Chapter 8.
   Into the Derelict  
   From “Stellar Graffiti”, Copyright 2001 Richard Allan Olson
                                                               




   “Captain Finn,” said Milo, “I’ve been noticing the most peculiar phenomenon, as we get closer and closer to the great Temple.  Twenty minutes ago, I thought we had nearly reached the peaks of those three towers directly ahead of us.  Now, it seems as if we still have HALF that distance to go!  It’s as if the towers will only loom larger and larger, but we will never reach them!” 

   “Yes,” replied Finn.  “We noticed this, ourselves, right from the beginning.  It’s an optical illusion.  It occurs because there is nothing to give the artifact scale.  One really has no idea how truly gigantic its features are until one is right up next to something.  For example, observe that row of giant obelisks, on top of the central tower…”  Finn pointed out at the architectural monstrosity below.  “Find the one at the end, closest to us, and then follow it to the top.  Now, just off to the right of that pinnacle, you’ll see a very tiny, egg shaped object.  Do you see it?” 

   “Yes.” replied Milo. 

   “That is our starship, the Orient.  And when we arrive, I’ll tell you how far away from that pinnacle we STILL are.  You must excuse me, now.  There are matters to which I must attend.”  Finn bowed and strode off.  Milo turned back to the window and watched as the towers grew steadily larger, and the “egg”, ever closer.  After a while, as the saucer ship approached the Saurian mothership, Milo got his first clear view of it, from outer space.  Very much like an egg, except more uniformly oval, the “Orient” was an eclectic composite of numerous domed and bubbled hull sections.  There were many crystal covered ecosystems scattered across the great generation starship.  The main, metallic bulk of it was pitted and stained from age and wear, like the tarnished shell of an ancient, ponderous tortoise.

   The saucer slowed as it advanced upon the mothership.  It approached a flat, vertical surface, indented from the curvature underneath.  This was a large recess in the ship, which housed an assortment of brightly illuminated docking bays.  Milo counted three large, rectangular hangars.  Below these were a row of about two dozen smaller, circular recesses; apparently accommodations for other flying vehicles.  Targeting the large rectangular bay in the middle, the saucer slowly passed through an invisible force field that protected the interior of the facility from the vacuum of space.  The landing gear was lowered and locked, and then Prime Two silently, finally, touched down. 

   Outside on the landing platform, the commander of the hangar crew stood at attention, his men in formation behind him.  As the undercarriage of the saucer came down, and the ramp access began to open, the massive corpse of the insectoid that had gotten inside suddenly toppled out, a tangled heap of appendages.  Finn came out of the saucer first, disdainfully stepping around the dead creature.  The hangar commander stared at it and stammered. 

   “Captain, is that- is- is THAT one of those-?” 

   “Yes.” Finn replied.  “Looks delicious, doesn’t it?  We’re having it for dinner.” 

   The rest of the crew came out of the saucer, followed lastly by Milo and Luna.  When Finn noticed the pair, he hurried over to them.  “You two stay close to me, do you understand?”  They nodded.  Then he turned to the saucer pilot. 

   “Mister Sall!  I believe there are two Cutters reserved for us, and presently waiting below!”  Sall smiled back at Finn and put a hand on his shoulder.  “There had BETTER be!” he replied.  Then, the two of them marched off towards a number of waiting elevator doors.  Milo and Luna hopped along behind them.  The foursome took a quick ride down to the lower level of hangars that Milo had noticed from the saucer.  The doors opened and they came out upon a long pier connecting the two dozen docking bays.  The platform bustled with pilots and technicians, hurriedly making final preparations.  Finn stepped up to a communications console, and activated an intercom system.  When he spoke, he addressed not only the assembly in the hangars, but the crew of the entire starship, as well.

   “Fellow Saurians, we are faced with the very real possibility of an alien attack on this ship.  The bridge is to be fully staffed and standing by.  All deflector shields are to be energized.  Every turret aboard this ship is to be manned, and there is to be a finger on the trigger of every pulse cannon, every laser rifle, and every weapon of defense we have.  For, if we must fight, then fight, we will.  And if defeat we taste, we will surely die.  If victorious, however, we win the privilege of dying TOMORROW, as the universe is crushed out of existence, in its final act of ultimate, super-gravitational collapse!”  Finn paused to look around at the expectant faces of all the pilots, officers, and technicians.  Then, with a triumphant gesture, he concluded, “To victory, then!”  With that, a great chorus of cheering arose, not just from the hangar assembly before him, but also from the multitudes of Saurians, all across the great starship. 

   The foursome made their way down the platform and arrived at the designated slips.  Finn and Sall shook hands, wished each other luck, and Sall began preparing to board his vehicle.  Milo and Luna followed Finn as he continued on to the next hangar down. 

   The ship referred to as the “Cutter” was a sleek, crescent shaped wing, designed to fly horizontally, and with the points of the crescent facing forward.  The wing was divided above by a teardrop, bubble-topped cockpit in the center, and underneath by a row of three molded engine barrels.  The ship was held in stasis in the middle of the circular bay by the surrounding influence of antigravity repulsion.  Finn walked out along a narrow plank that ran from the main floor to a boarding platform next to the ship.  As he stepped onto the wing, the ship dipped slightly under his weight and bobbed up and down, as though it were floating on the surface of water.

   “The Cutter.” said Finn, affectionately.  “Ultra light.  Agile and responsive.  Very, very fast.  And armed with a most formidable pair of disintegrator beams.  Suitably designed for ship to ship combat, although we haven’t employed it towards  that end for a very long time.  This is what we’ve been using in our exploration of the Derelict’s interior.”  Finn reached over to a console on the boarding platform, pressed a couple of buttons, and the ship’s cockpit canopy slid backwards.  “There’s room enough behind the pilot’s seat for two little Archians such as you…”  He made a motion towards the cockpit.  Milo looked at the ship and grinned, then he looked at Luna. 

   The girl shrugged.  “I’ve come THIS far…”  

   “You’ll enjoy this.” said Milo, fighting to subdue his enthusiasm.  “This’ll be an experience.  You’ll see.”

   Before long, the fleet of Saurian fighters hung suspended and lined up in formation, silent and motionless in space, just outside the hangar complex.  An open line of audio communication connected the ships to each other, and the fleet to the bridge.  One by one, each pilot confirmed his completed systems check, and soon the fleet and the bridge were ready and awaiting orders from Finn.

   The captain adjusted his headset and made himself comfortable in his seat.  “Our priority,” he said, “will be to defend the bridge.  Cutters thirteen through twenty-four, assume defensive starboard positioning.  The rest of us will take the port.  Are we ready?  Starboard group, you may proceed.  We’ll go afterwards, on my mark.” 

   In the absolute silence of the vacuum, powerful engines roared without a sound, bringing tons of steel, weightless in the void, to kinetic life.  Half of the Cutter fleet slowly dropped out of formation.  As they descended, the crescent ships twisted around in choreographic unison and came to assume a new position.  A short burst of thrust launched them towards the distant bow of the mothership.  Then the second group dropped, one ship at a time, and abruptly rocketed away, skimming along the broad underbelly of the ship to regroup on the other side.  After a few minutes of skilled and well practiced maneuvering, the two Cutter groups assumed their defensive formations in front of the starship, one group on either side of the bridge.

   Finn spoke into his headset.  “Good work, everyone.  Mister Seff, what does the bridge have to say?”   

   A voice came back over the audio network.  “We’re watching and listening on all frequencies, Captain.  If anything moves, we’ll know about it.”

   Finn replied, “Don’t rely entirely on your sensors, everyone.  We may be dealing with a technology that can render itself invisible to our instruments.  Always keep one eye on the telescopic monitors.  Good, old fashioned eyesight may prove more valuable than the scopes, today.” 

   Then, Finn cupped a hand over his transmitter, turned in his seat, and said, “How are you two doing, back there?” 

   From the compartment behind the cockpit, Milo replied, “Just fine, Captain.  We’ll watch your back for you… if you promise not to get us killed!”   

   Finn chuckled.  “It’s a deal.” 

   Milo turned to Luna and said, “And how are YOU doing, dear?  Did you enjoy that exhilarating burst of speed as we passed underneath the mothership?”  

   “I’m not sure,” she answered, “but I think my stomach is still back on the other side.”  

   Milo grinned.  “You’ll get used to it, and then you’ll enjoy it.  There’s nothing like flying.” 

   “Yeah, well, let me know when I’m having fun.”

   For several tense minutes, there was silence.  The Cutter fleet, and the entire population of the Saurian mothership, was anxiously attentive to the low level static hiss of the audio network, just waiting for someone to report something.  Suddenly, inevitably, an urgent voice broke the suspense.

   “Aft Station Seven!  Something’s coming up behind us!” 

   Finn spoke into his transmitter.  “Bridge!  Mister Seff!  What do the scopes show?”  

   There was a pause, then the bridge replied, “Nothing at all, Captain!”    

   “As I suspected.  Aft Seven, do you have a fix, yet?” 

   “Almost, Sir.  We’re looking at about three dozen unidentified objects.”

   At this point, Finn took command of the situation with authority and determination, as would any true military leader.  “Once you have a lock, all turret stations are to fire at will.  Cutter units, about face.  Let’s meet them on the move.  No sitting ducks, now.”

   As the alien fighters advanced upon the Orient like a swarm of angry hornets, a dozen rear turret cannons began firing.  The incoming enemy was greeted by a hailstorm of brilliant blue streaks of destructive energy.  One of these projectiles found its mark right away, slamming headlong into an alien fighter and creating a violent eruption of flame and metal fragments.  Another ship was grazed by a shot of Saurian cannon fire, and it spun wildly out of control, colliding with another fighter, obliterating them both in a cloud of super hot vapors. 

   But the majority of the hornet fleet, finally up close to the great starship, suddenly unleashed firepower of its own.  Carefully and unerringly aimed at the turret stations, deadly energy bolts were let loose a fraction of a second before the swarm split up and banked away to either side.  A series of explosions, like a wave of fire flowers, bloomed across the surface of the Orient, and four of the rear turret stations were instantly destroyed. 

   A voice shouted over the network.  “Enemy fire penetrating aft shields!”

   “At least these bugs can be broken.” said Finn, as the Cutters dove in to meet the alien fighters and engage them in combat.  With weapons blazing, the two opposing fleets soared straight into, and right on past each other, in opposite directions.  The initial clash was over in seconds, and each fleet had suddenly lost three or four of its number.  As both groups began to swing around for another deadly volley, the turrets opened fire on the alien aggressors again.  Caught in the middle of the turn, five  more hornet ships fell behind the swarm, as they burst into clouds of searing gasses and glowing metallic splinters. 

   What ensued then was an all-out, pyrotechnic dogfight.  While trying to pursue and lock in on a moving target, a pilot was simultaneously required to see and dodge the continuous and chaotic crossfire coming at him from every direction.  The moment his targeting system displayed an enemy ship in his sights, he had only that fraction of a second to fire.  The slightest hesitation might result in missing the target, and perhaps accidentally hitting an ally, instead.  One minute, a pilot was the hunter.  But with a single miscalculated maneuver, an enemy ship might slip in behind him, and then he would become the prey. 

   From the space behind Finn’s cockpit, Milo and Luna watched in morbid fascination as another Cutter desperately sought to evade fire from a pursuing alien fighter.  Suddenly tracing a wide, lateral arc, the Cutter momentarily passed so close to them, they could actually observe the grim expression on the face of the Saurian pilot.  An instant later, the enemy landed a direct hit, and the ship erupted in a fiery explosion.  A shower of sparks and particles of glowing debris harmlessly cascaded across the transparent canopy of Finn’s ship.  Then, the hornet bore down on them.  Milo yelled a warning.   

   “I’ve got one on my tail!” Finn shouted.  “Can anyone assist?” 

   The familiar voice of Mister Sall came over the line.  “Head for Sector Delta, Captain!  I’ll try to intercept!”  Finn abruptly veered towards the mothership.  He pitched and banked as he flew, but the hornet ship followed him, move for move, mimicking his every maneuver.  Energy bolts streaked past, getting closer with each second.  Suddenly, Sall’s Cutter dropped in from above, stopping dead in the path of the oncoming hornet, making a high speed, head-on collision inevitable.  But Sall fired, and the enemy ship was reduced to a cloud of white hot gasses that harmlessly flew right on past Sall’s ship and quickly dissipated into the vacuum.  

   “Thank you, kindly, Mister Sall.” said Finn.  “I think there will be a promotion waiting for you when we return.”

   “Just doing my job, Captain.” Sall replied. 

   Meanwhile, aboard the bridge of the Orient, the reptilian Mister Seff calmly watched as the battle raged, high above the towers and obelisks of the sprawling Derelict.  He dispassionately observed the fact that the number of ships in the Saurian fleet had been reduced to sixteen.  He tried to estimate the number of surviving enemy ships, and found that number to be slightly less.  He noted how many turret stations had been destroyed.  He performed a calculation in his head.  Then he glanced down at the instrument that monitored the integrity of the mothership’s hull.  That’s when he noticed something very unusual. 

   “Bridge to fleet!  Bridge to fleet!  I need a visual confirmation on Hull Sector G-39.  I repeat, Hull Sector G-39.  Can someone give me a visual, please?” 

   Those who were not in immediate peril swung around to have a look.  One of the alien fighters had managed to get in close to the mothership without anyone noticing, and, strangely, had attached itself to a vertical surface on the massive side of the starship. 

   “Captain, look!” exclaimed Sall.  “Just forward of engineering!  They must be trying to break in!  Sir!  It’s just sitting there, inviting target practice!  Shall I take it out?” 

   “Hold your fire, Mister Sall.  We don’t want to blow a hole in the Orient, as well.  Bridge!  Mister Seff, I want you to evacuate and seal off that entire cell.  Let me know the moment it’s done.” 

   “Yes Sir, Captain!” 

   Finn circled around and sailed back to the celestial battlefield.  “That explains why they’re focusing on the turrets and the Cutters, and not trying to destroy the ship.  They want it taken alive.” 

   The battle raged.  After another minute, Mister Seff came back over the audio line, and said, “The cell is evacuated and sealed, Sir.”    

   Finn said, “Good.  Mister Sall, you may fire when ready.”  Sall had struggled to remain close to the target area, and he was already pulling up just in time to get a precise lock on the intruder.  He fired and veered away.  The hornet ship exploded with a furious blast, tearing open a massive rift in the Orient’s metallic hull.  Like a hurricane suddenly unleashed, the pressurized interior of the ship’s cell came gushing out into the vacuum, along with a great clutter of objects that had been laying about loose. 

   As Finn studied the gaping hole in the side of his starship, a dread realization dawned upon him.  “That was a strategic sacrifice… All Cutters… Everyone!  Head for the bridge!  Those of you on board, arm yourselves with explosive plasma rifles!” 

   The surviving Cutters made a run for the bow of the Orient.  But the enemy was one step ahead of them.  The hornets assumed a tight, defensive formation, intended to provide maximum protection for the ships in the lead.  Finn’s men were able to take out a few more of the hornets bringing up the rear, but by then, it was too late.  Upon reaching the bow of the Saurian mothership, six of the leading alien ships had set down against the hull, just above the main observation deck, which was the location of the bridge.  The remaining hornets banked away, trying to lure the Cutters back into battle.  Some of the Saurian fighters chased after them.  From the “abdominal” section of each of the six hornet ships, an umbilical device was extended and fastened to the hull of the Saurian ship.  Soon, solid steel began to soften and melt.    

   “Damn bugs!” said Sall.  “They’ve got us!  We don’t dare fire on them, and they KNOW it!” 

   “Yes.” Finn replied.  “We’d have to evacuate the bridge, and that would mean giving up the ship.  This might prove to be their fatal mistake, however.  We’ve met the enemy, remember?  One of those ships can’t possibly hold more than three or four insectoids.  If they DO manage to get inside, we’ll easily have them outnumbered.  Attention, all hands.  You’ve already been briefed, but I will reiterate.  Laser ammo will bring these bugs down, but not fast enough.  Infantry, listen up.  I want every plasma rifle on the bridge.  You know the kind of damage this weapon can do, so control your fire, and enjoy in moderation.  If those creatures manage to get inside, you know what to do.” 

   Shortly, the first of the Saurian soldiers stormed into the bridge, followed by others, carrying large and formidable looking guns.  He addressed the bridge commander, Mister Seff.  “You heard the Captain.  He wants this room painted a new color- ‘insect guts’.  You’d best stay out of the way.” 

   Lieutenant Seff started to rise from his chair when he happened to glance down at one of his scopes.  What he saw made him sit back down, numbly.  He managed to speak into his transmitter. 

   “Bridge to fleet… there’s a blip on infrared the size of a small mountain.  It’s about thirty decimetrics behind us and advancing.  I… I have to leave my post, now.  I suggest someone investigate.”  Seff got up and joined the other officers who were in the process of clearing off the bridge. 

   Puzzled, Finn said, “Mister Sall, come with me.  The rest of you stay here and hold your positions.”  Sall followed as Finn quickly climbed and rocketed towards the rear of the starship.  As the two Cutters passed the stern, Finn and Sall saw something very peculiar against the familiar background of the mammoth Derelict.  “Hold up for a moment.” said Finn.  The two ships came to a halt.  Finn produced a binocular device and started focusing it on the object.  Sall did likewise.  What they saw was a  dark, bulbous heap, floating in space.  It was vertically oblong, and it appeared to be organic, like a huge, swollen mass of solidified ooze.  The object seemed to be layered, as with a great many overlapping secretions, and hundreds of dark passageway openings pitted the entire surface of the odd formation. 

   Finn looked over at Sall.  Their ships were close enough that he could see him clearly.  He flipped a switch on his headset.  “What do you think, Mister Sall?”    

      “Looks like a HIVE, to me, Captain!” 

   “Indeed.  Large enough to house thousands of these… busy little bees.  Mister Sall, I fear the Orient is lost, if it remains here.  We cannot stand against these creatures in such numbers.  I must order the ship to leave this place, immediately.  I must give the command.  If she gets started soon, she might be able to get up to speed, and even outrun these smaller ships… hopefully, before more of them arrive.”   

   “Captain, what about you?” 

   “There isn’t time.  You, I, and what’s left of the fleet, will break at top speed for one of the exploration sites in the Monument.  The navicomputer is already familiar with much of these areas, and that will give us a strategic advantage, if we are being pursued.”  

   By this time, a small army had converged upon the bridge.  At each of six locations on the ceiling and along the walls, the molten outline of a large rectangle was nearing completion, as searing hot lasers cut through metal.  Soon, the first steel slab fell to the floor with a loud clang.  The others followed, one by one.  The Saurians stood with their weapons aimed at the dark spaces where they expected to see the insectoids appearing.  

   The infantry leader quietly, but urgently, said, “Don’t fire until your target is clear of the umbilicus!  One hull breach, and it’s over!  The bug hits the ground- THEN we open up some exoskelton.  Got it?”  Everyone nodded.  But their guns were still trained on the openings as they waited in suspense.

   Finn and Sall were about to turn around and rejoin the conflict, when they saw another fleet of angry hornet ships advancing from the direction of the hive, a fleet three times the number of the first.  They spun their Cutters around, and Finn flipped his headset switch back on. 

   As they headed back into battle, Finn said, “Crew of the Orient, this is your captain.  Another fleet of alien fighters is bearing down.  As quickly as possible, you must secure the bridge, and then leave this space as fast as possible.  This is my final order.  You have all served with the highest degree of courage, loyalty, and honor.  A finer crew, no captain could find.  Now, get to work, men!”

   At that moment, on the bridge, the Saurian gunmen were doing a very good job of blasting to pieces the insects as they dropped from their holes in the ceilings and landed on the floor.  They creatures in the walls were a little more cautious, and two of them hadn’t come out, yet.  These openings were heavily guarded, and the others were sealed back up.  Before long, the bridge officers were allowed back in, and the preparations for departure were quietly made.    

   “I just hope they can get her up to speed before that second fleet arrives!” exclaimed Sall. 

   The rumbling starship moved away, slowly at first, then, once the ponderous craft was set into motion, it took off quite briskly.  The ten remaining Cutter pilots watched as the Orient sped off into the distant, airless horizon of the Derelict, until it was just a tiny dot.  Then they turned to survey the advancing swarm of angry alien hornet ships. 

   “Aye, it would still be close.” Sall estimated.

   “We must try to divert their attention.” said Finn.  When the fleet arrives, we’ll wait until they see us, and then we’ll split up into pairs.  Each pair of Cutters will head for a different exploration site.  Hopefully, they’ll try to follow us, and not bother with the Orient.  With some luck, and our superior knowledge of those areas, we can lose them along the way.”   

   During the next tense minute, Finn designated the ten remaining Cutters into pairs, and each pair was assigned a specific direction in which to disperse.  It wasn’t long before the fleet of roughly one hundred alien fighters came screaming in, and the Saurian Cutter group scattered and dove into the massive superstructure of the Archian Derelict.

   Sall followed Finn’s lead, as he made for the central tower of the trio.  Several hornets were hot after them.  The ultra fast plunge towards the distant surface of the huge tower seemed to take place in some kind of a surreal, expanded time frame.  Once he finally reached it, he leveled off with it and continued his fantastic freefall towards the Derelict.  The two Cutters made their way diagonally across the face of the central tower for the safety of the structure’s other side.  With bolts of instant destruction streaking past their ships, they finally reached the corner of the giant tower and slipped around, always plummeting downwards towards the distant canyons far below. 

   “Oh, I think I’m going to be ill.” said Luna. 

   “Don’t be silly!” exclaimed Milo, excitedly.  “You’ve never had this much fun in your LIFE!”

   Meanwhile, Finn and Sall were being relentlessly pursued by four of the insectoid fighters, fiercely blasting away with energy bolts of certain destruction.  “Mister Sall,” said Finn, “I have an idea.  You’re familiar with the recess network, just before we reach where the foundation of the tower begins, aren’t you?”  

   “Yes, Captain.” replied Sall. 

   “I am thinking of one recess in particular.  It would make for an excellent… deterrent.  I’ll calculate the strategy, pass it along to your ship’s navicomputer, and once we reach the network, we’ll set the ships on automatic pilot.  It just might work.”  Finn began pressing a sequence of keys on a console next to him.  

   Sall thought about it and chuckled.  “Yes.  Let’s see them negotiate THAT, manually!” 

   The two Cutters rocketed along next to the gigantic tower with the four alien ships in close pursuit.  Up ahead, the structure started to show hundreds of circular openings that led inside.  For several dangerous minutes spent narrowly dodging death, they sped along the surface of the tower, high over the many passageways below.  Suddenly, choosing one in particular, seemingly at random, the two Cutters quickly dove and disappeared into one of the openings.  Three of the four hornets deftly dropped and followed them inside the tower, while the one continued the downward plunge on the outside. 

   Once inside the tower, Finn and Sall raced down a passageway that was just wide enough to allow their ships to navigate.  But they didn’t have to worry about steering, or crashing.  The Cutters flew themselves, at this point, following a trajectory that had been predetermined, and based on existing charts of this exact structure.  The three hornet ships were gaining on the two Cutters, and their bolts of destruction were firing closer. The two little ships reached the end of the straightaway and followed it as it gradually veered inward, away from the exterior of the tower.  The alien fighters lost sight of their prey as it disappeared into the turn, but they followed closely as the passageway curved around.  Then, abruptly, the tunnel came to an end.  There was ANOTHER tunnel, at a right angle to the first, but the pursuing insectoids could have had no possible way of seeing this with enough time to make the turn.  The two Saurian ships had knowingly and very quickly turned at the juncture, but the trio of hornets just piled up against the end of the tunnel and exploded; three consecutive eruptions of metal fragments and searing vapors. 

   The Cutters followed the passageway a little farther, and soon they came shooting back outside the huge tower again, resuming their accelerated freefall.  “Switching back to manual.” said Finn.  “I only saw three of them follow us in there.  Stay sharp, Mister Sall.”  As they continued to fall, they soon came upon the very top of the massive structure’s decorative base.  Before long, the two ships were ascending the exquisitely ornate structures adorning the tower’s foundation; strange, statuesque beasts perched upon giant pedestals at the tops of tall columns, staring with lifeless eyes at eerie spheres of light floating just before them, apparently having no source, and illuminating the areas around them for absolutely nobody at all.  As the Cutters raced along the side of the tower towards the canyon in which its bottom lay, the giant building became wider with each passing second, and the Saurian fighters climbed ever farther, and ever deeper.  

   Suddenly, the remaining alien hornet appeared from one of hundreds of suitable places of concealmeant, and slipped in behind the Cutters as they passed by. 

   “Captain!” shouted Sall.  “We’ve got company!”

   Finn replied, “Make for the entrance to the site!  Top speed!” 

   With the lone hornet in hot pursuit, the Cutters rocketed downwards towards the distant canyons at the base of the giant tower, swooping and dodging energy blasts let loose by the alien predator.  It became a deadly race for the sanctuary of the interior of the Derelict.  Soon, the the bottom of the mammoth tower became lost, buried somewhere beneath a sprawling metropolis made up of smaller towers and other structures.  They weaved up and down, and from side to side, between these extremely tall buildings, as they raced along.  The chasms dividing the smaller towers extended very deep into the superstructure of the Derelict. 

   “Switching back to auto pilot sequencing.” said Finn into his transmitter, as he began flipping switches on his console.  “Now we’ll just follow a pre-recorded path into the catacombs of the exploration site, and hope we are able to lose the enemy in the maze.”   

   “Aye, Captain.” replied Sall.  “The Cutters will do the flying for us.  And they know the catacombs far better than that alien pilot possibly could!”

   Before much longer, the three tiny space ships came chasing around a very large corner, and bore down a long, straight corridor towards a broad row of circular portals leading still deeper into the labyrinth.  The two Cutters powered along this staightaway in seconds, and then disappeared into one of the passageways, the alien hornet ship still close behind and blasting away at them.  This tunnel, just barely wide enough to accommodate the wingspan of the Cutters, twisted and turned as it extended deeper and deeper.  During these radical turns, they were quite safe from the deadly energy blasts being fired by the pursuing hornet.  It was only as the passageway opened up into another straightaway that the enemy was able to get a clear shot at them, and even at those times, it had but a few seconds to open fire before the Cutters disappeared around another winding curve in the tunnel.  For several long minutes, the deadly chase unfolded in this manner.  Miraculously, Finn and Sall were able to stay ahead of the enemy and successfully avoid the terrible firepower it unleashed. 

   Behind Finn, Milo and Luna could only watch, helplessly, as the alien pursuer managed another series of energy blasts, of which several streaked a little too close to the Cutter’s crystal canopy for comfort, the rest harmlessly dissipating against the walls of the tunnel. 

   “We need to lose this thing, Captain, and soon!” Sall shouted.  “Another two minutes and we’ll have run out of ground.  The end of the site is just up ahead.” 

   “Yes,” replied Finn, pensively, “and then the navicomputer will be useless.  We’ll have to switch back to manual piloting… and fly blind into the maze… we’ll have no choice but to reduce speed by eighty percent… and to that insectoid flyer, we’ll be moving in slow motion.”  The pair of Cutters raced around a turn and came out upon another dangerous straightaway, this one considerably longer than any of the previous corridors.  

   Suddenly, Milo had a desperate idea.  He turned to the girl and telepathically said, (“Luna!  Remember how we are able to move objects by sharing with them the weight of our minds?”)

Luna thought for a moment, fighting the ill feeling she was still experiencing.  (“Certainly.  And I can see where you’re about to go with this.  And I also remember you said you tried influencing the skiff while we were at sea, and you weren’t able to do it.  So, what’s your point?”) 

   Urgently, Milo replied, (“The point is…”)  He shook his head.  (“We can BOTH do it, now!  And we’re both much better at it!  Listen- I want you to focus on that fighter ship… “)  He propped himself up against the back of the cockpit compartment, and grabbed her by the arm, compelling her to do likewise.  They fixed their gaze upon the sinister vehicle that bore down upon them.  Then, Milo said, (“That ship is very heavy, indeed.  But remember this: the ship is FLYING, and in order to BE flying, it must already be negating a great deal of its own weight… possibly, the ship is employing anti-gravity… in which case, it will be very, very light, indeed.”)  Milo kissed the girl on the cheek.  (“Now, I want you to focus on the weight of the object that is that ship.  I need your help.”) 

   (“Alright,”) she said, (“Once we’ve got it, what do you want to DO with it?”) 

   (“We’ll go down with it… try to make it connect with the floor of the structure, somehow.  If we’re lucky, that might force the ship to lose control… perhaps cause it to crash.”) 

   Luna exhaled.  (“Got it.  You just say the word.”) 

   (“Yes.  Whenever YOU are ready… “) 

   As the pair of Archians concentrated on the enemy fighter, the pair of Saurian Cutter pilots neared the end of the straight passageway; the end of the known territory deep in the catacombs of the Derelict. 

   “Here it comes.” said Sall. 

   Finn announced, “Now… just follow me… and keep a safe distance.”   

   “No, Captain.  I’m the more skilled pilot, and you know it.  Let ME take the lead.” 

   Finn paused to think, then reluctantly replied, “You’re right.  Very well, Mister Sall.”  He then punched a few console keys, and began to slow, carefully allowing Sall’s Cutter to pass his.  “Stay sharp, now.  This won’t be easy.” 

   “Switching to manual control…” Sall reported, “…preparing to reduce speed to twenty thousand…”  As the end of the long passageway neared, Sall caught sight of another row of tunnel openings leading still farther into the structure, deeper into the dark unknown.  “I’m taking the second from the right, Captain.  It looks to me like one of those passages that might connect with the others, farther down the line.”

   “I concur.” said Finn, reducing his own speed.  

   Suddenly, Finn saw a bolt of enemy fire narrowly shoot past him and strike Sall’s ship.  It was a direct hit to one wing of the crescent shaped vehicle.  In an instant, the lead Cutter spun out of control and plummeted to the floor of the corridor.  As it struck, the ship erupted.  It happened all too fast.  Finn had no time for an emotional reaction.  He looked down and saw his friend consumed in the inferno of the ship’s destruction, and at the same moment, the narrow mouth of the tunnel was before him.  A second later, the sole surviving Saurian ship plunged into the darkness ahead. 

   Negotiating the deadly course required Finn’s absolute concentration.  He didn’t have the luxury of a single moment to mourn Sall’s death.  And Milo and Luna were so utterly preoccupied with THEIR task, they didn’t even noticed what had happened. 

   Milo said, (“We’ve gone into another turn, now.  We’ll have to wait until the next corridor for line of sight.  But we must act upon our very next opportunity.  The instant that fighter comes back into view, we must set our minds upon its weight.  When I give the word, we must act together, and try to push the front of the ship downwards.”)

   Luna attempted a sly smile, but it came across as more of a grimace.  (“Got it.”) 

   The narrow tunnel kept banking upwards for what seemed to be several minutes, during which the hornet was far enough behind that it wasn’t able to target a direct shot.  All that Milo and Luna could see behind them was the vanishing tunnel, and an occasional energy bolt hitting some feature of the passageway.  Finn wore an expression of dire intent and determination as he held the Cutter in a smooth and steady course through the curving confines of the tunnel.  Following the gradual upwards turn, the shaft abruptly and sharply wound to one side, and Finn was required to execute a rapid succession of maneuvers, similar to flying along the length of a corkscrew.  At this point, the distance from one wall to the other was less than twice the wingspan of the Cutter itself.  Then, after another short curve upwards, the fleet little wingship burst out upon a much larger and longer hallway, basically rectangular in shape, with a row of tall, vertical columns running the central length of the floor all the way to the far end of the chamber, off in the distance.

   Shortly, the relentless hornet ship shot out of the tunnel after them, firing its destructive energy bolts.  Employing an evasive strategy, Finn began weaving in and out of the huge columns, like a saucer swaying from side to side, in order to avoid the constant fire.  The alien craft started accelerating, and followed in kind. 

   (“It must be now, Luna.”) said Milo, calmly.  (“Reach out and feel its weight in your mind.”)

   (“Yes, my love.”)  The girl morbidly studied the peculiar alien ship.  She watched it pitching back and forth between the giant columns, firing its weapon continuously and with no particular strategy, except to cause destruction.  Then, in a strangely instinctive way, she began to feel the ship’s movements, like a familiar ocean wave, lightly caressing the fabric of her mind’s eye.  And in that moment, she believed that just whisking it to one side or another might be as truly simple and as subtle as lifting a finger. 

   (“I’m ready, Milo.”) she said.  (“Why don’t we rudely introduce it to one of these very large pillars?”)

   Milo, who had already achieved this state of mind, grinned.  (“A splendid idea.  Alright, we need to be together, on this.  Let’s allow it to pass TWO more pillars… and then, sort of… make sure it doesn’t get past the THIRD one.”)

   They watched as the ship of the alien insectoid swung around another of the towering columns, then back again as it banked to the other side of the row and veered around the next one.  As it sailed back to make another pass, Milo waited until just the right moment, and then said, (“Hold it right there, on that course.”) 

   The pilot of the alien fighter struggled at its controls, but found no way to alter the ship’s impending collision with the broad face of the column.  Upon impact, most of the vehicle flattened against the obstacle and burst into a cloud of searing vapors, while the rest of the debris was scattered, still in a generally forward direction. 

   (“We did it!”) Milo exclaimed, slapping the girl on the back.  (“Just like swatting a fly!”)  

   Luna beamed, watching the smoking pillar receding behind them.  (“Yeah, but a whole lot more fun.”) 

   Milo leaned forward, and, speaking out loud, said, “Captain, we’re in the clear, now.  That rogue just had an accident.  You and Mister Sall can slow down, now.” 

   Finn let out a deep breath, and began to decelerate.  “I’m pleased to hear that.  I’m sorry to report, Mister Sall just had an accident of his own.”  That was all Finn would say.  Milo watched him touching control keys a little longer, then sat back and looked over at Luna.  She took his hand and sighed. 

   In silence, Finn set the Cutter down upon one of the odd structures that made up the floor of the long corridor.  It seemed the logical thing to do, following such harrowing events.  There, he spent several minutes reading and adjusting the ship’s instruments, while Milo and Luna quietly gazed out through the crystal canopy.  They marveled at the sights around them. 

   Then, Finn noticed something that gave him cause to be fairly startled.  Momentarily, he looked up from the monitor he’d been examining, and announced, “We’re not alone in this place.”