* * *
Over half of the Fleet had already moved off leaving the battlecruiser CCS Crusader, the Santa Maria and a small number of cruisers, destroyers and gunboats in reserve. This strike force was the main force designated for the attack on Titan Naval Station and though it looked formidable to Admiral Jarvis it was a fraction of what she wanted for such a risky operation. Along the gun decks of the warship the gun ports were all open and the weapon system of each ship was ready for action.
In the Combat Information Centre of the CCS Crusader, General Rivers and Admiral Jarvis poured over the latest report on the operation. Most of the officers had now gone and there were less than a dozen people in the room, all of which were working through screens of information and managing the large collection of vessels.
Lieutenant Nilsson, a dark brown haired officer with distinctive, green-flecked brown eyes turned from her communications desk.
“Admiral, I’m receiving urgent messages from Titan Naval Station, the insurgents are calling for assistance from their comrades. Shall I jam their communications?”
“Negative, we need to split them off as much as we can, let the message through.”
The Lieutenant turned back to her display and continued to monitor communication between the ships. On the main three-dimensional tactical map the Admiral followed the open stages of the operation. They were only four hours in and the first wave were in battle around half of the small stations.
“Reports from Bunker Hill say that all five transports have started their ground assault. So far they have taken thirty-seven casualties and now have control of two stations. Resistance is stronger than expected but they are making solid progress. Captain Jones estimates around three hours to capture the remainder of the stations.”
“Good, that is a very good start,” replied the Admiral. She turned and looked at the tactical display, watching the movement of the vessels in orbit.
“Any news on Titan Naval Station, any movement?”
Lieutenant Nilsson connected to her opposite numbers on the other vessels, quickly collating data. “Negative, no movement on the vessels guarding the Station.”
“As expected, they are waiting for our main strike.” The Admiral picked up the intercom. “Captain Matthias, are your ships ready?”
“Affirmative, Ajax, Hector and Achilles are in position and weapons batteries are charged and ready.”
“Good work, Captain, send in your cruiser wing to Titan Naval Station immediately, we need to let them think this is the main attack. Pray to the gods that they take the bait and engage your forces. Do not leave the area until you have taken fire. I know this is a big request but I need you to take enough fire to warrant a withdrawal, make it look good, Captain.”
There was a brief pause before the Captain of the cruiser group returned.
“Understood, Admiral, we will put on a good show. We won’t leave the area until they think they are winning.”
“God speed, Captain,” said the Admiral replacing the intercom. General Rivers turned to her.
“If they are ready when we jump in we’ll face their full numbers before we can bring our guns to bear. We need to be patient, every minute we can add to their return trip will give us just that bit of extra time to deal with Victorious.”
“I understand, General, and I am aware of the difficulty your troops are facing on the stations. We will move in as soon as I am confident we have a chance of breaking through.”
The massive battlecruiser rumbled and a series of vibrations rattled through the warship. General Rivers turned to Lieutenant Nilsson who was evidently concerned.
“It’s the forward gun batteries, they are charging up their capacitors prior to battle. We can’t charge up all the batteries at once, not even on this ship,” he said with a stern grin.
The Admiral moved past the General, facing the communications officer.
“Lieutenant Nilsson, can you put me on the battlegroup’s intercom, it is speech time,” she said with as much humour as she could muster in such a serious situation.
“This is Admiral Jarvis. Approximately one hour ago elements of our task force began the first stages in the operation to retake the transit stations orbiting Proxima Prime. Our battlegroup, spearheaded by Crusader, will start our attack in less than ninety minutes. All medical teams are to report to their sections, marines will prepare to repel boarders and all gunners please check and recheck your weapons. This will be the first capital ship engagement since the Great War and if it is anything like historic encounters, we can expect heavy damage and casualties on both sides. Admiral Jarvis, out.”
She replaced the intercom and turned back to the tactical map. The display showed two-dozen vessels in position near the outer ring of stations around the planet. Several faster colours indicated the gunboats from the carrier Wasp. It was their job to provide cover from any potential attacks by smaller vessels. She turned back to the General.
“If for any reason we are unable to regain control of the Station I have been given full authorisation to neutralise Titan Naval Station and every soul on it. Her face showed that this wasn’t an option she really wanted to consider.
“Destroy the Station, do we even have the firepower to do that?”
“I have asked our engineers to run simulations and all they can tell me is that if we can mass all of our firepower on the Station we can render it useless after about sixty minutes of continuous bombardment. We can’t do anything more than make it unsuitable for life, General.”
“Perhaps if I could get commandos onto the Station they could place a number of thermite plasma charges at key locations and do the same job. It won’t be pretty, Admiral, but if the Crusader is busy we might not have the luxury of turning all the guns on the Station. What about the hostages?”
“We are to rescue them of course, unless this puts the Fleet in a position whereby we cannot end this revolt. Either way the capture of Titan Naval Station will be resolved, one way or the other,” she said as she turned back to the displays.
Siege of Titan (Star Crusades Uprising, Book 1) Page 20
