Lens of Time: Book 06 - Star Rover-Running Out of Time

by Saxon Andrew

  The Lord saw his son had anticipated what needed to be done, “Go and make sure these things are accomplished quickly.”

  The Advisor lowered his head and left the room. The Lord knew that he had almost made a mistake killing his best resource. He needed patience. He also needed to know who was attacking his domain. He looked at his panel and saw a reminder note to check in on the newest ally but quickly dismissed it. This new ship was not in their galaxy. He made a connection, “I want all of our scouts sent out to investigate the galaxies close to our location. I want you to focus on those where we’ve sent ships in the past. One of them may have been detected and has caused these recent attacks.”

  “Yes Lord.”

  He hoped they would find the location of this new enemy. Unfortunately for him, all of the past encounters had happened in galaxies located in the opposite direction from the Milky Way. It was going to be a long time before he found out where the attacks originated.

  • • •

  The Union Admirals gathered on board the Havana and watched the feed sent from the probe until it was recalled. Gibbs stared at the display and shook his head. Within an hour after the first Servant reinforcements arrived, four more fleets of equal size jumped in. If he had waited, his fleet and the other two would have possibly been overwhelmed.

  Dat watched the Admirals sitting at the conference table and saw their concern. Silence dominated the room until Dat said, “Comments?”

  Shane shook his head, “I really thought you were acting somewhat paranoid by recalling Admiral Gibbs’ fleet. I can see now that you saw what I couldn’t fathom.”

  Kelli said, “What was that?”

  “Just what having more than a billion warships actually meant in real life.” Shane turned to Dat, “They could have sent more.”

  Dat nodded, “You’re absolutely right. I thought they had a defense system organized to overwhelm an attacker but I must confess that this exceeded my wildest expectations. We were really lucky they were out of practice or Gibb’s fleet could have been attacked before he could escape.”

  Gresha leaned forward, “What do you mean?”

  “Those four groups of ships the Servants sent were all about the same size. That means they are in formation waiting for a call to come in for them to immediately launch. I suspect it’s been so long since they received a call, they were slow getting in motion. I don’t expect that to happen again.”

  Shane slowly shook his head and looked away from the display at Dat, “They’ll probably be waiting for us to arrive.”

  Dat smiled as the others stared at Shane, “Yes, you’re probably right.”

  Matt’s brow was furrowed, “I’m slow on the uptake here; why would they be waiting for us?”

  Kelli sighed, “They’ll launch as soon as they detect our probe start transmitting.”

  Shane looked at her, “Boy, you are one smart cookie, Kelli.”

  “Thank you, Sir; I’ve learned from the best.”

  Gibbs leaned forward, “So they can detect our probe?”

  Dat tilted his head, “Yes and no.” Gibbs looked confused until Dat said, “They didn’t detect its arrival…but they did detect its transmissions.”

  “How do you know that, Sir?”

  “None of their ships activated a force field when the probe arrived but the moment it started streaming data, our computers saw more than a hundred ships start powering their force fields and armaments.”

  The room was silent for a minute and Gem said, “Do we call this off?”

  “No, we change our plan of attack.”

  Shane sighed, “I really thought the weave would work.”

  “Don’t beat yourself up, Admiral. We will use it when the numbers allow us. However, this changes everything.” Dat walked over to the display and activated it. The Admirals watched as Lee Jennings took his ship thorough the Servant formations, artfully dodging large concentrations of their ships and timing his attacks so that large numbers of their ships couldn’t get a shot off at him. Shane watched the recording and shook his head, “That is one heck of a pilot.”

  Dat pulled up a picture of Lee’s new attack chair and the group stared at it. Shane said, “The center display is tactical.”

  Dat nodded, “The left is the scan of the vector he was assigned from green space. He used it to skip to his next target. The right display shows him all the activity taking place around his ship.”

  Shane took his chair and leaned the back against the conference table, “Gem, hold this in place.” Gem went behind the chair and grabbed two of its legs. Shane leaned over and lay down on the chair. He put his hands in front of him on the table and looked straight ahead. He stood up and shook his head, “This is pure genius.”

  Dat smiled, “I agree.”

  “What are we going to do about it, Sir?”

  “Jennings tells me that he forgets everything happening around him and focuses on the three display and ship paddles. He allows his crew to fire the weapons and keep things running; his entire focus in on finding a safe path through his vector.” The Admirals watched the flight of Lee’s ship through the enemy formations and were amazed at his ability to emerge into normal space at the optimum place and time to get off a shot. Even large concentrations of Servant Warships weren’t able to fire at him in time to hit the fast moving ship. Dat said, “We’re going to make the modifications to our ships and practice using them in a new formation.”

  Lydia said, “What kind of formation?”

  Dat pointed to the left display and said, “The problem with using the weave in a space with that many enemy ships around is that the box remains in one place until the four sides move across it.” The Admirals thought about the observation and saw the issue. “All the enemy has to do is just jump enough ships in on the box and overwhelm it. The vectors will be so crowded with enemy warships that there won’t be a safe place to emerge into normal space.” Dat paused, “However, if our fleets broke up into smaller units and formed just one side…”

  Shane said, “They couldn’t jump in on them. Our ships would be flying through their ranks at high speed and they would have to organize a jump in front of their path.”

  “Exactly right; and if the numbers in front of the wall of ships swells…”

  Matt said, “We simply press the escape button and run away, being happy with whatever losses we were able to inflict on them.”

  “That is exactly right, Admiral McCagg. If we break our fleets up into thirty six units and attack thirty six different locations simultaneously, they are going to have to reorganize their support fleets to send the appropriate number of ships to each location. To do that, they will have to collect information from the attack sites and issue the attack orders to sub units. That will take some time and we’re going to use that time to inflict as much damage as possible.”

  Shane tilted his head, “The ships on the outer four edges of the formation will be in jeopardy from ships outside the boundaries of the wall.”

  “The ships on the four outer sides will be loaded with a triple load of penetrators and will start launching them ahead of the formation. The penetrators will be programmed to target any enemy ship outside the formation’s boundary first. As far as ships beside or behind our formation, they are going to have a difficult time matching our speed. Jumps are not as fast as skips and I don’t think we’ll be in danger from ships we’ve passed.” Dat paused, “Make no mistake about this; the war with the Servants is, and has been from the beginning, a war of attrition. We have to cut into their numbers before we can bring all of our forces to bear. I want all of you to put your heads together and come up with an attack profile you think will work. While you’re working on that, send your fleets to their assigned ports and have their command chairs modified to Admiral Jennings’ design. We’ll take a short time to train using the new formation and command chairs. Then, we will initiate our attacks. Get back to me when you’ve devised a plan.”

  Dat sent the orders out
for the fleets’ ports to make the chair modifications and the Union Fleets jumped away. The Senior Staff stayed on the Havana hammering out a plan to attack the massive enemy fleets. Five weeks later, they were ready.

  • • •

  Two weeks before the Union Fleets were to leave to start their attacks, Dat called Gresha into his office on Earth. Gresha came in and Dat remained behind his desk. Gresha’s eyebrows went up, “Is this an official meeting?”

  Dat stared at her, started to nod, but then said, “It was going to be…but I can’t treat you this way.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I was calling you in to let you know that you are relieved of your duties.”

  “For God’s sake; why would you do that?”

  Dat stood and went to the couch in his office, “Come sit with me, Love.” Gresha followed him to the couch and Dat put his arm around her, “I will not be leading a fleet into combat.”

  “WHY NOT?”

  “Admiral Hull says that using a full or Vice-Admiral to lead a fleet with only a hundred thousand ships is a waste of talent. She has ordered me to direct the overall activities of the fleets and to stay out of the minor battles.” Gresha stared at Dat. “I don’t want to admit it…but she’s right. Where the fleets are going to need me and the other Senior Admirals is when we have all of our forces available to fight a major battle with the Servants.” Dat paused, “That is also true for you as well.”

  Gresha tilted her head, “OK.”

  Dat’s brow instantly furrowed, “I expected a lot more resistance than just ‘OK’.”

  “Oh don’t be silly. The reason I made you allow me to go was to make sure nothing happened to you. If you’re on the sidelines directing traffic, I’m ok with going to take care of our children. When you get into the game, I’ll join you.”

  Dat shook his head and remembered how much Gresha loved him. He took her in his arms and held her close. Gresha broke a kiss and said, “Now don’t let me down and enter the fight without telling me.”

  “I won’t.”

  “Promise?”

  “I do.”

  • • •

  Shane looked at Gibbs, “I see you were able to stay in the dance.”

  “Only in a supporting role; my unit is to only go and help bail out any of my units that are in trouble.”

  “What about Lydia?”

  “She understands and will be with me directing our units.”

  “I’ve been allowed to take a unit and join the fight.”

  “WHAT!?!”

  “Fleet made a promise before I accepted the promotion that they would not prevent me from fighting.”

  “Lucky you.”

  “I’m not going to go in.”

  “Why?”

  Shane slowly shook his head and signed, “Kelli and Gem have managed to make me see my value to the Union. I hate it…but they’re right.”

  Gibbs nodded, “They are so right.”

  “I know; I just hate to stand by while our ships go into harm’s way.”

  “You won’t be.”

  “Huh?”

  “I suspect you’ll be watching their actions and offering suggestions or pulling them out of trouble with the escape button if it’s called for. No one could do that as well as you.”

  “Kelli can.”

  “Yes, and I do hope she is also staying out of the fight.”

  “All of the Senor Admirals are directing traffic.”

  Gibbs smiled, “Now we know how the Rovers and Grillen are feeling. We have to learn patience and know that we’ve done all we can to prepare our fleets to handle themselves appropriately.”

  Shane paused, “What do you think about the new self-destruct guidelines?”

  “I wish there was another way. The guidelines have been presented to the fleets and very few sailors chose to leave the service. They know what will happen and have accepted it.” Gibbs paused, “Shane, we know how many ships will be coming after us. If a ship is damaged, there is no way for the formation to stop and help them.”

  “I know…I just hate it.”

  “Me too; however, the ships will self-destruct when they can do the most damage to the enemy ships giving chase. Their lives will count for something.”

  “They already count, Gibbs. I guess I wouldn’t want to fall into the Servant’s possession and become a host for their larva.”

  Gibbs shuttered, “That’s why everyone agrees with the new guidelines.”

  “I’ll let you know how the initial attacks go.”

  “I’ll do the same. Good luck.”

  “To you as well.”

  Gibbs had a thought and said, “How are your ships adapting to the new command chairs?”

  Shane looked back over his shoulder, “That’s why I can sit out the initial skirmishes; most of them are as good as I am.”

  “I find that hard to believe.”

  Shane walked out of the door and shouted, “Believe it.”

  Gibbs smiled; his pilots were also greatly improved. He just wanted to see if Shane’s ego would allow him to say it. Shane was making progress in becoming a great leader.

  • • •

  Matt walked into the restaurant and saw Kelli sitting in a booth in the back. She waved to him and he told the waitress he was meeting someone. He walked back to Kelli’s table and smiled, “Hi Smarty, what’s up?”

  Kelli smiled at the name and said, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about how long it takes you to develop tactics.”

  Matt’s smile disappeared, “I’m not sure what you mean; do you think I’m slow?”

  “You’re one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever known.”

  Matt shook his head, “What sort of tactics?”

  “First, tell me what process you use to achieve a goal?”

  Matt stared at her, “You’re serious?”

  “I am; humor me for a moment.”

  Matt looked up at the waiter that arrived at their table and said, “I’ll have what she’s getting.” Kelli looked at him and he said, “I have the same tastes as you. Your choices have never been wrong.” He paused and said, “I guess I see what I want to happen and then I look at all the things I can do to make it happen.”

  “Go on.”

  “I then prioritize the things that can be done to make the end result happen quickly and then use the other tools if those fail.”

  “You’re not being honest.”

  “Oh! Why do you say that?”

  “You’ve wanted to have a relationship with me from the moment you met me and you gave up soon afterwards. I suspect you saw I was driven to achieve a high rank with a great career. You decided that I wouldn’t be interested in you.” Matt just stared at Kelli saying nothing. “See, you tried what you thought would work quickly and they failed. You quit trying after that.”

  Matt’s face was red and he looked Kelli in the eyes, “Your career took off like a rocket. You are viewed as a future replacement for Admiral Arvolo and I saw rather quickly that I’m out of your league. I just don’t measure up.”

  “Matt, we hold the same rank.”

  “So?”

  “I tried every trick in the book to advance my career and here we are with the same rank. What tricks did you pull to get promoted?” Matt thought about it and came up with a blank. Kelli saw his expression and shook her head, “You were promoted because of your merits that are clear to anyone who takes more than a minute to talk with you. I didn’t realize that all my cunning and conniving were unnecessary; my abilities spoke for themselves. Once I realized that; I saw something else.”

  “What was that?”

  “You deliberately chose to step back and allow me to chase my dream. You put your feelings aside so I could find happiness.” Matt could only sigh. “Don’t think I haven’t seen your expressions when you thought I wasn’t looking.” Matt lowered his head. “So I’ll ask you again; what other things were you going to do when your first attempts failed?”


  Mat looked across the table at the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and stood up. He reached over, put his hand on her chin, and leaned in and kissed Kelli tenderly. He broke the kiss and Kelli sat there with her eyes closed. She finally opened them and said, “Your plan is successful and we need to leave now.”

  Matt smiled, “What about our meal?”

  Kelli’s smile was instant, “I didn’t order anything but water.” Matt laughed out loud as Kelli stood, came around the table, and took his hand.

  They exited the restaurant and Matt said, “What part of your plan was tonight?”

  “I’ve exhausted most of my plans; this was the last resort.”

  “Thank you for saving me from my misery.”

  “I didn’t do this; it was your actions that made it happen.”

  Matt swept Kelli off her feet and into his arms, “That is something neither of us will ever know for certain.” He kissed her again and carried her to a waiting shuttle.

  The Shuttle dropped them off at Kelli’s quarters and the shuttle pilot contacted Fleet Admiral Hull, “It appears they are an item now, Sir.”

  “Thank you, Sam.” Katherine smiled. Katherine had watched Matt’s expressions during her staff meetings when Kelli wasn’t looking and saw he was smitten by the brilliant young woman. She had made a point recently of asking Kelli if she had seen Matt’s sorrow around her and wondered what Kelli had said to hurt him so much. Kelli said that she didn’t know what she was talking about. Kat managed to look surprised and then sat back and allowed nature to take its course. She knew once Kelli knew about his feelings, she would be driven to verify them. There was no way she was going to ignore Kat’s remarks.