“Understood.”

Setting down the cube she had had worked to translate each key and sketch out a diagram of them. The language was easier to pick up on with guidance o course and she found that many of the words that she had been reading corresponded to a related substance within the same class …

Vodka was actually code for a specific form of high grade fuel whereas bird might might translate into another animal entirely. Learning the pigeon was easier or her since she understood Russian and though she did not know the other language she did not need to know it in full and did have the cube to assist her.

It still took hours of work to make any real progress and there were more then one case where she had to pass the cube over the screen to translate something that had been unclear.

“Hm. It seems as if you typed in the wrong thing here … you pulled up work on the cyro grenades that I discovered at the same time as the cube. I had my assistant input the figures into the terminal while working on the Aschen cube. Easy enough to go back a page though. It was more important to me to work on the cube ...”

“We have a bit of a problem …” Colette returned at this time appraising Alex of the situation. “There's a ship inbound. We have captured those that had been using this base but passive scans have estimated that the craft is on a direct course. It is a mid sized freighter. Shields and weapons are not powered up and we have our lone fighter pilot on stand by right now. ETA will be another half hour I it stays at the current speed and trajectory.

“It shouldn't be a challenge for a fighter though nor can it out run one for long. It is at the edge of the system right now and hasn't been alerted or commed yet since it is still at long range and could turn tail and run before our ships got to it.

“For the moment our Lieutenant has ordered you to get on standby and is monitoring the vessel, letting it get a bit closer and seeing if it keeps on course before hailing it and intercepting it encase it is pirates or slavers so we can intercept it and get better readings with passive scans first before close with it.”

What took hours would have taken weeks without the aid of the cube. She made notes on a data pad to provide Colette and the other agents working at the site. If Alexandra had to leave for any reason, there would be a log explaining what she learned of the code in detail.

Colette arrived with further orders. The cube turned off when Alexandra set it down, giving the Doctor her full attention. Hearing about a ship coming this way made her heart sink. This would not be the first time a site she went to was invaded. Tension rose as her heart began to beat faster. "Yes, ma'am," Alexandra replied, getting up quickly to head for the small hangar.

Already suited up, the agent slipped off her lab coat and was sitting in the cockpit of her scout vessel. The ship was powered up, engines ready to take off at a moments notice. She kept coms open, waiting for further orders on whether this ship was peaceful or needed to be shot down.

The minutes ticked by with her in the hanger. The ship steadily getting closer until it hit the point of no return where it could not get clear of the various gravity wells in the system to make a jump into subspace before the ADD vessels could catch up and deal with the threat.

Once that point was reached those at the base waited just a bit longer to make that fact obvious to any enemy vessel. Focused scans were used at that stage as were comms that were sent. The radio on Alex's ship sprang to life and it was from the other fighter.

“No response from hails. It may be that the ship's comm is down. It isn't trying to run or pick up speed so we're going to check it out. Do not fire. Even if fired upon break away until we are authorized to return fire. You're on my wing.”

Anise Suvak had pretty much guessed she was the better pilot. She was trained for this sort of thing and that was why the captain was on “base” after all.

Before they took off though Anise relayed the factors that were important that she had been briefed on. “The only power signatures coming in are from the engines and ray shielding (which shielded a craft from physical objects like space debris and micro asteroids but not energy weapons that passed straight through them).

“There is minimal power to the life support but pretty much no other signs have been detected on it.”

The ship did not seem to respond to them in any way as it ploughed straight ahead. It did not answer hails and did not open fire against them. Orders came in to the captain.

“Alright. Target the engines. I just got the authorization to disable it and dock with it afterward. Just more paper work if you ask me but we can't just blow it to hell either.”

Alexandra took off, following Anise's lead as the two ADD spacecraft moved to intercept the freighter. The ship no weapons online or anything really. Supposedly there were no life signs which should bring up several red flags though Anise seemed to ignore them all. For now though, the agent opened fire on the engines, disabling the ship and keeping it from crashing right into the planet or worse the base.

"Agent Suvak," Alexandra hailed, "This is a medium sized freighter that had a course set directly for this particular planet and place. Whoever set that course knows about this place. There could be hibernating droids that run this ship or the crew could have perished through disease. We should not dock with an unknown empty vessel without further information. It is no longer at risk of crashing into the base. We can continue to observe and call for further support. We need a team for the possible dangers, not two unprepared agents."

“Or a life form the sensors aren't calibrated to detect.” Anise had not liked this either and the immediate threat was dealt with. If the ship held hibernated crew there was no telling how many had been on board. Normally though between crew and passengers about two dozen individuals could be on there and they were merely two agents.

“It's good not being the only agent out here for a chance … I have my orders and as you know orders don't always make sense but hold on.” There was a delay for a few minutes as she contacted their temporary base.

“Change of plans. The threat has been neutralized for the time being. Eventual the momentum of the ship will carry it beyond the planet but not for quite awhile. Our shots veered it off course.

“Others are being sent out here just in case and if there is any hibernation chambers on hand they want someone with tech skills with them. Return to base, they want me to sit on the ship in the event something happens “

When she got back to the base Colette joined her in the hanger. “Something happened. The cube lit up with blue light then went dead all of a sudden. I don't know if it had something to do with the ship entering the system or what not but I cannot access the device to find out.”

Well this agent was smart enough to listen to reason. The last thing they needed was to send both pilots on a suicide mission, leaving the rest of the team stranded and undefended on planet. Alexandra returned to base only to be told something happened to the only device they have working so far. It was still annoying and confusing why this cube only worked when the Russian agent touched it.

The agent returned to the console where the cube was and took it in hand. "Agent Colette said you lit up while I was away," she began, "What happened?" May as well ask directly in hopes of getting a direct answer in return. Otherwise, she had nothing to go off of until reinforcements arrive to look at the disabled ship.

The holograph came to life when Alex grasped it. The elderly man nodded to confirm this information as he stroked his beard. “Indeed. I've been programmed more or less by the same process that the Aschen used. It was one of their sensors . Unfortunately since I was programmed by a non Aschen I only have a limited knowledge of their tech.

“Fortunately I do know some of it though. I was scanned … Aschen sensor technology tried to pinpoint this device. It had tried to access me remotely for whatever reason. Like a remote starter for a star ship.”

It seemed as if the device lacked the particulars. Whether the scan came from the ship that they had just disabled or not was another thing though it was likely if it had Anise would have been alerted and probably alerted the base already to any changes going on out here.

“The scan was brief though and more a scan of a general area rather than me specifically. This would imply that someone is on a ship near here or on the planet already using other scanning devices. Perhaps you can piggy back the signal so to speak. It is no longer active but you could figure out where it originated from.”

"That will not be necessary," Alexandra replied, "There is only one place the scan could come from..." The only place that could possibly have the technology was newly arriving cruiser. Why it had Aschen tech and why it was searching for this place was unknown. The agent reported what she found to Colette. "Whatever is on that cruiser includes an Aschen scanner of some sort," Alexandra stated, "Whoever is up there knows something about this base and is after what is here. I suggest you have the reinforcement hurry up before things get worse." Anise can keep the cruiser disabled at least.

The holograph nodded and winked out as Alex went to make her report. What amounted from it though wouldn't get back to her for a few minutes at least as Colette noted this and had to check with Anise then contact Antares to check on those reinforcements.

Apparently according to Anise there were no scans coming from the disabled ship that she tried to hail every five minutes or so to see if they had managed to repair their com yet. Engine damage was significant and would take them quite a while to repair if they had a miracle worker on board and the parts though she doubted they could be fixed. Every so often she scanned the craft to ensure that things were still powered down as far as she knew.

Reinforcements were hastening to their position now and she was even told that Luna wasn't too far out. But if not from the ship who launched the scan. It was then that a klaxon blared while she was with Colette and she was updating Alex on matters.

This place was not always a pirate base after all and was a lab at once stage. One of which had an alarm sounded Colette determined which by accessing on of the computers.

“Lab three!” She had some basic training with a pistol as did many of the scientists here though it was clear that they were only “green” she was carrying a small powered energy pistol though and grabbed Alex who had been better trained at least. “Lets go!”

She would lead the way to a lab. There were crates here that stored some of the tech though what they saw had been a series of green slime smeared on the walls and about a body. Closer inspection showed that there was a clean slice to the back of the neck.

The scientist was face down in slime but near an emergency alarm, a panic button on the wall that had been in each lab …

Questions of how anything got to the surface much less inside the lab would have to wait as both agents headed for Lab three. Seeing the downed body bleeding from the back of the neck, there was no point in entering the lab any further. Whoever or whatever attacked the lab used lethal force. Just like with the cruiser, there was nothing to gain going in there alone for a corpse. "If it is still in there, we are better off sealing this lab," Alexandra said, pressing the key to shut the door, "I suggest you get your people together, now."

Colette nodded. Indeed it had been a mystery to her as to what was going on here as well. At the back of the lab in the darkness had been a clue though there had been no way of realizing it as the lab was closed off.

Everyone was gathered together in the area that was used as a cafeteria by the pirates. Six in all, there had been 8 in total though one of the scientists were dead and Anise was out in space.

“There's an intruder on the base?”

“How long until the reinforcements get here?”

“How many are we dealing with?”

“Will someone shut off that alarm already!”

The scientists were out of their element and it was clear that she had the most training of the lot, other than the pilot perhaps as far as ship to ship combat went. Alex could surmise that she had basic training and plenty of other skills with a specialty in piloting space craft. The women were looking towards her for answers though Colette had a few to offer.

“Three or four hours before reinforcements get here … at least that is what I have calculated from the main group. They're not all together and some are coming from closer systems so can be here sooner. If we could get a message out to them they could hasten that time, perhaps even cut it in half.”

There was no reason to look to Alexandra as Colette was the commanding agent. The ADD would not send a leader with no experience to handle green agents. "If they are not already going as fast as possible after reporting that we were attacked by a cruiser, then I question which side the ADD is on," Alexandra replied, "We are not equipped to fight anything down here. We can get in my ship and join Anise out in orbit. Their ship is disabled, they have no means of escape even if they did take something from the labs."

That was Alexandra alternative. They retreat until the others arrive. There was no reason to stay here with whatever unknown was lurking about waiting to strike. Her small scout ship would leave no places for anyone to hide.

Colette was in a bit of a bind. She figured that the other ships weren't coming at a leisurely pace but she had been under orders not to abandon the place either for reasons she had not been at liberty to discuss. Yet at the same time under the circumstances there was no need for the others to stay.

Anise had that ship locked down out there but there was already a scientist dead.

“Agent Losev, get these women out of here. I am under orders to stay and will do so. Coordinate with Captain Suvak. She will be in command until the others arrive. Dismissed.”

The others were nonessential to the task that she had though there may have been those that wished to argue with her none had following the chain of command and joining Alex. Soon the seven women were on their way to the hanger.

The single hall led to it, a red flashing light still went off from the alarm that was still sounding. Up ahead as they grew closer to the hanger Alex could hear movement, something shuffling about the hanger. There was a scurrying sound that seemed to be coming from the wall itself for a brief moment at least. Then silence from the wall and the hanger up ahead.

“Did anyone hear that?” One of the women whispered as Alex noted that there was sweet forming on her brow. If not for her suit she may have noticed the increase in temperature sooner though it wasn't unbearable it did rise a good deal.

Alexandra had no say in this it seemed as Colette pulled rank. The busty agent had no choice but to lead the other six women to the hangar. The agent felt and heard movement coming from ahead and in the walls. There was not much that could be done. All the agents were lightly armed and would have to hope to overwhelm whatever comes there way. "Just keep your eyes open," she answered, "We just have to get to the ship and off the surface."

The Russian woman took point as she opened the double doors leading to the hangar. Pistol at the ready, she was ready to open fire on any hostiles coming her way. With Colette deeper in the labs and Anise in orbit, whoever else was down here were the enemy and would be dealt as such.

A shot hit the thing that was positioned near her ship as if it were on guard here but turned and looked as if it were responding to the sensation that it's sensors told it rather than actually being significantly damaged. There was a scorch mark from the blaster and other shots came in though most were off the mark.

It was the machine that she had seen earlier in the lab. The war machine though not only did it appear active it was armed as evident by the wrist mounted flame thrower that gave rise to more than a few screams as it tracked her movement as the series of lights beneath the visor all built up a red glow before firing forth a laser.

HALT. SURRENDER OR PERISH. The mechanical voice rang out to Alex as if the extreme attacks it responded with was nothing thus far.

There was the crackling of the fire, the smell of burning flesh as well as the mechanical clank of the machine's movements. There was also that scurrying sound within the walls. A quick head count had shown that only two of the other scientists were still alive though the machine was moving towards her position.