The Tanith Gambit

by Dietmar Wehr

  “Well it’s a good thing we decided to protect the missile boat Bridge and Engineering Control compartments with a thin layer of collapsed matter armor. If not for that, the near miss would have given all of us a lethal dose of radiation. As it is, we still got enough radiation to do this.” He point to the unbandaged side of his head which was bald. “The hair will grow back eventually and the anti-radiation meds will prevent more damage but I lost an eye to equipment exploding from EM pulse-induced power surges. The arm is pretty badly burnt too but at least I won’t lose it.” Trask felt a surge of sympathy for his friend. Sword World medical technology could regrow a new eye. He didn’t know if Marduk was able to do that but he did know that they hadn’t brought that level of medical expertise with them to Tanith and neither Amaterasu nor Beowulf could do it. Rather than dwell on the prospect of having only one eye for the rest of his life, Trask decided to change the subject.

  “Do you feel up to talking about the battle?” Harkaman nodded. Trask continued. “Okay then. I have a very rough and somewhat confusing idea of what happened. Suppose you brief me on the battle.” Harkaman spent the next five minutes describing in detail how the battle unfolded. Trask’s face turned white as a sheet when Harkaman described how a fluke caused the destruction of the other missile boat and the subsequent collapse of the counter-missile shield.

  “…by then we were so close that they didn’t have time to shift their targeting to my crippled boat and once they were past us, they were going too fast to be able to fire behind them and hit us.”

  “My God, Otto! What in Niffheim were you thinking taking chances like that? You’re too valuable to me to risk losing.” Harkaman shrugged then winced in pain.

  “I have a lot to make up for. Saving Marduk from being overrun and pillaged with who knows how many thousands of innocent victims, was worth the risk.” Trask understood how he felt. He himself felt the burden of guilt for all those innocents that had suffered from his raids and Otto had been a Space Viking for longer than he had and therefore had a lot more ghosts to appease.

  “You were lucky this time but I forbid you from ever doing something like that again! Is that understood?” After hesitating, Harkaman nodded again.

  “Do you think those surviving ships went on to Marduk?” asked Trask.

  “I doubt it. From what Boake told me, 21 ships jumped away but only 16 of them were still firing at the end. Considering that Viktor sent 10 ships to Marduk and only one came back, I’d be willing to bet that after losing half their ships here, they won’t risk losing the other half attacking a planet that has a much larger population and industrial base like Marduk. But that’s not what’s worrying me.” said Harkaman.

  “What is?”

  “I’m worried about the next wave of ships.”

  “I don’t understand, Otto. What next wave?” Harkaman sighed.

  “The 34 ships we saw, had to be the response to a general call for Viking ships, that Viktor had to have sent to all the other bases. He apparently figured that 34 ships were enough to do the job and sent them off but there are bound to be more ships arriving at his rally point, wherever that is, after the first wave left to attack us. I don’t think Viktor would make the mistake of sending those later ships away.I think it’s far more likely that he’ll organize another wave, which will head for Marduk, if for no other reason than to pick over, what they’ll expect to be, the defenseless carcass of that planet, and since stopping here would only be a minor detour, I wouldn’t be surprised if the second wave heads here first to see what the first wave accomplished.” Trask closed his eyes. Would this nightmare never end? Just when he thought that Rivington City might escape destruction altogether, its fate is once again teetering on a knife edge.

  “As far as our next step is concerned…” continued Harkaman.

  “Let me guess. We should send all our ships to Marduk and leave Tanith wide open.” interjected Trask. Harkaman sighed again.

  “I know you hate that strategy. I’m not keen on it either but it’s the same dilemma we had before. If we can’t save both planets, Marduk has to come first because if they go down, no other Civilized World will be safe and at least we’ve got all our Rivington people safely to Amaterasu and the Tradetown people are safe in those caves. We can rebuild the city, Lucas. We can’t rebuild a civilization like Marduk if it’s destroyed.” He was right, damn him. And after all, it was Trask’s people that were really important. The city, while nice to have, could be rebuilt.

  “Alright, you’ve convinced me. If we’re going to do that, the next question is when? Amaterasu will have a second missile boat ready in another week or so. The most recent estimate from Beowulf was that they could have a second boat ready just about now in fact. Should we wait until both those boats get here before taking the fleet to Marduk?” Harkaman chuckled then winced in pain again.

  “Most of the fleet should go to Marduk as soon as possible. One ship should stay here so that it can transport both missile boats to Marduk, when they get here, or when the second wave shows up, whichever comes first. But as for the ‘we’ part, you should not go to Marduk, if that’s what you were thinking. As for me, considering that the trip to Marduk will take three weeks, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back on my feet by then although if our ships are going to take orders from a Marduk Admiral, then you don’t really need me there and all other things being equal, if I’m not going to run the battle at Marduk, I’d just as soon stay here on Tanith and ride things out with the Tradetown people.”And your girlfriend, thought Trask. But he did have a point. Harkaman’s value was his strategic and tactical skills but if someone else was in overall command of the combined fleets when the second wave arrived, what good would those skills be then? Wanting to stay here and make sure his girlfriend and her people were safe from any second wave landings, might be considered selfish by some but Trask knew he’d feel the same way if Princess Valerie were here instead of on Amaterasu.

  “Well…if you’re not going to command the Tanith fleet at Marduk then Boake will be in charge again. He’s already participated in one battle there and Simon’s senior military people know him so they may listen to him if he has any suggestions.”

  “Yes and you should make his promotion permanent too. If we’re going to send 8 ships to Marduk, they deserve to have a Tanith Admiral in command even if he’ll be subordinate to the Marduk Fleet Commander. Besides…he’s earned it!” Harkaman was right again. In fact, now that he thought about it, Trask realized that Captain Valkanhayn was long over due for a permanent promotion to flag rank. That was something that Trask could fix very quickly.

  “You’re right. He has earned it and I’ll take care of that today. Is there anything else we need to talk about now?”

  “Can’t think of anything else. When are you planning on returning to Amaterasu?” Trask shrugged.

  “I haven’t decided. But I won’t leave without saying goodbye. I’m going to head over to Nemesis now and meet with Boake…Admiral Valkanhayn and his captains and let you go back to sleep.” Harkaman nodded and closed his eye.

  “Okay, Lucas. I AM sleepy. Until later then.” With the discussion over, Trask left the room and walked over to Valkanhayn, who had been chatting with some of the other injured.

  “Shall I drive you back to Nemesis now, Your Highness?” asked Valkanhayn.

  “Not just yet, Boake. I want to visit each of the injured first. Who should I see first?” Twenty-five minutes later, both of them were entering the Officers’ Lounge on the Nemesis. The other captains were there and stood up when Trask entered the room. He signaled them to sit down. They had left the chair at the end of the table for him to use and the one next to it for Valkanhayn to use. When everyone was seated, Trask leaned forward and said,

  “I’ve just had a good chat with Admiral Harkaman and he’s briefed me on the details of the battle, of which I now have a much better understanding. Before we discuss the battle and future plans, I want to take care of an overdue personnel is
sue. Admiral Valkanhayn, I’m now confirming that your promotion to Admiral is now permanent. I’m also making it clear now, that Captain Karffard will automatically assume the temporary rank of Admiral if neither Admiral Harkaman nor Admiral Valkanhayn are present or are unable to perform their command functions.” He paused to let that sink in.

  “Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk about the battle and what I’m specifically interested in is observations about this battle and any suggestions that you may have that will help with future battles. Admiral Valkanhayn, I’ll start with you.” Valkanhayn thought about his answer for a while and then said,

  “In terms of observations, I’d have to say that the force, we faced here, was more disciplined than the force that I saw attacking Marduk. It looks to me like Viktor has either laid down the law or has found a Space Viking Captain, who understands the need for unit discipline. The other thing I want to point out is that we won because they weren’t expecting us to use longer ranged, ground-based missiles fired from ships. Now that they know we have missile boats and can fire the bigger ground-based missiles from those boats, that same trick won’t work again.” He was about to say more when Trask interrupted.

  “Actually it may work at least one more time, Admiral. Admiral Harkaman is convinced that Tanith and Marduk can expect to be visited by a second wave in a relatively short period of time. That second wave won’t have the benefit of knowing what the survivors of the first wave now know because they’ll pass each other in hyperspace. Therefore, while we can’t do it again here because we used up all of our existing inventory of ground-based missiles, our side may be able to use that trick again at Marduk if Marduk has such missiles.” Turning to the two Marduk Captains on loan to the Royal Tanith Navy, Trask asked.

  “Can you tell us if that’s the case, Captain Nathan?” Nathan hesitated for a couple of seconds then decided that revealing that information would not be a breach of security.

  “I can tell you that Marduk does have longer ranged missiles that are too large to be launched from our cruisers or battleships and are designed to be fired from the planet’s surface. What I do not know, is whether they can be used by missile boats.”

  “Thank you, Captain. Was there anything you wanted to add, Admiral Valkanhayn?”

  “I was just going to take note of the fact that they fired on their own cripples and the only reason I can think of, is that they don’t want us rescuing any of the crews in case we find out where the new base is.” Everyone around the table nodded.

  “I think you’re right.” said Trask. “It’s clear that they’re taking this whole situation VERY seriously. I don’t think they’re participating in these raids JUST for the loot that raiding Marduk would generate. They know, or at least Viktor does, that this is a war and if they lose it, they’ll be destroyed. I suspect that we’ll have to be just as ruthless. Captain Karffard, any thoughts or comments?”

  “Just a question if I may, Your Highness?” Trask nodded. “I was just wondering how close Beowulf was to developing a more compact version of the longer range missile?”

  “The most recent information I have from Beowulf, is that they’re testing individual pieces of hardware but aren’t yet at the stage of testing a full scale prototype. You’ll be interested to know though, that the last courier from Marduk included a very optimistic message from Prince-Protector Simon that they are making serious progress on their own version of an improved long range missile. He thought they might be ready for mass production by now so, Admiral Valkanhayn, if you arrive there and find that they have production versions of the new missile ready for use by our missile boats, then by all means, find out if we can use their missiles on our boats.”When Valkanhayn nodded, Trask turned to Estherson who admitted that he had no comments or suggestions. None of the other captain did either. When everyone had a chance to speak, Trask leaned back in his chair and said,

  “We have to assume that Admiral Harkaman’s prediction of a second wave attack will happen. To do otherwise would just be foolish. After discussing options with him, I’ve decided that seven ships will leave for Marduk within 48 hours. Admiral Valkanhayn will be in command. Your mission will be to help defend Marduk against the second wave. You’ll take the two missile boats with you and the eighth ship will bring the other two boats when they get here. I’ll leave the decision of which ship to stay behind up to you, Admiral Valkanhayn. In case the second wave comes here first and comes charging in at high speed, the ship that stays behind should stay beyond the no-jump zones at all times so that it can jump to Marduk with a warning as soon as possible. When the other missile boats arrive, they can use their superior acceleration to rendezvous with the ship. Hopefully, both boats will show up before the second wave does but the ship is to jump to Marduk with the warning regardless of whether it has two, one or no missile boasts. Is that understood?” Everyone verbally indicated that they did. “Any questions?” Captain Nathan indicated that he had a question and Trask nodded for him to ask it.

  “What should the stay behind ship do if more single ship Space Vikings show up looking for repairs?”

  “The stay behind ship will do nothing at all. Do not contact any visitors or respond to any attempts at contact. Visitors will realize that the Rivington Base is abandoned and will go elsewhere. Capturing more of them at this point is not as important as protecting Marduk and besides, the frequency, of those kinds of visits, is dropping off fast.”

  “What about visits from non-Space Vikings, like Gilgameshers for example?” asked Captain Karffard. Trask gave that some thought and said,

  “Same orders. Avoid contact. Any other questions?” There were none. “I’ll be returning to Amaterasu shortly to keep the pressure on their rearmament efforts. Admiral Harkaman will be staying on Tanith to help the Tradetown people stay out of harm’s way.” Turning to Valkanhayn, he said,”Admiral, I want all of our Captains to hear the instructions that I’m about to give you so that they understand what I want you to do. Your first priority is to defend Marduk. Obviously the commander of the combined force will be a Marduk Admiral and you’ll have to follow his orders BUT the missile boats stay under YOUR command because you’ve seen them in action and understand better what they’re capable of. Your second priority is to bring back as many of your ships and crews as you can. If the situation should become clearly unwinnable in your opinion, then I’ll expect you to withdraw your ships even if that means disobeying orders from the Fleet Commander.” As he said that last sentence, he saw Captain Nathan and the other Marduk captain sit up straighter. Turning to them, he said, “If either or both of you feel that you would not be able to obey Admiral Valkanhayn’s command to withdraw, then you need to tell me now.” The two captains looked at each other and Nathan finally said,

  “As you know, Your Highness, we have orders from our senior admiral, to place ourselves and our crews under your orders for as long as we’re manning ships that belong to the Princedom of Tanith however my fellow captain and I are in agreement that we could not in good conscience abandon our planet if the battle goes against us. I hope you can understand why, Your Highness.” Trask didn’t respond right away. He had to handle this carefully. Relieving them and their crews was not an option. There simply weren’t enough other trained officers and crewmen to man those two ships. And while disobeying Boake’s order to withdraw was technically a violation of the orders from their own Command Structure, he understood completely why they would have to do it. They lived on Marduk and had families there. Even if there was no hope of fighting off the second wave, they would have to stay and fight, to the last man if necessary and he would then lose both those ships.

  “If you received an order from Admiral Shefter or from the Prince-Protector, to obey a withdrawal order from Admiral Valkanhayn, would you then obey it?” asked Trask. This time both captains leaned close and whispered for what seemed a long time. Finally, Nathan said,

  “From Admiral Shefter? No. But if we received such an
order from the Prince-Protector, we’d obey that.” He looked very uncomfortable saying it. Clearly his heart wanted to say no to that too but the traditions of the Royal Marduk Navy went deep and whoever wore the crown was also the Commander-in-Chief and NOBODY disobeyed him!

  “I see. In that case, I’ll be sending along a recorded message as Prince of Tanith, to Prince-Protector Simon, formally requesting that he issue both of you written orders, prior to the battle, that you are to obey Admiral Valkanhayn’s orders regardless of the circumstances and regardless of what those orders may be. I completely understand your desire to stay and defend your home planet regardless of the odds but if the combined fleet can’t win the battle, then Marduk will actually have a better chance of recovering from any loss, if it has strong allies and that means that we’d all be worse off in the long run if I ordered Admiral Valkanhayn to keep his ships in the battle even if there’s no longer any chance of victory. I hope you can understand that.” Both Marduk captains said they did. The meeting went on for another few minutes with discussion of more mundane issues such as the state of food and medical supplies, maintenance issues, etc. When Trask adjorned the meeting, he gestured for Valkanhayn to stay as the others left the room. When they were alone, Trask said,