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The area around the portal was finally cleared of moon rock and dust, and the freighter that came with the starship Swiftsure was able to head back to Helionia on a wide parabolic course that would keep it clear of any approaching trouble, unfortunately it also meant that it would not be able to warn them of any either. The Orion Defender landed close by the portal, while for the Swiftsure this was unnecessary as it had a Matter Transporter.
Jean Connors immediately advised Tyler that it was now both possible and safe to come through the portal and board the Orion Defender, as long as they used space suits.
“Thanks Jean, there are five space suits over here so Caroline, Argo and our friendly android Data, will come through first, carrying the three children, as they cannot be expected to walk in adult space suits, and then they will return with space suits for the four of us still here on the planet. Leave the link open just in case something comes up, I will turn the volume way up so all you have to do is shout and we will hear you.” Tyler said to Jean.
“Ok Tyler I will, oh what about the Pallas`s will they also require suits?” Jean asked.
“No, two members of the Swiftsure are bringing space suits down to Marot and Patina Pallas, unfortunately they only have four suits and so we will just have to be patient.” Tyler replied.
The two crewmen from the Swiftsure walked out of the tunnel carrying space suits for the Pallas`s and helped them to put them on. Just before he closed his helmet, Marot asked one of the crewmembers a question.
“Try out your Phaser on that large rock outside of the tunnel, see if it working.”
The crew members took out his Phaser from his holster attached to his belt and fired a bolt of energy that caused the rock to explode into a mass of small pieces. Marot Pallas then gave the two crewmembers another order.
“Please give your two Phasers to Tyler Burrows, that gentleman to your right, just in case a beast of the dark domain chooses this moment to attack him or one of his friends.”
The crewmembers after looking at one another for a moment handed the two weapons across to Tyler.
“You never know what will happen on this dangerous trip of ours Tyler, Data can return them when he comes back aboard.” Marot Pallas said smiling.
“Thank you Marot, I feel a little less naked now with a couple of working Phasers to rely on.” Tyler said.
“From what I saw of you I cannot believe that anything scares you, apart from missing family members that is, goodbye for now we will speak later.” Marot said, and then entered the tunnel, but halfway down he turned to smile at his new friends before continuing.
Caroline and Argo had put on their own space suits, and were now assisting the others who were occupied with the task of ‘loading’ the three young children into the remaining space suits. The children were a little apprehensive as they disappeared into the suits but Caroline looked down into each of the three suits and whispered words of encouragement to her children.
“You will soon be safe aboard the Defender and out of these suits, then as soon as your daddy is aboard we can all go home my sweets.” The children all beamed at her, happy to be part of this adventure, now that it was all over.
“It is time to be off darling, we will be waiting here for you to return with space suits for us.” Tyler said to his wife who nodded from within her space suit.
Picking up Callisto, Caroline turned around and walked deeper into the portal followed by Argo, who carried Perseus, and Data who had no need for a space suit, who carried Apollo, and then they were all gone. The Helionians had already departed the dark domain, leaving the four friends eager to be on their way home.
Ray Connors caught sight of Caroline and the others coming out from the portal from his position on the ship`s bridge and shouted down to Jean.
“They will be at the air lock in just a minute Jean, be ready to take the children off them so that they can return back for the others immediately, with four of our own space suits.”
“Ok Ray, don`t worry so, I am ready for them down here.” Jean replied.
It was as Caroline and the others stepped through the outer airlock that Ray saw the long distance sensors begin to register the tracks of three large approaching starships, and just to reinforce this, a message came through the radio from the Swiftsure.
“Orion Defender we are tracking three powerful space cruisers that are on course for this moon, you will have to abort your rescue mission for now, that is probably Ares Fortuna on board the leading one, and while he will probably leave us alone, I think that he will come in shooting, as far as you are concerned.” The voice was that of Aswan Trajan, and Ray concurred with its sentiments.
Ray quickly warned engineering that they were lifting off now, and then after insuring that the outer airlock door was closed the Orion Defender roared off, quietly of course as they were in the vacuum of space, and Ray gave a very quick message to his waiting friends within the dark domain.
“Tyler we have the first party aboard the ship, but three very large Helionian space cruisers are approaching this moon rather quickly, so we are heading across into the dark nebula, out.”
The Orion Defender entered hyperspace at the same time as Ray heard the heavy footsteps that came up the stairs two at a time, that it was Caroline still clad in her space suit was very clear, but he paid no attention to her imminent arrival as he headed for the dark nebula, and the relative safety that it offered.
“Ray what on earth are you doing, Tyler and the others are still trapped within the dark domain?” Caroline demanded to know angrily.
“I am running from those three Helionian space cruisers on the screen Caroline.” Ray replied.
Caroline immediately regretted doubting her friend and moved over to the weapon`s console.
Jean, who had also run up the stairs to ascertain whether her husband was going mad, sat down in the co-pilots seat.
“I will let them begin to chase after us, so as to lead them away from the moon and then I will turn on the cloaking device Ray.” Jean said, she too was feeling rather guilty, as her thoughts had been similar to Caroline`s.
“Good thinking Jean, but be ready to turn that off the moment before we enter into the nebula, we don`t want to damage the cloak or the rest of the Defender on whatever makes up that cloud ahead.” Ray said to his wife, although he knew that he needn`t have worried, for she knew as much about flying into nebulae as he did.
“Have you told Tyler about the space cruisers Ray?” Caroline asked, very contritely after her verbal attack on her friend.
“Yes I radioed down before we entered hyperspace, it was lucky for us that we didn`t break the connection, so all I had to do was shout in the general direction of the microphone.
Within the dark tunnel, Tyler and the others looked at each other for just a moment before moving away from the portal and back into the dark domain. As they walked back along the track, they of course came to what little remained of the kidnappers and Tyler thought they might take a moment to overcome their squeamishness and search for evidence as to their identity, it could help Marot Pallas to prove just who was behind the crime committed against him. Thankfully, there were very little human remains left, and unfortunately, anything else had been carried away by the scavengers of this land. However, they did find two things of use upon the body that they had dragged out of the portal, a map of the dark domain and a wallet telling them that the dead man`s name was Hanson, nothing more. Tyler looked at the map for a moment and studied it.
“There is the portal where we entered the domain and here is the second portal we used, This must be the maintenance portal here, and these smaller opening must be service portals for the staff to use while the larger openings shown on this map must be the portals meant for visitors like us.” Tyler said.
“And are we going to continue to use them Tyler?” Appolon asked, but already knowing the answer.
“No, we will try the staff entrances where possible. I ha
ve some good news to impart to you all; Marot Pallas believes this to be a planet in orbit around a sun set within the dark nebula. Ray Connors told us that that was where he was taking the Defender, and as Caroline was with me when Marot gave me the information, then I should think that we can expect to hear from them eventually. As for Ares Fortuna, his religion should bar him from entering into the nebula and hampering the next rescue attempt. Now let`s move off before some of Ares Fortuna`s crew arrive, because I believe they will come shooting to kill.”
Up on the Defender, Caroline was telling the Connors much the same thing.
“So Ray all we need to do is to keep an eye open for a sun with a ringed gas giant, which also has a largish moon in orbit around it that has a breathable atmosphere. We shouldn`t need to worry about the three starships Ray, as it is against their religion to enter into the nebula.” Caroline said just a little happier now that she had thought matters out.
Jean thought about the last time that they had hidden inside of a nebula; it too was to escape from enemy warships. The mere thought of the Jeanette`s final moments brought tears to her eyes, for that old tramp of a freighter had been home to her and Ray for so very long.
Argo, Data and the children now appeared fresh from shedding their space suits, and all anxious for news of Tyler and the others. Caroline told them the news, but added that as they knew approximately where the planet of the dark domain was, that is within a few tens of light years which she didn`t add, they would soon all be reunited.
“I think that it must be somewhere near to the moon that we just left, and that we should concentrate our search in this section of the nebula first.” Caroline said to the others.
Just then a message came into them from Dave Reynolds commanding the starship Freedom, he had been listening in to all that had happened on the moon, and was just on the other side of the wormhole and ready to give any help that they required, all they had to do was ask.
“Ask and we could start an intergalactic war, I`m afraid everyone, that we are in this alone. We cannot even acknowledge receipt of the message, as it will bring the Helionian space cruisers down on us.” Ray Connors stated grimly.
“Dave Reynolds will know that we are probably cloaked, and he will not expect us to answer the message unless we need him, he may even have sent the message knowing that Ares Fortuna will have translated it, so as to make him think twice about attacking us again.” Jean said to the downcast faces around her.
Ares Fortuna received a message from his spy aboard the Swiftsure telling him that the alien Tyler Burrows and three of his friends were still trapped within the dark domain. Only the alien woman and her children plus a single savage had so far escaped to board the alien starship, although Marot and Patina Pallas were aboard the Swiftsure and heading back to Helionia. With Magi lying very ill within her cabin aboard the starship Dagger, Ares Fortuna did not dare to attack the Swiftsure for fear of being haunted by the spirits of any Helionians that he killed. Instead, he ordered the second space cruiser to send a landing party through the portal to kill the aliens, while he chased after the alien starship. As the Dark Nebula slowly caught up with the Orion Defender, as it raced across space to the relative safety of the nebula before it, the Orionist starship disappeared from view as if by magic.
“Where did they go Captain?” Ares Fortuna asked. Captain Ragusa who was in command of the starship turned to one of his crew who was operating the sensors on the ship.
“Typhon did you see what happened to the Orionist ship?”
“There was a large increase in their power output, just for a moment, and then the ship disappeared off the screen sir.” Typhon answered, more than a little baffled by what he had seen. “They certainly didn`t blow up, for I would be able to detect what was left of the starship on my instruments.”
“By the gods they must have some sort of cloaking device.” Captain Ragusa said in amazement.
“How in hell could a ship like that have such sophisticated technology Captain?” Ares Fortuna asked, he too was a just a little astonished by what had happened.
“I have no idea sir but if their people also have this level of technology, then maybe we should be trading with them instead of declaring war upon them.” Captain Ragusa suggested, in awe at such technology in the hands of an enemy.
“Captain, they destroyed our people just a few years ago, in an unprovoked attack upon the survivors of our once great fleet, and just so their evil scientists could mess about with things they didn`t understand. Our ancestors were then forced to struggle through fifty thousand years of hell just to get back to our present level of civilisation, we are not going to reward such mass murderers by trading with them, is that clear Captain?” Fortuna shouted all of this so very loudly and so very angrily that even the crew elsewhere on the starship heard him.
Captain Ragusa visibly paled and whispered his apologies to his general for even thinking such thoughts, but privately he had misgivings about any operation against such a foe that possessed such technology.
On board the Orion Defender, Ray altered course to a heading that would take them into the nebula at a more oblique angle after Jean had turned on the cloaking device, this was to confuse any sort of search once they had entered the nebula, which came ever nearer.