Orion Colony Complete Series Boxed Set J.N. Chaney (books for new readers .txt) 📖

Iris zoomed out of the close-up hologram of our section of the planet. A green ball, more of an oval instead of a perfectly round planet, met our eyes.

“Although I can only see half of the planet due to my scanners, I can mock up what the other half looks like based on the size and shape of our side. Lucky for us, this planet is rather small, almost the size of a moon.”

“Can you tell us where in the galaxy we are?” Stacy asked another of the many questions we all had.

“Unfortunately, no.” Iris gave a very human frown. “It’s something that has been bothering me for quite some time. I’ve run all the calculations, over and over again. I’ve noted the stars that appear in the night sky as well as the suns and where we might have fallen out of slip space. All I know for sure is that we are in an uncharted portion of the galaxy. If we are able to gather some of the communication equipment, I might be able to get a signal out for anyone searching for us to hear.”

“Iris, can we get that enhanced view of our location again, please?” Elon asked.

“Certainly,” Iris said. Her hands moved in a flurry as she enhanced the view of our side of the green holographic planet in front of us.

“I think it’s clear what we have to do,” Arun said, nodding toward all the ships and escape pod dots on the map. “There are people out there right now, lost, maybe hurt who need our help.”

“We could help more people if we were able to get to the communication section of the Orion and bring back the gear we need,” Captain Harold said, eyeing Arun. “That would not only allow us to send out a broadcast to anyone listening for us but also allow us to communicate with all the survivors on the planet. If they are alive and out there looking for the Orion, we could give them directions on where to find us.”

I didn’t really want a part of what was about to happen. I could see Arun’s eyes narrow as she considered Captain Harold’s words. She took a moment to think about what she was going to say before she continued.

“I see the wisdom in that plan, Captain Harold.” Arun surprised us all as she validated the captain’s plan. “Perhaps like before, we can focus on two goals at once.”

While Arun and the rest of those gathered worked out the details, I took a closer look at the map of the planet in front of us. The section of the Orion that Iris pointed out holding the prisoner cell block had crashed down on a beach area of the planet, northwest of our location. Just to the north of this was also where one of the five remaining escape ships had touched down.

I had to know for my own sanity if Maksim was still out there or if he had, in fact, died in the crash. I could hear his voice in my head calling me brother and grinning with that maniac-like look on his face.

“We’ll need to send two larger teams.” Captain Harold was already putting together the logistics of the trips. “One will go to the east, where the communication equipment landed in the mountains. The other will start with the crafts and secure any survivors who may be injured or lost.”

“I’m not sure if we’re going to have enough personnel for all of this.” Doctor Wong shook his head. “I mean, I don’t know how many more Civil Authority Officers we can spare to ensure the encampment is safe, not while there may be a Disciple in the shadows and an alien doorway only kilometers from us.”

“There has been absolutely zero activity from the doors,” Iris reminded us all. “My data points to a civilization that died out hundreds of years ago.”

“Be that as it may,” Captain Harold looked over at Arun and Elon, “I’d like to agree with the doctor on this one.”

“Really?” Doctor Wong looked surprised.

“The Civil Authority ranks are depleted. Getting new officers hasn’t exactly been easy,” Captain Harold said, looking over at Arun and me. “The ones we did get to join still need to be trained.”

“I’ll go, check on this escape ship, and while I’m out there, see for myself whether our Disciple friend died on the ship or is out here playing hide and seek,” I volunteered. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to sleep until Maksim was in the ground or in custody again, preferably in the ground.

“I’ll lead the second expedition to the communication section of the Orion,” Captain Harold said. “I’ll take volunteers and leave my Civil Authority Officers here to maintain order. Arun, they’ll answer to you.”

I wasn’t really sure if Mommy and Daddy were going to play nice after this morning, but it seemed like they buried the axe to some extent.

“I hate the idea of sending untrained civilians out there,” Arun said, shaking her head.

“We’ll only ask for volunteers that have some kind of wilderness or military experience,” Elon reassured her. “We’ll send them out in larger groups with at least a handful of trained survivors with them like Stacy and me.”

Arun eyed her brother. “I should have guessed you’d want to go. Even with that limp, huh?”

“It’s barely a limp at all anymore.” Elon grinned. “I’ve been cooped up in the Orion for too long. It’ll do me some good to get out.”

Arun slowly nodded. “Okay, we have our plan. One team led by Elon will go secure the escape ship on the west coast and check on the cell block section of the Orion. Captain Harold’s team will travel east to secure the communication equipment. We’ll need it to get the signal out here on this planet to any survivors as well as to the galaxy and anyone searching for us.”

Everyone in the