Ep.#10 - Retaliation (The Frontiers Saga - Part 2: Rogue Castes)

by Ryk Brown

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The Frontiers Saga Part 2: Rogue Castes

  Episode #10: Retaliation

  Copyright © 2018 by Ryk Brown All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Captain Hunt entered the Weatherly’s bridge, his morning mug of coffee in hand. He looked around, a curious expression on his face. “Where’s everyone at?” he asked his weapons officer, the only other person on the bridge at the moment.

  “In the galley,” Bonnie answered, barely glancing up from her console. “Cheng made waffles.”

  “And nobody told me?”

  Bonnie glanced up momentarily, shrugging her shoulders.

  “Anything new?” Chris asked as he walked over to the helm to check his ship’s orbital profile. “Other than the waffles, that is.”

  “The Inman and the Gervais jumped in a few minutes ago. They’re currently decelerating to make orbit.”

  “ETA?”

  “Twenty minutes, tops.”

  “Nothing else out there?” the captain asked, settling into the captain’s chair and placing his mug in the holder.

  “Nada.”

  Chris closed his eyes, stretching his arms forward and tensing up his torso, forcing the last bit of sleepiness from his body. “Prechitt still on the surface?”

  “Yup, since…” She suddenly stopped, her sentence interrupted by an alert signal from her console.

  Chris also heard the signal and turned to look at her. “What is it?”

  “Something just jumped in,” she replied, studying her console more intently.

  “Can you ID it?”

  “Working on it… Uh-oh…” She looked up from her console directly at her captain. “It may be a raider carrier. It just launched…” Another alert sounded. “Eight Ahka raiders just jumped into low orbit! They’re headed for the surface!”

  Chris pressed a button on his console, sounding the alarm and activating his intercom. “General quarters, general quarters. This is not a drill.” He deactivated his intercom and turned back to Bonnie. “Weapons hot; target anything in range.”

  “Weapons and shields are coming up now, but they’ve already jumped to the surface.”

  “Inman, Weatherly, launch your Eagles,” the captain called over comms. “Repeat: launch your Eagles.”

  “Another carrier,” Bonnie added.

  “What’s going on?” Denny asked as he and Michael entered the bridge in a hurry.

  “Raiders,” Chris replied as he switched comm-channels. “Prechitt, Hunt. You see them?”

  “How could I not?” the commander replied over comms, explosions sounding in the background.

  “I’ve scrambled all Eagles. You should have help in a minute or two.”

  “How many?”

  “We count two carriers so far, so likely sixteen raiders.”

  “Copy that. Protect the Inman and the Gervais until they get their birds away, then have them jump to safe staging. Once they’re away, go after those carriers.”

  “Understood,” Chris replied. “Weatherly out.”

  “Eight more raiders just jumped in!” Bonnie reported. “Starboard side, about ten clicks out, eighteen degrees up relative!”

  “Let ‘em have it,” Chris instructed. “We need to keep them away from the Inman and the Gervais.”

  “Aye, sir.”

  “Orders?” Michael asked as he settled into the pilot’s chair.

  “You got aft?” Bonnie asked the XO as he slid into the chair at the next console to her right.

  “I’m on it,” Denny replied.

  “Hold your course until they pass over us,” Chris told his helmsman. “I want to keep as many guns on them as possible. Then turn to port and accelerate, but keep us bow-down so we can keep all four guns on them.”

  “We won’t be able to accelerate as quickly,” the pilot reminded him.

  “The Inman and the Gervais are within range, so we don’t need to keep up for long,” Chris replied. “They’ll jump as soon as they pass them anyway. After that, we’ll have time to maneuver into position to provide cover.”

  Commander Verbeek burst through the hatch into the Inman’s cargo bay, pulling his flight suit up over his shoulders as he ran toward the Super Eagle fighters lined up, down the center of the long, narrow bay. Behind him, nine more pilots spilled through the hatch, struggling to get their gear on as they, too, made their way quickly to their ships, alarms sounding in the background.

  The commander reached his fighter and expertly climbed up the side of its port air intake, using the rungs protruding from its sides. Once on top, he stepped forward and climbed into the cockpit, grabbing his helmet perched on top of the forward section of the canopy.

  As expected, the systems in his Super Eagle jump fighter were already spinning up, having been remotely activated from the Inman’s bridge the moment the scramble alert sounded. With his helmet donned and a simple push of a button, his canopy slid forward, sealing him inside the cockpit.

  The commander scanned his displays, noting that his systems were coming online in proper fashion. He then checked the status of the other nine fighters in his group, ensuring that they, too, were spinning up. Once he had ten green lights, he knew everyone in his fighter group was safely inside their ships and would be ready for departure in less than a minute.

  “Comms check, One,” he called over comms.

  “Two,” his wingman, Lieutenant Garmon replied.

  “Three.”

  “Four.”

  The commander checked his tactical display as the remainder of his flight sounded off. He was already receiving sensor data from the Inman and could see the positions of the Ahka raiders. They were going to be launching into the middle of a fight.

  “Ten.”

  “Inman, Eagle One. Ready for rapid depress.”

  “Copy that. Rapid depress in five…”

  The commander double-checked his deck locks while the Inman’s cargo bay chief counted down the last few seconds. He looked up just as the ceiling above them began to move, the forward-half sliding toward the bow and the aft toward the stern of the ship.

  “The raiders are already attacking the Inman and the Gervais,” the commander warned his other fighters. “Be ready to fight the moment we clear the hull.”

  “Sounds like a hell of a party,” the lieutenant commented.

  Commander Prechitt ran across the makeshift airbase as Ahka raiders jumped in overhead, firing their downward-facing cannons at the surface as they passed. Dirt and rock exploded on either side of the commander as bolts of energy slammed into the ground, superheating it and causing it to violently erupt, spewing hot dirt and molten rock in all direc
tions.

  The commander dove for cover just as the passing raider pitched up to jump away, narrowly escaping its last few shots. He landed clumsily, slamming into a dirt berm, nearly dislocating his shoulder in the process. He quickly removed his jacket to escape the red-hot debris that was rapidly burning through it.

  “Eagles are launching now,” Captain Hunt reported over comms. “We’re moving into position to protect our carriers until they can jump to safety.”

  “Get those Eagles down here!” the commander instructed as the next Ahka raider jumped in over the far side of the airbase to start its attack run. “A few more passes and they’ll start landing troops, and we don’t have jack to defend ourselves with!”

  “Moving into position between the Inman and the Gervais now,” Michael reported from the Weatherly’s helm.

  “All guns target the raiders,” the captain ordered.

  “I’ve got four bandits on tactical,” Bonnie reported. “They’re turning toward the Inman now.”

  Captain Hunt quickly changed to the comm-channel used by the Eagle fighters. “Eagles One through Ten, Weatherly! Bandits are moving in to attack! Expect incoming!” He turned back toward his weapons officer. “Get those raiders to turn the fuck away!” he ordered.

  “We’re working on it,” Denny promised.

  “Eagles One through Ten, Weatherly!” Captain Hunt called over comms. “Bandits are moving in to attack! Expect incoming!”

  “Launch as the roof clears you,” Commander Verbeek instructed as the edge of the Inman’s cargo bay roof slid past him. “Engage on your way out, and join up with your wingman as soon as…”

  A bolt of energy shot over the commander’s head, causing him to instinctively duck. There was an explosion to his left that rocked his ship and lit up his cockpit.

  “FUCK!” one of his pilots exclaimed over comms.

  The commander looked to his left. Eagle Two’s entire starboard side was gone, but its nose and cockpit, although considerably askew, were still intact. “Get the hell out of there, Toby!” Commander Verbeek could already see his wingman’s canopy sliding open as the commander released his deck clamps and lifted off. He quickly fired his attitude thrusters and pitched his nose upward fifty degrees, then slammed his throttle forward as his ship cleared the edge of the cargo bay wall.

  The Super Eagle lunged forward, accelerating away from the ship that had been its home for the last two days. The commander felt only the slightest bit of force from the sudden movement of his ship, thanks to its inertial dampening fields.

  “One away,” he reported over comms as he throttled back slightly and rolled his ship into a tight left turn. He glanced at his tactical display as he turned, noting that it was now receiving data from his ship’s sensors instead of from the Inman’s. Two enemy targets had just appeared directly behind him and were diving toward the Inman.

  “Three away!”

  “Two bandits inbound!” the commander warned. “Jump clear on departure!”

  “Four away!”

  “Three jumping!”

  The commander came out of his one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn just as two more bandits appeared on his tactical display, both of them directly behind him. He quickly dialed up a pair of intercept missiles, tapping both of the icons representing the Ahka raiders ahead of him, assigning them as targets. “Launching two!” he announced as he pressed the missile button on his flight control stick.

  A panel on the underside of Eagle One split down the middle and slid open, quickly disappearing into its hull. A split second later, two one-meter-long missiles dropped out of the opening, their engines igniting and sending them racing forward.

  “Ten away!”

  The commander grimaced as one of the two targets he had selected jumped away before the missile reached them. Without a target to lock onto, the missile turned away from the target area and disarmed its warhead and propulsion system, heading harmlessly into space, where it would eventually self-destruct if not retrieved within the allotted time frame.

  The second missile still had a good target lock and managed to strike the other raider just as it opened fire on the Inman. The target blew apart, sending an expanding debris field toward the unsuspecting cargo ship.

  “Inman! Eagle One! Jump, jump, jump!”

  The pilot of the cargo ship was on his game and had activated his jump drive the moment he heard the first ‘jump’. The cargo ship glowed a brilliant blue-white, then disappeared, escaping before the rapidly approaching debris impacted it.

  “Two on you, Verbee!” Lieutenant Holland warned. “Break left!”

  The commander reacted instantly, pushing his nose down and rolling to port, just as a series of energy bolts streaked past his starboard side.

  “Three firing two!” Lieutenant Holland reported.

  The commander’s instinct had been to jump, but the Gervais was also launching fighters, and he was in a good position to offer her some defense while she got them away.

  “Got one! The other jumped!” the lieutenant reported.

  “Stay on my wing, Ollie,” the commander instructed.

  “I’ve got your six, boss,” the lieutenant replied.

  “I’ve got two more jumping in at one two seven, ten high,” the commander reported. “Turning right and jumping forward five clicks.”

  “I’m with you.”

  The commander rolled back to the right and pulled his nose up to change to the proper intercept course. He dialed his jump selector to five kilometers, and then pressed the jump button. A split second later, the two Ahka fighters about to open fire on the Gervais were half a kilometer away and directly in front of him. He moved his finger to open fire, but both targets exploded before his eyes.

  “Two in one!” Ensign Tellor exclaimed with his usual glee as he streaked across the commander’s flight path a few hundred meters ahead of him.

  “Nice shot, Tellor,” the commander congratulated just as the Gervais jumped away. “All Eagles, pair up and find a raider to kill. Start with the surface.”

  “All Eagles are safely away!” Captain Hunt reported over the commander’s comm-set as the next Ahka raider started its attack run. “They should be with you in seconds!”

  “As soon as the Inman and Gervais are away, engage and destroy the Ahka carriers!” the commander instructed as he peered around the wall at the attacking raider.

  “Understood,” Captain Hunt replied.

  Commander Prechitt watched helplessly as the third raider pummeled his makeshift base with energy weapons fire. Two more raiders jumped in together, less than half a click behind the one that was currently attacking. “Those will be the troop carriers!” he told Lieutenant Sandau, who was hunkered down next to him.

  “What are we going to do?” the lieutenant asked.

  Commander Prechitt pulled his sidearm. “Whatever we have to.”

  Commander Verbeek pressed his jump button, and the view from orbit suddenly changed to a close-up view of the makeshift airbase on the surface. His ship shook violently, and he was thrust forward against his shoulder restraints as his fighter suddenly found itself in the thick, lower atmosphere of Casbon. He immediately pulled out of his dive, spotting three Ahka raiders half a kilometer ahead of him as he leveled off just over the treetops.

  A glance at his display told him that six other Eagle fighters had jumped in directly behind him at similar altitudes and on similar headings. “Tally three, directly ahead.” He glanced at his display again to identify which Eagles had joined him. “Three and Five, take left and right targets. I’ve got the middle one. Everyone else, engage any targets that join the party.”

  “Three, tally left.”

  “Five, tally right.”

  “Firing one!” the commander reported as he selected another missile and pressed the firing button on his flight control stick. A second later, a single missile streaked away from under his nose, closing the distance between him and the Ahka raider ahead of him in only a few s
econds. The commander pitched up, anticipating a similar move by the raider pilot once he realized a missile was about to fly up his ass. A second later, the raider pilot did exactly as expected, pitching up sharply as he dropped countermeasures to spoof the missile. The commander pressed his firing trigger again, this time sending staccato bursts of red-orange plasma into the path of the climbing raider. The enemy ship flew right into the stream of plasma and broke apart in an explosion of red-orange energy and black smoke. The raider flipped over, then nose-dived into the ground, exploding, yet again, on impact just as the other two raiders met similar fates, thanks to Eagles Three and Five.

  “Both ships have jumped away,” Bonnie reported.

  “Are you still tracking the enemy carriers?” Chris asked.

  “Yes, sir, but their position is two light minutes out, so…”

  “Can’t worry about that now,” Chris decided, cutting her off. “Mike, turn us toward those carriers and jump in close to their calculated position. Bonnie, be ready on the torpedo cannons.”

  “Turning now,” the pilot reported.

  “Torpedo cannons are charged and ready,” Bonnie assured him.

  The Weatherly’s bridge flashed with blue-white light as she jumped to intercept the first Ahka carrier ship.

  “Anything?” the captain asked his weapons officer.

  “No targets… Wait… Two ships, thirty-seven degrees to port, twenty-eight down. Half a light minute.”

  “Quick! Jump ahead five light minutes,” the captain ordered, “then recalculate and turn to new intercept course.”

  “Jumping,” the pilot acknowledged as the bridge momentarily filled with blue-white light, again.

  “Calculate a new intercept course, Bonnie.”

  “Give me a second.”

  “Come hard to port while you’re waiting for a course,” Chris told his pilot.

  “Hard to port, aye.”

  A moment later, his weapons officer spoke. “New course is one nine zero, twenty-four down relative.”

  “Got it,” Mike replied.