods that surrounded the dig site.  In the forest, he always felt like he was being watched, like there was something behind every tree, but he felt at home in the dig site itself, surrounded by survey lines, tents and carefully excavated holes revealing unknown secrets about the long-lost Kelvin society.

He knew he was paranoid.  It was part of his PTSD from his missions during the war.  There were other reasons too.  Not all of his old missions had been happy ones, and he had recently taken steps to bring attention to them.  In addition to that, their last big salvage had been of a black ops ship, the Python, part of the legendary Serpent Fleet.  Along with the equipment, they had recovered old computer records that tied many important people to the Party and the many War Crimes it had committed during the Twenty Years War.  Some of those people who had been exposed had already tried to have them killed; Harry was always ready for someone to try it again.  He figured that was part of the reason Sally had arranged for this trip to the Kutuzov Archeological Site.

The workers at the site were all nice, and very excited to be working on such an intact alien city as the one discovered on Kutuzov.  Harry had read most of the papers all of them had written about the site.  When they saw how knowledgeable he was, they even let Harry help them with the dig, carefully clearing away the dirt to expose as yet