The Flames Of The Phoenix

Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Riley Stuart stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. He wrapped the towel around his waist wishing for a kimono when the alarms sounded. Security breach? What the hell? He had become convinced the elaborate security precautions taken by Astral-One were complete paranoia. Maybe they were right after all. It was hard to believe.

He pulled a fresh blue uniform from his closet. He dressed quickly and headed toward his general quarters post. The shortest route to his post took him past the situation room.

“Stuart!” He heard Jefferson, the operations manager, call his name through the open doorway and turned back to enter the room. He glanced at the screen on the main terminal and his eyes widened at what he saw there.

“Stuart, you’ve got more field experience than most of our men. I want you to go with Braithewaite and his team to catch this guy.”

“Yes, sir.” This should be fun, Riley thought. The major’s hatred for him since their practice match had become intense.

Braithewaite obviously was not pleased. “There shouldn’t be a problem, sir. It might be better if Captain Stuart stayed on his post.”

“Don’t argue, major. Just take him along.”