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Chapters (42)
  1. Cover Blurb
  2. Contents
  3. Chapter One
  4. Chapter Two
  5. Chapter Three
  6. Chapter Four
  7. Chapter Five
  8. Chapter Six
  9. Chapter Seven
  10. Chapter Eight
  11. Chapter Nine
  12. Chapter Ten
  13. Chapter Eleven
  14. Chapter Twelve
  15. Chapter Thirteen
  16. Chapter Fourteen
  17. Chapter Fifteen
  18. Chapter Sixteen
  19. Chapter Seventeen
  20. Chapter Eighteen
  21. Chapter Nineteen
  22. Chapter Twenty
  23. Chapter Twenty-One
  24. Chapter Twenty-Two
  25. Chapter Twenty-Three
  26. Chapter Twenty-Four
  27. Chapter Twenty-Five
  28. Chapter Twenty-Six
  29. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  30. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  31. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  32. Chapter Thirty
  33. Chapter Thirty-One
  34. Chapter Thirty-Two
  35. Chapter Thirty-Three
  36. Chapter Thirty-Four
  37. Chapter Thirty-Five
  38. Chapter Thirty-Six
  39. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  40. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  41. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  42. Chapter Forty

It was nearly thirty minutes before a giant modern carrier, surrounded by a dozen frigates, approached Ark Royal.  Ted smiled as her IFF – USS Enterprise – popped up on the display.  Like most American carriers, she was overpowered and over-engineered ... and, like all of the other modern carriers, hopelessly vulnerable if faced with alien starfighters.  Ted felt his smile grow wider as electronic handshakes were exchanged, confirming that neither ship was under alien control.  Whatever he was offered, he was damned if he was exchanging Ark Royal for any modern starship.

“They're asking what the hell we've attached to our hull,” Annie said, finally.

Ted smirked.  “Tell them it’s several billion pounds worth of prize money,” he said.  He wished, suddenly, that he’d thought to fly the skull and crossbones.  Too late now.  “And ask them for an escort back to Earth.”

He sat back as the giant carrier turned back towards Earth, her starfighters flying past Ark Royal in welcome.  They’d made it.

They were home.

Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty

“You will not, I suspect, be pleased to learn that the media is besieging the Admiralty Building in London,” the First Space Lord said.  “Word of your exploits – and the capture of an alien ship – has leaked out and the world has gone crazy.”

Ted nodded, keeping his mouth firmly closed.  He would have bet good money, after meeting the PR staff assigned to the reporters, that the Admiralty had deliberately allowed the news to leak.  The human race needed good news and Ark Royal’s successful cruise through alien territory was the best they’d had in quite some time.  He had no doubt that the Admiralty would successfully minimise the simple fact that they'd come within bare millimetres of absolute disaster.

“The major interstellar powers have also contributed to a prize money fund,” the First Space Lord continued.  “I dare say your crew will be happy.”

Ted nodded, feeling an unfamiliar twinge of gratitude for British diplomacy.  Ten percent of the prize money went to him, ten percent went to the Marines and the remainder was shared out evenly among the crew.  With contributions flowing in from all over the human sphere, even the lowliest crewman could look forward to becoming an instant millionaire.  Taxes might have been raised to help fund the war effort – prize money wasn't tax-free, unfortunately – but they would still be quite wealthy.   Not a bad outcome, he knew, for a crew that had been scraped together from officers and men the Admiralty couldn't be bothered to discharge.

“Yes, sir,” he said.  “And the former prisoners?”

“Most of them came from Vera Cruz, as you summarised,” the First Space Lord said.  “The remainder came from the handful of smaller colonies the aliens hit and destroyed.  Their families have been informed, but they’ll be remaining in custody for the moment.”