Blockade

by Chris Hechtl

  All eyes turned slowly to the other end of the table and the minister of war.

  Admiral Rico drummed his fingers on the table and then nodded. “I know it could cause some political waves. But you have a point,” he stated with a nod to Malwin. “Draft the orders,” he said, turning to Admiral Post.

  “Aye aye, sir.”

  “And the last design? We're a bit off the subject. I think her defensive fighter sucks,” Admiral Nuert stated. She turned an expectant look on Catherine but was disappointed to see the princess wasn't reacting with indignation. Catherine wasn't reacting at all. “You have to admit that design is the shakiest. It is built on a house of cards.”

  “I admit there are some what-ifs and she didn't get to fully simulate the design or refine it beyond a basic concept,” Catherine stated. “But she took as much off-the-shelf tech into the design as she could, which has been tested and vetted. Moreover, she identified a few places where we can speed that tech up and improve it. Which we can send back to the ships that use it,” she stated with a look to Admiral Bradley.

  He nodded. “I saw that too. She's thorough,” he stated. “As far as the house of cards reference,” he turned to the head of BUPERS. “I'm in a better position than you to understand the design. The only what-if thing is the fighter fusion reactor. Well, that and better tactical computers and sensors.”

  “What about the force emitters?”

  “We have them. She based them on off-the-shelf components of our shelved destroyer program,” he stated. “We actually have many of them in storage.”

  “The rest of the cockpit is off-the-shelf. Any ideas on the tactical computers?” Admiral Bradley stated, looking at Catherine.

  She shrugged. “The best computers we've got come from El Dorado for obvious reasons. They are in short supply as you know. We might be able to emulate some of their design or cobble something up. We might even be able to pull tactical computer networks out of the Apollo corvette design,” she said thoughtfully. “I think they were liquid cooled …,” she frowned thoughtfully and then shook herself. “Sorry, I was about to text her,” she said looking up.

  “Write a list. She could spend part of this week working on refining that concept while overseeing the Shredder rounds,” Malwin stated. “That should keep her busy.”

  Catherine snorted. No doubt Elvira was out in the waiting room doing that now, not that she was willing to admit it. He would probably find additional work for her if he did.

  “Give me a budget. I know it will be preliminary, but we'll work on refining it once we know what the prototypes can do,” Admiral Rico stated, “and the paperwork for her promotion and the activation of the reserves. I'll run that over to the emperor today,” he said, looking at Catherine.

  She smiled. “I have a feeling I'm going to be busy working on tactical simulations, sir. Good luck.”

  “Thanks,” he said with a snort. “I think we should take a lunch break and then go over the usual weekly reports. Agreed?”

  Heads nodded. He smiled and stood. “Dismissed for an hour then, ladies and gentlemen,” he stated before he left the room.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Catherine snorted when she caught Elvira in the waiting room working on her tablet with single-minded intensity. She went over and nudged her partner, then nudged her again. When that didn't slow the woman's flashing fingers and break her focus, she reached down and twisted the tablet out of her grasp.

  “Hey! Oh,” Elvira said, blushing as she looked up. “Sorry, ma'am,” she said as she slowly rose and brushed the lap of her skirt. “Do they need me again?”

  “No, I think you laid it out pretty well. They want more details on some things, and you'll have to get the designs into prototypes soon. But it went rather well,” Catherine said, tucking the tablet under her arm. “And, I'll let you have your toy back if you go to lunch with me,” she said impishly.

  Elvira's lips puckered as she reached for the device but then her hand fell. “Okay,” she said.

  “Just okay?” Catherine asked.

  “I haven't figured out the problems with the power plant,” Elvira said, distress evident. “I …” Catherine shushed her with a finger to her lips. She looked around and was grateful to see the yeoman was busy. She dropped her hand. “You are one woman. We've got an entire R&D as well as a logistics department. Let them carry some of the load. You focus on what you can and learn to delegate.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Catherine snorted. “Come on. Let's go find something to eat. I'm famished.”

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  “You want to activate the reserves? Do a general call-up?” the emperor demanded. He'd heard the report of the Varbossa woman's defensive plan. He had been impressed as usual with her thoroughness and ability to get it done under a tight deadline.

  “The initial plan was to do it all at once. I now believe we should do it in phases,” Theo stated, looking from the emperor to the Empress and then back again. “That way we don't overwhelm the system and create chaos. Many of the reservists will be … rusty,” he stated.

  Irazabeth snorted. “Given how some of them are unfit and were just on the books as a reservist, I'd say that was an understatement.”

  The emperor frowned but then nodded. “Clear out the deadwood. Get them sorted out.”

  “Thank you, sire,” Theo said, grateful for the easy sell. “It will help BUPERS with their manning tables in time, sire,” he stated. “But it will play a bit of havoc with our budgets, training and manning especially.”

  “Figure it out and get me the numbers,” the emperor stated.

  “Yes, sire. One other thing, we're promoting Captain Varbossa to commodore and seek your blessing on it.”

  The emperor cocked his head and then nodded slowly. “She's certainly earned it,” he said grudgingly. “Set up the ceremony for later in the week.”

  “Yes, sire.”

  “We'll do it in the palace. Sakura can use it as a photo op for the good press. Make sure Catherine knows, and we move them here for it in a timely manner.”

  “Yes, sire,” the minister of war stated. Trust the emperor to want to make a big hoopla out of it. Come to think of it, it was a wise idea. Elvira was contributing tremendously, and even though a lot of her work was classified, it should be celebrated. And she could serve as an example for others to emulate.

  If that was, they didn't want to try to tear her down. Some people were like that, they didn't want to be held to a higher standard, resented it so they tried to tear a hero down for being mortal.

  “Ahem.”

  “Sorry, sire, considering the optics. I'll get it done.”

  “Do so. Out,” the emperor said, cutting the circuit.

  Chapter 35

  Garth

  Captain Ozman pursed her lips in a sour grimace as she listened to the report of the completion of the first Federation fortress. It was all over the news. The forts that her people had built had been destroyed in the fighting or had surrendered and had been rebuilt by the Feds. The celebration of the completion of their first Mulberry Fortress was alarming.

  She shook her head and then turned back to the media report when they showed video of the fort. It was massive and not a rock. "What the frackin' hell," one of her former sailors said. "What are we doin' here if they've got that up there?"

  "I don't know," another sailor said.

  "We're doing what we're told," she said sharply, bringing them up short. "Check those pots. And make sure that cable is shielded. We don't need any noise leakage," she said, indicating the project they were working on.

  "Aye aye, ma'am."

  "Ma'am … is it really that big?"

  "Remember that video scale can be deceiving. And they can make it look bigger than it really is to screw with our heads," she replied. She herself wasn't so sure. If the scale was accurate, and judging from the Delta shuttle it most likely was, the fortress was about twice the size of a super dreadnought. It was therefore a m
onitor in size, which was terrifying.

  Throw in the shoals of missile pods and weapon platforms around the outer edge of the screen and she knew anything that came near it was doomed. And they were building more of the damn things!

  The idea of the Fed engineers building that thing in less than a year was humbling. She couldn't help but feel a bit jealous and envious over the achievement. She also wished she could switch sides.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  The first two squadrons of prowlers quietly arrived in Garth. They had one week resupply in orbit, with a limited liberty, and then on to the next leg of their mission. The crews of the ships were eager and excited to get on with their mission.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Captain Briggs was informed that a civilian administration team was being dispatched from the State Department. They would oversee the occupation and eventual transition to an elected government. He was offered the option of continuing his work in the field or joining the Administration.

  "I'd prefer remaining in the field if possible or finding a middle ground," he stated as he sat in his leather recliner. "If at all possible, I'd like to see Horath's fall."

  "Of course. It all depends upon how close you want to get."

  "I'm perfectly fine here."

  "There is a third option," Monty's avatar stated. The captain raised an eyebrow, but when he realized his facial expressions weren't transmitted, he tapped a question mark on the virtual keyboard.

  "I'm going to see Horath fall as well. But I'm being promoted to rear admiral, and I'm being sent to take command of ONI and all naval forces in Sigma."

  "Ah?"

  "We are going to have a lot of worlds to clean pirates from. More importantly, somewhere in Sigma there is the Horathian's El Dorado. We need to find it."

  The captain rubbed his chin and mouth. "Can I hold off on an answer?"

  "Of course. Nothing is written in stone at this point. I'm going to be leaving for your neck of the woods within a few weeks. It'll take my ships time to get to Garth."

  "I see," the captain murmured. He wasn't thrilled about being on a ship for prolonged periods of time but the idea of being able to infiltrate worlds throughout Sigma sector was very appealing to him.

  "I need to go. Give me your answer when you are ready," Monty replied.

  "Understood. And congratulations on the promotion," the captain replied. "You've earned it."

  "We'll see. See you in a few months," Monty replied as he disconnected the circuit.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Once the command fortress was completed, Amadeus detached Commodore Harris and TF2.2 to H002 to complete the securing of the empty star system. He planned to resupply the CruRon there. Commodore Vargess would take TF 2.3 and leapfrog Dwight's force to take and hold H001 … that was if the prowler reported no sign of enemy fleet movement.

  They would be taking a dozen munition colliers with them. The munition colliers would follow TF 2.3 into H001 and then dump their loads of lethal cargo there and then return to pick up more in Garth. More would follow once they sent back couriers announcing their possession.

  When the first three forts were completed in Garth, the plan was to move all of Second Fleet into H002 and then H001. From there Second Fleet would watch as engineering ships went about building forts and defenses in H001, sealing that path.

  He really should find a way for Commodore I'r'll to get more tugs to move the surviving fortresses to the H002 jump point or to the orbit of the planet. The bug's engineers were making great strides in clearing up the wreckage from the various battles. Could she send the forts from Dead Drop and Bf994 on ballistic courses to the H002 jump point? Couldn't his ships do something about slowing them down? He made a note for his A.I. to ask. Inquiring minds wanted to know.

  He was still of two minds about the Admiralty's long-term strategic plan. It harkened back to some great strategies over the centuries though—Miyamato Musashi, World War II's invasion of Normandy, and the Marine invasion of Earth during the First A.I. war to name but a few—using psychological warfare and deception to break the enemy's will.

  He just hoped it worked. It was his sailors who were going to do the fighting and dying eventually either way.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Agent N'gumo was well back in an observation position as he watched the team. The attack had gone well but they'd lingered too long in the extraction. The reaction team had hunted the attack team down, driving them to ground near his position.

  The distraction that was supposed to draw the Marines away before the attack on the depot had been late. He made a note to find out who was responsible and hold the accountable for the bloodbath unfolding.

  They'd practically led the Marines to him. Not something he was thrilled about. He at least had three evacuation routes from his hillside observation post setup. No doubt drone and satellite coverage were beginning to thicken over the battlefield. He needed to extract soon.

  As he surveyed the zone, he noted his people had taken good cover in the trees. Or, at least he'd thought it had been good cover right up until a Marine sniper shot a soldier through a tree trunk. He caught sight of the chest of the soldier explode from the round out of the corner of his eye. The maple tree cracked and groaned as the soldier who had been trying to hide behind it was torn apart.

  Agent N'gumo gulped. He saw one of the officers order them to fall back deeper into the woods and to find better cover. He also noted the call alerted the Marines who shifted to the leadership as their next target.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  General Kissinger learned a hard lesson from Agent N'gumo's report. He made sure to pass it on to the troops. Don't stay under cover while under fire too long, and don't come up at the same spot twice in a row. Don't trust a tree or wall to protect you.

  According to the reports from Agent N'gumo and the media intercepts, the enemy's Fourth Division was about to arrive at any moment. That meant he needed to get as much information as he could as well as much supplies as he could before the coming jarhead storm.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  John Smith huffed as he climbed the wooded trail. Feel the burn indeed. The pack was heavy, but he didn't try to adjust it. The padded straps were fine the load was just awkward. Trying to adjust it would throw him off balance, something he could ill afford with one hand on a hillside.

  The best part about playing pack mule was that he was out in the open. That meant he could use his implants as long as he did so discretely, usually at the halfway point between bases. He preferred to do a burst uplink when they sat for a rest break. The compressed stream gave his location and log including where he'd been. Hopefully, the man in white would be able to make sense of it. He rarely got a chance to tap his implants when he was near or inside a base.

  He wasn't learning much as far as he was concerned. They were using him as a pack mule, occasional observer, and agitator/provocateur in the bars and in demonstrations. That was about it. When some of the lead agitators had been picked up for questioning by the Feds, the Horathains had gotten cagey about putting their people in play in the open.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Captain Briggs shook his head when he read the report. The Horathians had hit a police armory. It didn't make sense since they'd used a mix of tactical gear and civilian weapons to do it. They'd also attacked when a REACT team was nearby. Apparently, the distraction they'd started to draw the enemy away had gone off late.

  Or the reverse? He wasn't certain. Based on the limited intel from the upload, Smith had arranged he knew that the enemy was still testing and gauging reaction times. Which was stupid. Fourth Division was going to walk all over them when they arrived.

  But the enemy probably knew that they were all destined for an internment camp and most likely a war crimes tribunal and possible execution anyway. They were just fighting cautiously, more cautiously than expected.

  Had they known that the depot largely held nonlethal weapons? And most had tracking devices
? Not to mention alarms? The Federation knew that such places were targets. Their own experience on Antigua and elsewhere had painfully driven home the lessons to watch and guard them carefully. Apparently, the enemy didn't know that though.

  Or, someone had ruthlessly dangled their attack team out to draw the REACT team into a fire fight? He wouldn't put that past the Horathians either. He was tempted to station some traps of his own, but since he didn't know if Smith would be involved, he held off.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  One week after their arrival in orbit, almost to the hour, the last shuttle docked with the last prowler. Commodore I'rll watched it for a moment then turned away. She was grateful to see the sailors return to their berths unharmed. They'd all been scrupulously careful to remain in the secure zones and bases her people had constructed.

  Now, if Fourth Division would just kindly show up and finish pacifying the planet, her engineers on the ground could be more productive with the civil works projects.

  -~~~///^\~~~-

  Brigadier General Kodiak nodded once as the ship's A.I. informed him that they were in Garth space.

  He tucked his massive arms behind his back as he turned to his staff intelligence officer. His A.I. was reporting information dumps coming in. Apparently, Admiral White had set up a dump of information for him from the Dead Drop picket as requested. He nodded. "Start waking them up," he said.

  His staff nodded as they swung into action. His people would need at least a week to wake everyone and get them sorted out. No doubt the medics would be working on that. The ships were about to get a bit crowded.

  It would take only three days for his ships to arrive in orbit. But he'd left strict orders for their arrival and timing to not be revealed to the media. He wanted to observe the enemy for himself for a short time before they engaged.