The Squad Novelettes 1-5

by Stephen Arseneault

  I had to think on the subject for most of a minute. "Interesting suggestion. And I don't recall in any of the rules where a ship is precluded from bounty just because it was in a larger fight. The OMS may balk at paying us, but it's worth a shot. Nice going Tanner. We might just make a merc out of you yet."

  "I'm all about getting paid, Sarge. And I desperately need it after Xurpok cleaned me out at cards."

  Thirty minutes passed before a comm came down from the bridge. "You may check for hiders, Sergeant Balls. I believe the active Maxans are deceased."

  I added Sammy to the comm. "Give us a quick scan and tell me how many living bios are on this ship."

  "One moment... between here and there we have eight."

  "That leaves two Maxans. Can you tell me where they are?"

  "One is on your deck. About forty meters from your location, heading aft. The other is outside the bridge. Oh, wait. That one is now gone."

  Xurpok said, "My apologies. I missed one. It was still breathing."

  Tanner followed me down the hall to where an unconscious Maxan lay up against a wall. His lower torso was twisted out of position; I could only reason his back had been snapped. Tanner took care of the issue with his combat knife. After, we hustled up to the bridge.

  "Xurpok," I said. "We're sending this ship to our rally point. Head back to the Fracker. I'm certain we'll be given further orders."

  "Very well."

  I gestured toward the hall going back toward the pipe. "Nice work out here. And thorough."

  "I only do as I was trained to do."

  Chapter 7

  * * *

  The Warmonger was programmed for a run to our rally point. The rest of us moved back onto the Fracker where the pipe was withdrawn.

  Sammy was waiting with observations from the battle. "Not looking good for our team, Sarge. We are down nine ships to their three, including the one we just finished. In the fights I've witnessed before, this is usually where the fleet commander gives orders to withdraw. Six of the nine lost are mercs, so he can go away claiming an even fight."

  I nodded. "Open a comm. We'll do as asked."

  The lieutenant we had previously received orders from answered the hail. "What happened? Why did you abandon your fight."

  "We're finished. That ship has been taken. Check your display and you'll see it leaving the battlespace."

  The lieutenant stared at his display for several seconds. "Well done, I guess. Stand by for a new assignment."

  Tanner looked over the stats from the battle. "We aren't doing too well on this one."

  The lieutenant returned. "New orders. We are withdrawing. You are released from duty. Check in at port and you will find your chit for compensation. Good work out there Fracker. I wish I could say that to some of the others."

  Sammy said, "I have ships turning away."

  Tanner scowled. "Look at this crap. Two of the merc ships are still engaged. Wait... one is releasing and oh, wow, they won't survive that egress. This isn't right. The fleet should have offered cover. At least give them a fighting chance."

  I let out a long slow breath. "Take us in to this other Warmonger. We aren't leaving this other ship behind. Even if all we do is draw fire. And Collins, see if you can get us a comm opened to them."

  Collins was fast over to a console. A response came back in seconds.

  "Wildcat, this is Fracker. You've been abandoned. I'd suggest you break that breach and head out. You have about three minutes before that entire fleet has converged on you."

  "We're stuck. Can't get our people back. They're on their way, but we need time."

  Xurpok said, "Take me in there. I will free them."

  I shook my head. "We don't have a way back. Does us no good to get ourselves killed."

  "Wildcat. You probably have thirty seconds to break connection. You stay any longer and you are all dead. At least have the wit to save whoever is there on the ship with you."

  "Hold on... half are coming through the pipe. We're breaking off. Any cover fire you can provide would be appreciated."

  "Sorry Wildcat. We have no weapons. We'll take some hits for you on the way out, best we can do."

  Exiting the battlespace was the toughest egress I had ever experienced. Our triple armor had taken a beating that would have left other ships crumpled or destroyed. Our inner hull remained intact, while the outer hull would require extensive repairs. The Wildcat had survived but had taken a severe beating of her own.

  The captain of the Wildcat promised drinks were on him when we got back to Alday Port. I told him we'd gladly accept his offer, after finishing our business at the rally point. Thirteen days later we pulled up to a docking bay with a scout, two Warmongers, and hundreds of Maxan dead. The clerk at the OMS was scratching his head about our bounties. The office didn't have the funds immediately available for the two larger vessels.

  With our claims submitted, I connected with the captain of the Wildcat. It was time to collect our due and to mingle with other mercs. We were new to the scene and it was a tight community of very competitive members, but they were always grateful for assistance. Our efforts at N7742 had earned us respect.

  On our way to the bar the captain had suggested, I opened a comm to CDF Mercenary Claims.

  The lieutenant I had spoken with during the fight joined in on the conversation. "Mr. Balls, first I would like to thank you for your duty. And I'd like you to know you will be called in for a debrief, probably tomorrow. I know this isn't what you want to hear, but your claim for bounty on the second Warmonger is being denied. This was acquired while already receiving merc pay, so it is technically already a possession of the CDF."

  It was a response I expected, so no argument was made. Instead, the lieutenant was thanked for providing the information. A hostile attitude toward those who we wished to do business with would not have been a smart move. We continued into the bar where a gracious captain and the remains of his crew were waiting.

  A mug was raised. "Mr. Balls! May your life be filled with Maxan dead!"

  A tray of beers was delivered. Tanner, Collins, and Mendez took and hoisted mugs. I nodded as I picked one, took a swig, and raised it up.

  "Captain Wells," I said. "I'd just like to say I hope others will follow our lead. I was looking over the casualty numbers for mercs this morning. I'd say we need to make a few changes."

  Wells shook his head. "Not so fast, Mr. Balls. We all know the risks. And if the risks are reduced— so is the pay. I know it may sound cold, but we have to fight for these contracts against an endless stream of new mercs who think they can just jump into battle and kill Maxans. You strip off those noobs and you'll find a core of mercs here who have been at this for quite some time. You organize those rookies and we'll soon be overrun with bidders, leaving most of us out of work."

  After only a moment's thought about my statement, I came to the realization he was right. The CDF would love nothing more than to have a flood of trained mercs at their disposal. Bounties and pay would indeed fall, and all at a time when we were trying to enter the business. I bowed with a nod and backed away from any argument.

  Wells and his team were hard core. Gruff men and women who had served in the CDF and then found civilian life to be untenable. I sympathized with their choice as the thought of doing "normal" things had been what kept me in the Corps for as long as it had. I now had to think in terms of our new venture. And I had several others who were now relying on me to do things right.

  A good time was had at the celebration. War stories were shared with Tanner trying his best to outdo some of the other storytellers. He was good at making slight exaggerations that were also very believable. I stayed out of the mix, letting him have his fun.

  It was evening before we returned to the Fracker. Xurpok was sitting at a port window, watching ships as they came and went.

  I took a seat next to him. "The CDF declined our bounty for the second ship, as I expected. We should be collecting on the other one first thin
g in the morning. Some of that will have to be spent repairing our armor. I have all the accounts handled, but you are welcome to look them over if you want."

  "I was visited by representatives of your CDF. They were asking questions about our raid on that Warmonger."

  I returned a scowl. "Now I don't like that one bit. We've been honest and upfront with them so far. They have no business coming here directly and hassling you. Heck, we're scheduled for a debrief tomorrow. Was there something specific they were interested in?"

  "Just how we were able to take that ship with such a small crew."

  I growled. "We told them everything there was to know before."

  "I would have to believe they don't trust you."

  "I would have to believe they will be getting far less information from us in the future. Should they come here again when we aren't here, just tell them you will be happy to answer any questions when we've returned from whatever we're doing. I don't like this questioning.

  "I was hoping to get your visa rights expanded so you could join us on the station, but I don't see that happening if they don't trust us. And given our military records they should have no reason to doubt our motives. This is unsettling. From now on we'll be keeping that hatch locked and sealed."

  After several minutes of irritated bickering I finally settled down. The remains of the evening were spent discussing how we would divide the credits we had coming and how we planned to move forward. The repairs to our armor were expected to take at least a week. I set a schedule for a new bounty mission to begin in ten days. We wanted to build a substantial amount of credits so that other modifications to the Fracker could be undertaken. Other than some type of armament we were uncertain as to what those modifications might be.

  I sat across a table from Xurpok. "I'm hoping with our next venture we can get some solid work done toward you getting justice for your people. Have you thought any more about waking Bardok?"

  "Until I am certain of my own future, I would rather not. While I try to evaluate every situation before making a move, Bardok sees things as much more black and white. I am uncertain as to how he would react around Humans. And until I have a full understanding myself, I would rather not have to deal with him."

  Tanner was listening in. "Kinfolk. You can't live with them and you can't just send them away."

  Collins chuckled. "Not true. Yours got you to enlist didn't they?"

  "Hmm. Guess I never considered that. And I would be the one they wanted rid of. Thanks for clearing that up, Col."

  "Always willing to help wherever I can."

  After collecting our Warmonger bounty and sitting through a long debrief the following day, our time was spent relaxing in the warehouse as the Fracker was being re-armored. Our first mission as a merc crew had been an eye-opener as to what to expect going forward. But war and time have a way of altering expectations. Our next mission would not be a ship bounty. The CDF admiralty had something else in mind.

  ~~~~~

  Cygni Station

  (THE SQUAD Novelette 4)

  Chapter 1

  * * *

  The Fracker had been repaired and returned to our care. Aside from those repairs, a new layer of armor had been added to her exterior, making her even tougher than before. We now believed we could drive into and exit from almost any situation, within reason. The length of time within a battlespace would become the critical factor that determined our fate. Also, we had seen to it our drives had new shielding as did other externally vulnerable points. If our goal was to approach a ship for boarding, we would have every chance of being able to do so.

  But boarding another ship would not be the initial goal of our next mission. We had just received a request from CDF Command for an assault on Cygni Station. When questioning why we were to attack one of our own, we were told that information was classified. We were also told, in no uncertain terms, we would either accept this mission or we should consider our merc license to be null and void. Without the license, bounties would not be paid.

  So the mission was accepted. All that was left before departure was to negotiate a fee. We had been briefed by our military counterparts on what was expected of us and of the other eleven merc crews who were selected for this "volun-told" mission. With the briefing over, we had moved on to private negotiations with OMS (Office of Mercenary Services) handlers.

  We attempted to plead our case of having successfully captured two Warmongers and a Warstalker on our previous outings, but those pleas seemed to fall on deaf ears. Instead, we were given the same contract as everyone else, three thousand credits per merc we delivered to the ship and fifty credits per enemy body collected.

  I returned to the Fracker as the others were finishing up loading supplies. "We'll need to depart as soon as possible."

  Tanner asked, "Still no word on what we are facing?"

  I shook my head. "Not a clue."

  "Why would the Maxans risk attack all the way out there? They'd have to know such an act would be met with extreme force. Any word on how many fleet ships are going with us?"

  "None. We were only told that we would receive further orders when we arrived."

  Half an hour later we were pulling away from the dock. I went immediately to the lounge where I pulled up the general schematics of Cygni Station. The station itself was little more than a giant rotating ring with a central space dock that extended downward. The dock itself was stationary with long arms that extended out to the rotating sections. From above it resembled a spoked wheel.

  I paced back and forth as we all stared at the image before us. "I'm thinking we latch right on to the exterior. Whoever's in control of this thing will be defending the docking bay."

  Xurpok said, "I do not worry about any defenses they would put up."

  Tanner smirked. "You are a straight-up ass-kicker, Xurpok."

  I held up a hand. "I don't think the straight frontal assault to be our best plan here. While you, Xurpok, might be able to pull that off, I'd rather choose a strategy that offers us better protection. I'm thinking we match speed and attach a pipe right to the exterior."

  Collins nodded. "If we choose to do that, how about we do so on the interior portion of the ring? I'd rather open a hatch and drop from a ceiling than have to climb up from a floor."

  Mendez tilted her head. "If that's the case then why not attach right on the top or bottom side of the ring where we can come in at floor level?"

  I pointed at Mendez. "Good call. Now, I'd like to focus on where we want to enter. There are a dozen merc crews going in at the same time as us. I'd like to have at least five assault-points selected in case these other crews get in there first. Nothing keeping any of them from coming up with similar assaults."

  Tanner said, "I'd like to offer up level six - section D14."

  "That's a dining hall."

  "It is. And it would allow us to go in, sit and have a beer or two, and to then get on with our business."

  The grin on Tanner's face lasted only seconds when overpowered by my scowl. "Let's try to keep focus on the mission, shall we?"

  Collins said, "The dining hall wouldn't be a bad starting point. It's open and not likely to be heavily guarded. I would think, aside from normal entryways, power or comms or maybe an arsenal would be the places that are being watched or protected."

  Mendez raised a hand. "I have a question. What about civilians? Last I knew that station had about ninety thousand residents. Military only made up about 4 percent of that number."

  I replied, "We don't yet know what we'll be facing. I would have to assume any firm planning will be done once we arrive and are given knowledge of the situation. In the meantime we make the assumption the station population remains the same as it was. We all know if this is the result of a Maxan raid everyone on that station might be gone by the time we arrive. Gone as in dead.

  "I realize that would drastically alter our plans, but it doesn't negate our need to know this station like we've lived there all our lives.
So let's spend our energies selecting entry points first, strategic points for capture next, and we'll follow that up with general station knowledge such as location of stairwells, elevators, hatches, power or comm trunks, basically almost everything else."

  The ride to Cygni Station took three weeks. A rally point that was a full jump away had been given to all ships. We arrived to find the other eleven merc ships and a single CDF destroyer waiting.

  Tanner scowled. "Doesn't look like much of an assault force."

  Collins replied, "Could be the fleet is staging elsewhere."

  An incoming comm from the captain of the destroyer was accepted and sent to the display in front of us. His demeanor was solemn as he waited for confirmation of all merc vessels having joined.

  "Merc crews. I am Captain Palmer. We are gathered here today due to circumstances beyond fleet's control. We are asking for your help, without being able to offer much in the way of support. Cygni Station has been overrun by a species we are unfamiliar with. We received a single chaotic broadcast that lasted forty-one seconds before the channel was lost. A frigate and a destroyer were dispatched to evaluate but did not return.

  "I know some of this comes as a shock, but we are unable to bring our own forces to bear on this problem because of an ongoing major assault by the Maxans at Bellatrix. Our fleet is currently busy attempting to thwart that assault, thereby leaving us short of resources here at Cygni. What I can tell you is that a single ship, a very large ship, was involved in the Cygni assault.

  "We know very little about this ship other than it does not match anything we've seen from the Maxans. Other than the timing of these two attacks, we have no reason to believe the Cygni assault was a part of any Maxan strategy. At no time have we had Maxan raids coming out this far."

  Tanner leaned in with a whisper. "Not true. We took that Warstalker from much further out than Cygni."