Deep Dive: Legacy War Book 5

by John Walker

  Oh, you’re not getting away.

  “Alicia, come back!” Roman shouted. “There are way too many of them over there.”

  Damn it! Alicia checked her scanner and noted enemy density had increased. She broke off her pursuit and dashed back toward the others, catching a couple blasts along the way. Her shields held though they dropped down to forty percent on her starboard side. That was exceptionally insane. I’ll be avoiding that one in the future.

  “I’m forming up on you, Roman. We’ll have to rendezvous with the rest of Mustang to make any headway though. There really are a lot of them out here!”

  “Follow my signature and we’ll make it happen from here,” Roman replied. “The others are on their way.”

  “Okay, let’s hope it’s the final push. The Tol’An seem a little more desperate than usual today.”

  ***

  Vincent joined Desmond on the bridge, taking over operational command of the fighters in the field. The Gnosis moved into position, attacking the nearest destroyer. Their beam weapons cut a swath of destruction through the battlefield of smaller ships, annihilating the few that were too slow to get out of the way.

  The destroyer took a full barrage on their port side. Salina reported minimal damage to the hull, but the shields dropped down to twenty percent. That wasn’t bad, Vincent thought. A couple more of those and we should be able to take down the target. I’d like us to be a little closer though. The fighters need to make a harder push.

  He got on the com with Dennis Arden. “You really need to open a path for us, guys. We scored a good hit but they’re maneuvering to stay away. If they keep showing us a different side, this will be a prolonged fight that we can’t afford.”

  “Understood,” Dennis said. “We’re reforming for another push. It’s been pretty crazy out here, sir. I’m sure you’re aware.”

  “I am. Do what you can.”

  Defensive turrets were working overtime, fending off a swarm of fighters that broke through their three squadrons. All together, they could do some appreciable damage if they were allowed to coordinate but fortunately, the cannons kept them in constant motion. The Gnosis suddenly shook violently.

  “What the hell was that?” Desmond asked.

  “One of our turrets has been destroyed,” Salina said. “Looks like it was a series of missiles.”

  “Pull back one of the fighter squadrons,” Desmond said. “Get those guys off of us. I don’t want another incident like that. If they can get through to one of those, they can target generators. If they got shield emitters, we’d be in some real trouble.”

  Vincent got on the com, this time connecting with Anna Jager. “I need you to bring Charger back to the ship and fend off these bogies. They’re all over us and just took down one of the defensive batteries. ETA to getting here?”

  “We’d have to disengage,” Anna replied. “Three minutes.”

  Vincent gritted his teeth. Three minutes in a fight could equal eternity, the difference between victory and defeat with the right set of circumstances. “Make it two if you can. Hurry.”

  “I broke the code!” Dulain shouted, clapping his hands. “I’ve got the message that traitor bastard sent off to his Tol’An friends! Ha!”

  Desmond shook his head. “Glad to hear it but I’m not sure it matters at this particular moment.”

  Dulain didn’t seem to catch the last part of the captain’s comment. “I checked the cameras in that tech lab and he did manage to clear them out so we don’t have a good view of them. However, the message is damning. He sent it straight to a Tol’An outpost, giving the coordinates we would be visiting and letting them know his upgrade was successful.”

  “He shouldn’t have been able to update our system without us knowing,” Salina said. “Do you have records of how he pulled that off?”

  “Yes,” Dulain replied. “He went into your tracking system and approved it, then buried the request deep in the archives. Any sort of automatic auditing wouldn’t have seen anything wrong because all records were appropriate. He even managed to replicate the engineer’s signature. This man knew his business.”

  The ship shook as the destroyer took a shot at them, energy weapons hammering the shields. Vincent turned to his com and reached out to Mustang again. “How’re you guys doing?”

  “The best I can say is we’re working on them,” Dennis replied. “I can’t talk just now.”

  The line stayed open but even looking at the scanners, it was clear the fighters were up to their ears in conflict. Vincent checked the other stations on the ship. Turrets were working overtime, but Anna’s wing managed to engage them. Unfortunately, she seemed to be a ship down. What happened?

  He checked the logs but didn’t see any call out of someone being shot down. That ship must’ve been in the middle of a fight and couldn’t break off. I hope they’re with the other wings. Their target, the destroyer, seemed to be moving toward them, plowing into the battlefield where the fighters were engaged. That could get messy.

  “Captain,” Vincent said, “are you seeing this?”

  “I am,” Desmond replied. “And their people aren’t getting out of the way. If we have ours disengage, they’ll be at a dramatic disadvantage but they'll risk being rammed. Tell them to do what they can about a tactical retreat. Meanwhile, Zach, hit that thing again. I don’t need them moving to point-blank range.”

  “I’m initiating evasive maneuvers,” Zach said. “Trying to get us in a better position to stop them from angling their defenses. If it weren’t for that, I swear I’d have disabled them by now. They’re far more maneuverable than the other ships of that size we’ve encountered. Either the crew is being jostled around like popcorn or they have incredible inertial dampeners.”

  “Probably a combination of both.” Vincent squinted at the viewscreen. “Looks like the Pahxin are having a serious run over there.”

  Desmond nodded. “If I didn’t know Ulian was in charge over there, I’d be nervous. That’s quite the exchange. I can’t believe they’re practically right on top of each other, blasting away. Not a tactic I’d like to employ but the Pahxin definitely have their own views on space combat … They’ve been doing it long enough.”

  Chapter 11

  Ulian Hataran led the Pahxin attack group to secure the quiet sector long before the Gnosis was expected to arrive. They emerged from hyperspace and found the place totally empty with only a couple of dead planets nearby and not a single life form within a thousand light years.

  A perfect place for this little exercise.

  At that point, he settled in for what they all figured would be little more than a relaxing and boring wait. When the Gnosis arrived, no one should’ve known it would be on its way. They’d immediately set course for Earth and head out. Depending on whether or not they succeeded at their mission, they may or may not have optimized the return visit.

  When the Tol’An emerged less than half an hour before the Gnosis did, Ulian immediately knew there had to be treachery involved. So few people knew the coordinates of where they were going and once the Pahxin fleet arrived, all communications were put on blackout. No messages came in or went out.

  Which meant something happened back on Earth. Whether it was because a human managed to be turned or one of the many Pahxin happened to be a zealot didn’t matter. The truth was they now had an attack force to contend with before their allies arrived.

  Ulian figured they had plenty of time to take care of the criminals but when the Gnosis jumped in, he understood just how deep the betrayal went. Not only had someone revealed their coordinates but they sabotaged the Gnosis as well to ensure they arrived sooner than they should’ve.

  Had the Pahxin fleet been delayed in anyway, the Gnosis would’ve emerged to contend with an overwhelming attack force bent on claiming their ship rather than destroying it. Those who survived such a conflict would not have done so for long and more importantly, the enemy would’ve had four Orbs in their possession.

  If
the traitor had not been killed already, they would have been facing a death sentence for sure.

  Ulian held his fleet back until the Tol’An approached them. All communications were jammed, they couldn’t call in reinforcements but that may not have worked to the Pahxin advantage. If the terrorists couldn’t report in, more may come. However, the force they sent shouldn’t take too long to deal with.

  The first two scouts that drew close to the Pahxin were destroyed immediately, dropping the force down to ten. Just before the Gnosis arrived, they took out two of the destroyers leaving a couple scouts, three destroyers and two battleships, the latter of which seemed disinclined to engage them, even when provoked with some missile fire.

  “Get our bombers out there,” Ulian ordered. “I want them going well around the battlefield to harass those larger ships. Give them a taste of some real firepower. If we bloody their noses enough, they might leave.”

  Morala Creldan, Ulian’s first officer, complied with the order, coordinating with the hangar. Their pilots were making short work of the Tol’An flyers but he noted just how many the terrorists fielded. It was unusual for them to commit such a large force, even for highly desirable targets.

  When the bastards took one of their shipyards, they did so with a single assault vessel and a lot of audacity.

  “Bombers are en route,” Morala said. “I’ve got fighter escort on them.”

  Ulian nodded. “Give me a report on the Gnosis.”

  “They’re holding their own over there, facing a single destroyer at the moment.” Morala hummed. “They are being swarmed by fighters which seem to be attempting to take out their turret defenses.”

  “Likely to conduct a boarding action.” Ulian rubbed his chin. “Get Arnik over there with his ship. Get them backup.” Forgive me, Captain Bradford. It’s not that I don’t trust your abilities but I don’t want to risk those devices. Besides, we’re here to escort you, not watch you fight a battle you shouldn’t have been subjected to.

  The sheer number of civilians they had aboard worried Ulian. That’s how a traitor got involved, he was sure of it. More importantly though, those innocent people were caught up in a real conflict and some of them had likely never experienced such a thing up close and personal. They definitely deserved for the fight to be over quickly … with an outcome favorable to them.

  One of the destroyers closed in, making a mad dash toward the Stalwart. Two of the Pahxin destroyers moved to intercept, blasting it in a devastating crossfire. The attack caused massive damage but the vessel kept moving. Enough of it remained intact that it acted as a missile, definitely capable of some serious damage.

  Ulian turned to Erda Walar, their pilot. “Do you have this?”

  “Relax,” Erda replied. The engines and the Stalwart darted backwards just as the weapons discharged. Beams cut through the approaching ship, tearing the hull in half. As the blasted pieces burst in separate directions, the core exploded, obliterating the engines and cargo bays. “See? No problem.”

  “Uh huh.” Ulian shook his head. He checked the log and noted the ship would’ve collided with them inside of thirty seconds had Erda not performed his move. “Some might say you like to cut things too close.”

  “I had to make sure I had a good angle to stop it from advancing on us,” Erda replied. “It was faster after all … at least while we’re flying on forward thrusters.”

  “Understood.” Ulian exchanged a look with Morala. “That’s another one down. What’ve we got left?”

  “The battleships are still out there,” Morala said. “The destroyer the Gnosis is fighting with, another destroyer our scouts are taking care of … They’ve got it down to thirty percent hull integrity and their scouts … which seem to be fleeing the system.”

  “What?” Ulian scowled. “We can’t let them get away. Erda, get us moving. Can we catch up to them?”

  “I think so. We’re the only ship that can easily disengage either way.” Erda paused. “Yes, they’re fast but their strength is in maneuverability, not necessarily speed. We can fire in … three minutes.”

  “Okay.” Ulian turned to Viran Des, his communications and technical officer. “Inform the other ships of our intentions.” He paused as a thought came to him. “Erda, plot a course so that as we come on those scouts, we’ll be directly in line with the Gnosis. I want to help out. If we can buy them some breathing space, they can hyperspace out of here while we mop up.”

  “On it sir.”

  You do not need to be involved in a meaningless conflict, Ulian thought. I only hope the honorable Captain Bradford will accept this plan.

  ***

  Anna couldn’t pull up in time, flying straight through the explosion of a fighter she took out. The debris burned up on contact with her shields and her alarm went off, showing her defenses had dropped below fifty percent. The dogfight left her covered in sweat, especially since it happened so close to the Gnosis.

  The fighters harassing their home diverted their attention from the turrets to take on Charger Squadron but the initial battle proved they weren’t up to the task. They sent more than enough to be a problem and after Anna’s team took out five of them, they still faced ten ships, meaning they faced over two to one odds.

  Flight Lieutenant Frank Maze, her second, formed up beside her for just a moment before he was driven off and below the Gnosis. She gave chase, putting herself directly on the enemy’s six. Firing two blasts, she caught their side but their shields saved them. They spun suddenly, firing their own blasts that connected with Anna’s front shields.

  Her target continued spinning, not righting itself as it hurtled off away from the fight. Pilot probably passed out or maybe even died when they tried that move. Anna checked her defenses and frowned. She was down to thirty percent shields and the generators were having a hard time catching up. I need less than a minute to recover!

  “You okay?” Frank asked.

  “Not entirely,” Anna replied. “You?”

  An explosion interrupted them, a gigantic flash from behind. They checked their scanners and found another two enemies were down. This left them with seven ships to take out, seven more zealots to worry about. And those remaining few became desperate, returning their attention to the Gnosis.

  Crap, I bet these idiots are planning on ramming the ship! “You thinking what I’m thinking, Frank?”

  “Christ … Yeah, they’re going to pull their suicide BS.”

  “Okay.” Anna clicked over to the open channel. “Team, hold nothing back at all. Those Tol’An maniacs are going to try to collide with the Gnosis in rapid succession. If they do, we all know how much damage that can cause. It’s up to us to put them down before that happens. Do not let them succeed! Go!”

  Anna and Frank went after the closest ship, the one that seemed like it had the best chance to make contact. They didn’t wait for tone, leading their target and firing beams and cannons at the same time. Heat warnings popped up on Anna’s console, but she ignored it as her target’s shields began to flare.

  They cut through and took him out so that only debris scattered on the Gnosis shields. Scratch one. I can’t believe there are six left.

  She watched Charger Three and Four blast away at some of theirs, catching one in such a way that it tumbled, slamming into its companion. They were flying too close together and the resulting crash ended with a massive explosion as both cores went off. The proximity to their ultimate target meant the Gnosis probably felt the concussion.

  Four to go! Anna noted that one was nearly there. She hit her afterburners, cranking all shields to double front. Firing her weapons, she hit them with a full barrage on the side, barely knocking them off course. They skimmed the Gnosis shields, catching fire and exploding a moment later.

  I thought for sure I was going to have to ram that bastard. Thank God that worked without my own near suicidal run.

  “Can you not do that again?” Frank asked. “Seriously, there’s no need for those kinds of heroics.
There are only three to go …” He paused. “Sorry, two. Missile worked.”

  “Shit! He turned on me!” Lieutenant Preston Everest shouted. “Ejecting! Ejecting!” His fighter exploded a moment later as the Tol’An pilot raced off toward the destroyer, hitting his afterburners.

  One left, Anna thought. What a cheap bastard. “Preston, are you okay?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Life pod is intact and I’m uninjured. Sorry about that …”

  “Don’t you even dare say that. We’ll get you soon.” Anna focused on the last ship as it evaded Frank’s attacks, still plunging toward the Gnosis. She tried as well but the flyer proved wily, narrowly escaping more energy beams and cannons. It seemed inevitable that it would get through and connect.

  Damn it! That’s going to really hurt!

  “Come on, guys! Anyone?”

  Turrets came to life, blasting away and obliterating the pilot less than a few hundred meters from target. Anna slumped in her seat and let out a deep breath. “Wow … That was entirely too close.”

  “No doubt,” Frank said. “At least we put it in the—”

  He was interrupted by an explosion and Anna looked in time to see his fighter torn out of the sky by the Tol’An who seemingly ran away. Her eyes blazed as the bastard started to move off again, hitting his afterburners. Oh no, you’re not going anywhere! Anna swallowed hard, moving to intercept.

  “Check on Frank,” Anna ordered the others. “I’ve got this guy. See … See if he made it.”

  “He … didn’t, ma’am,” Flying Officer Jonny Calloway reported the news. “I saw it happen.”

  Anna bit her lip before replying. “Remain there on standby and protect the Gnosis. I’ll be back in a moment.”

  The enemy led her into the fray where Mustang and Raptor engaged in dramatic dogfights. She had to dodge debris, fly over chunks of metal and through gunfire but she wasn’t letting this bastard go. No matter how wily he tried to be, she remained hot on his tail, ever closing the distance between them.