by M. D. Cooper
REGION: Iapetus, Hercules System, Septhian Alliance
“So how does it feel, Chief Warrant Officer Second Grade?” Rika asked Niki as she looked at herself in the mirror after brushing her hair.
“How do Potter and Dredge feel?”
Rika ran a hand through her blonde hair, reveling in its feel before pulling it tight and wrapping it into a bun. “I have asked them, and they’re almost too effusive in their gratitude. I’m seeking other opinions.”
“And it looks like the ship AIs are going to accept, as well. Major Tim managed to get his head out of his ass and negotiate a good deal with Cora.”
“Well, got his head mostly out of his ass, at least.”
“She is? I got the impression from you that her signing on wasn’t a guarantee.”
“Seriously?” Rika’s brow lowered, her face darkening as it scowled back at her in the mirror. “You think you need to play me like that, Niki? After all we’ve been through?”
A strange feeling of anxiety came from Niki.
“Trust begets trust, Niki. I’ve trusted you with my life, and I know you’ve placed yours in me, too. Let’s not ruin that by allowing doubt to creep in.”
Rika wondered about Niki’s answer. It was too pat. She hadn’t forgotten about some of the things that the AI had hinted at when talking about the AI rebellion.
Still, it was like they always said: fear and doubt were the mind killers. She couldn’t dwell on concerns like that before the mission.
Rika grabbed her helmet, slotted it onto the anchor on her hip, and exited her quarters. The halls were empty, and a minute later, she walked out of the officer’s housing into a veritable wall of sound.
Squads of mechs were double-timing it across the fields to their dropships, loading up for the trip to the Golden Lark. Others were crossing the airstrip to directly board the Perseid’s Dream, which was still resting on the planet’s surface. Cargo haulers were dropping down, while others lifted off.
It was glorious, organized chaos.
“This is one crazy shit-ball you’ve signed us up for,” a voice growled from Rika’s left.
She turned to see Barne scowling at the scene before him. “You ready for it? It’s going to be a tough run for a squishie. No one will fault you if you hold back.”
Barne coughed and scowled at her. “Seriously, Rika? Might as well tell everyone about how I got a piggyback ride from you that one time. Top is first in and last out. Doesn’t matter what my body’s made of.”
Rika reached back and slapped Barne on the shoulder. “I didn’t expect you to take me up on the offer. Especially since Chase and Leslie are going, too.”
“Of course they are. Who would miss the chance to kill so many Niets and then steal their starships?”
“Good point.”
Rika gave one last look at Fort Hammerfall, which would be staffed by a skeleton crew of Marauders from the ships and mechs not recovered enough for combat.
I’ll be back, she thought while walking down the steps. We all will.
BRIEFING
STELLAR DATE: 08.15.8949 (Adjusted Gregorian)
LOCATION: Golden Lark
REGION: Hercules System, Septhian Alliance
Five hours later, Rika walked through the Golden Lark on her way to M Company’s briefing room.
The ‘Lark and the ‘Dream were boosting hard for their slingshot around Armens, and the ships thrummed from the reactors running hot and grav systems dampening the gs for the crews.
She believed that the Niets hiding within Armens’ clouds would grow suspicious as the two Marauder ships approached for their slingshot maneuver. But there were no other SAF ships on similar vectors, and no one would expect two ships to attack ten. Of course, the Marauders weren’t attacking with their ships….
Rika had scoured the archives over the prior day, looking for similar missions performed deep within the clouds of a gas giant. She’d only found a few, and most were on stationary platforms hanging down into the clouds. Rarely had there been attacks on ships inside gas giants, let alone ten well-armed military vessels.
And absolutely none with mechs involved.
Nevertheless, she gathered what she could, looking at the pitfalls, failed attacks, ineffective strategies.
There were only two reasons to hit a ship in such a dangerous location—capture or kill. Most of the successful missions had ‘kill’ as their objective.
Tucking a ship into the gravity well of a gas giant was far simpler than capturing it and pulling it out.
While Rika was aiming for capture, she’d take kill if they had to. David had worked out a very favorable contract with the Septhians: the Marauders could keep half the cruisers they saved, and all the destroyers.
Bringing General Mill new additions to his fleet, along with a handsome payout, would help mitigate any wrath he may feel at knowing his AIs were all going to be freed very soon.
She reached the briefing room’s door and walked in without hesitation.
Inside were thirty-five Marauders; with the exception of Chase, Leslie, Barne, and Dala, all were mechs. It was quite the sight, and Rika felt a smile form on her lips.
As she stepped up behind the podium, ten holographic figures appeared along the side of the room. Some appeared as people, others simply as columns of light.
They were the ten AIs who would make this mission possible. Each would be placed within a mech, who would make guarding that AI their top priority on the mission.
Few mechs had the internal mods to accept an AI, and of those, not all were comfortable with having an AI inside their bodies. As a result, a few privates were in the room to hear what their part in all this would be.
The four additional AIs who had signed on all ended up being civilians, not members of the SAF. Rika had found herself glad at that outcome. It meant that there would be no conflicting loyalties, and each had temporary contracts with the Marauders.
Even better, all of the new AIs—Carter, Airin, Nedly, and Willa—were formerly from Genevia, displaced by the diaspora years ago. All had a bone to pick with the Nietzscheans, and all understood the risks.
Rika grasped the podium with her left hand and nodded to the assembly. “Some of you know what we’re up against, others have only heard through scuttlebutt. I’ll give it to you straight. This is a volunteer op. Every Marauder will have the opportunity to sit this one out—not that I expect any to.”
Rika saw many heads nod in agreement and felt a sense of pride well within her as she continued.
“There are ten Nietzschean ships in this system. Six cruisers and four destroyers. They’re hiding like the cowards they are, tucked deep within the clouds of Armens, the jovian planet we’re on course for. SAF has worked to plot their positions, and we’re going to drop in during a slingshot maneuver. From there, we’ll come around the planet and breach their ships.
“Sensors will be shit in the clouds, so we’re going to depend on a coded relay coming from the SAF to be our eyes. However, the Niets are laying low, so they won’t be running active scan. We should be able to hit them all simultaneously.”
Rika looked at Lieutenant Heather. “Your pilots are going to have to pull out all the stops. They’ll need to find solid grapple on the surface of those ships, and
hold on tight. We may need to evac any ships that we can’t pull out of the clouds.”
Heather nodded somberly. “They can do it. What’re the details on the Niets’ shields?”
“Low power is the guess,” Rika replied. “Major Dala?”
Major Dala stood, her pink hair making her look like a flower, rising above a field of black and grey.
“We’re not running active scan, either,” she said. “Not ‘til the last minute when you’re closing on the Niets. However, we’re certain that their shields are on low power—just enough to hold the atmosphere back. Any more, and we’d see the grav waves rippling through Armens’ atmosphere.”
“How dense is it where they’re hiding?” Heather asked. “And how are you sure they’re running shields?”
“They’re in one of the belts, where the gases fall back down into the planet. The second one up from the equator,” Major Dala replied, gesturing at the holodisplay of Armens next to Rika. “Where they’re situated, it’s a little over five times Iapetus’s surface pressure. Not too dense, but enough that a ship’s hull can’t take the pressure without running shields.”
“OK.” Heather’s eyebrows were pinched, the way they always did when she was running equations. “Given their ship’s mass, structure, and those numbers—which I’ll review in more detail—I can make a guess at their shield strength. Our dropships can pass through them, but the Niets’ll know when we do. Can’t hide it.”
“I expected as much,” Rika said. “I’ve worked up squad configurations. Some rejiggering was necessary to get the AI-bearing mechs on each assault team. Single squads are going to hit the destroyers, while we’ll bulk up with extra fireteams on the cruisers.”
Rika pulled up diagrams of the ships, using data that the Marauders and SAF had on the vessels they believed they were facing.
From there, Barne rose and began discussing the ideal breach points on the ships. Of all the Marauders in the company, only he and two others had ever been aboard Nietzschean ships as anything other than captives.
Several of the platoon leaders posed questions about what they should expect to find inside the ships, and Barne answered them to the best of his abilities.
“Remember, people,” Rika said when Barne was finished. “Primary objective is to get your AI to the closest network access point, and then hold that point while they breach the security. Once the NSAIs are down, you should have the ability to go wireless. From there, you take engineering to ensure no local helm bypass. If you cannot take engineering, scuttle the ship and get off.”
“What happens if we can’t go wireless on the hack?” Lieutenant Travis asked.
Rika drew a deep breath. “That’s one of the points where you make the scuttle-or-not decision. On the cruisers we’ll have multiple teams at different breach points, so holding the physical network access point will be doable there. On the destroyers, you’ll have to make the call. However, we don’t need martyrs; if you can’t take engineering, and you can’t scuttle, do as much damage as possible, and then get off. Even if we take half the ships, the rest will have to come out and surrender, or spend the rest of their lives down there.”
“Where will the ‘Lark and the ‘Dream be?” Heather asked.
“Once we breach, there won’t be further need for subterfuge. They’ll boost back. There are also two SAF cruisers on patrol near Armens, and they’ll make for the planet, as well.
“Oh,” Rika laughed and looked at the AIs. “Don’t forget to change the ship’s broadcast when you pull above the clouds. Don’t want friendlies shooting at us.”
Rika fielded several other questions before no more hands rose. “OK, people, get your mechs in the sims and start running your breach points. I want everyone in the company to be able to walk backwards blindfolded to any place on those ships.”
She dismissed the company leadership, barring her HQ team.
“So, what do you think?” she asked. “Defending Hammerfall was just the warmup.”
Barne chuckled as he leaned against the bulkhead. “You can say that again. The destroyers alone could carry as many troops as we faced at Hammerfall.”
“Though they probably don’t,” Heather added.
Lieutenant Scarcliff nodded. “Smalls is right. The destroyers could carry a thousand, but a lot of those will be crew, not ground troops. They also won’t be armored up when we hit.”
“But they could be within minutes,” Tex, the company’s gunnery sergeant, added. “But I bet they won’t use the same level of ordnance we will.”
“Careful of that,” Leslie advised. “Don’t forget, the goal is to have these ships functional enough for the AIs to fly them out of Armens’ atmosphere. If we shoot them to shit, chances are we’ll blow away their network access, and this’ll be a waste of time.”
Tex grinned. “Well, we’ll be sure to be all discriminate when it comes to what we shoot the shit out of. I bet it’ll still be a hell of a lot more than they will.”
“Granted.” Scarcliff nodded. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I feel like I should be worried, yet somehow I’m not. Those Niets are going to shit themselves silly when they see a mech breach team hit their ships. Stars, I wish I was on The Van’s assault team. Can you imagine seeing a K1R come around the corner on a starship?”
Barne barked a laugh. “It’s gonna be classic. I’ll be sure to record their expressions for you.”
“Can’t help but think you planned the assignments that way, Top.”
Barne gave Scarcliff a roguish grin. “Who says I didn’t? And who said you can call me ‘Top’?”
“Barne, I’m the company’s XO.”
“So?”
GOODBYE BASILISK
STELLAR DATE: 08.19.8949 (Adjusted Gregorian)
LOCATION: Golden Lark
REGION: Approaching Armens, Hercules System, Septhian Alliance
Rika stood in her office and couldn’t keep her face from wearing a big, stupid grin. “You three mean so much to me…can you believe that we met just a half a year ago?”
Chase raised a finger. “I met you further back than that.”
“Yeah, but not too much before that—minus my stint in cryo.”
Chase shrugged. “Was over two years ago, actually.”
Rika rolled her eyes. “I’m trying to be all poignant, here.”
“You sure you know what that means?” Barne smirked.
Leslie smacked a palm into the back of Barne’s head. Then she looked at Chase and smacked him as well. “Just like the boys, gotta ruin the moment.”
“We’re having a moment?” Barne asked. “I’m not kissing anyone.”
“What about a hug?” Rika asked. “I know you’re all badass and everything, but I don’t think it would kill you to hug someone.”
Chase chuckled and punched Barne in the shoulder. “Not sure about that. It might.”
“Sheesh, why’s everyone hitting me? And I hug plenty of people. Women. Right before I fuck their brains out.”
“Ha!” Rika laughed. “There’s the Barne we’ve all come to know and love.”
“No love,” Barne retorted. “That leads to hugging. Remember, no hugging unless I get to fuck your brains out, and you’re both off-limits.” He glared at Leslie and Rika as he spoke.
Leslie sidled up to Barne. “Why am I off-limits?”
“Les! Damn. Stop that! You’re like fucking kryptonite. I could die if you touch me.”
Leslie took a step back and cocked her head at Barne, then Rika. “Kryptonite? What the hell is that?”
Chase leaned close to Leslie and whispered loudly in her ear. “It means he finds you so damn attractive that he can barely function when you’re around.”
Halfway through Chase’s explanation—which he delivered with a goofy smile plastered across his face—Barne yelled for him to stop, but Chase only raised his voice to carry over Barne’s.
When he was done, Barne’s face had darkened, and Leslie was staring at him with wi
de eyes.
“Seriously, Barne?” she asked.
Barne kept his eyes locked on Leslie’s. “Well, you’re the most attractive woman on the ship, it’s perfectly natural to be attracted to a beautiful woman.”
“What about the tail?” Leslie asked as her tail rose and touched Barne’s neck.
“Leslie! Stop it! Seriously.” Barne swatted her tail away. “We have to go on a mission. I can’t have your sexy tail in my head the whole time.”
Rika wasn’t sure if Barne was playing with Leslie or not. He did sometimes make comments about how she was always slinking about. But the comments always seemed derisive, or at least critical.
Of course, that’s exactly how someone would hide feelings they knew they shouldn’t have.
Leslie pulled her tail down, a worried look on her face.
Rika’s eyes locked on Leslie’s.
“OK,” Rika said aloud. “Let’s table whatever the hell just happened here and get our heads in the game. We have a job to do and a company to lead. We’re going to get in there, secure ten core-damned starships, and kick the Niets in the teeth while we’re at it.”
Barne grunted. “Lots and lots of teeth kicking.”
Everyone put a hand in the center of their small circle, and called out at the same time, “Rika’s Marauders!”
Everyone except for Rika, who still said “Team Basilisk!”
Barne shook his head. “You really gotta get onboard with that name.”
“I…uh.” Rika felt a flush rising on her cheeks. “OK, let’s try it again.”
They put their hands out again, and this time all four called out, “Rika’s Marauders!” together.
Rika felt stupid and proud at the same time, but the expressions on her friends’ faces filled her with confidence.
