“I agree, looks like they’re hardening our targets. They know why we’re here.”
The formation circled around and moved back to engage the remnants of the enemy fighter attack. There were very few left, and the X1 drones split into pairs to hunt them down. The Star Empire pilots were good, but numbers were not on their side. It took no more than another four minutes to finish them off, all for the loss of a single drone. Nate breathed a sigh of relief as the formation reformed.
“Good work, pilots,” said Commander Higgins from deep inside the safety of the ship, “We’re through the fighter screen. Now it is time to deploy the Jackals. We must…”
He stopped speaking, and Nate looked left and right for signs of what might be happening. The Squadron channel filled with chatter, so much so that the Lieutenant Commander had to shout them down. Nate opened his mouth to speak, but after the stern talking down, quickly changed his mind. Then he noticed the distant threat indicator tens of thousands of kilometres away. At first he thought it was an anomaly, but then realised it was an entire formation of eight ships, clustered around a larger warship, perhaps a heavy cruiser or even a battleship. It was hard to tell from this far away. The upper atmosphere of the planet distorted their view via the optical cameras and sensors.
A light blinked on his simulated console, and he waited in silence for what was to come. It was either Colonel Gun or General Honorius. And he suspected it was the signal to depart the system.
“This destruction of the Marauder and the escape of its emergency buoy was no accident. Our intelligence on the Beithir Primus Orbital Station may be compromised.”
Nate shook his head as he listened.
The Colonel must be correct. If so, the buoy and the data from their agents were there for one reason. It’s a trap, and they hope to trap us at this station so they can annihilate our fleet.
“This changes nothing,” said Colonel Gun, “The attack will continue.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Beithir Primus Orbital Station
28 December 2472
Nate was stunned. He’d expected to hear the order to withdraw, not this. They were faced with an impossible mission, and this new fleet could badly damage, or even destroy their own meagre force of three warships and two armed transports.
“Nate, look!” said Billy.
Nate spotted the movement and looked down at the craggy surface of the Beithir Primus Orbital Station. Plates were moving aside, and systems deploying along key points.
The station is preparing for battle. What if their weapon is functional? We have to leave.
“Jackals, prepare to launch. The enemy’s research projects and weapon construction are more important than any ship in this fleet. I will sacrifice every man and woman in the fleet to ensure their destruction. Destroy the lot, no matter the cost.”
Nate could not believe it. He’d heard of the terrible events that had occurred because of the one alien derelict vessel, but surely one ship was not worth this much effort and sacrifice? A marine pilot tried to argue and was cut off by Lieutenant Commander Holder.
“This changes nothing,” said Colonel Gun, “You will continue the operation as planned under the command of Major Spartan. I will lead our ships against their fleet and buy you the time you need.”
The signal cut for a moment, and Nate thought they might have been jammed.
“You have one hour. After that, we are gone. Nobody stays behind. Do not be late!”
The feed to his drone cut, and Nate almost threw up at the sudden shock of being returned to the normal world. He opened his eyes and then clawed at the spider web interface on his head.
“What happened?”
A Thegn helped him to his feet as he struggled to get his bearings. People ran about along the operations level, and two marines entered, waving for him to join them. He looked to his friends, but they were being hustled in just the same way.
“Move it!” snapped a Marine officer.
Nate stumbled and staggered as he approached the nearest Jackal dropship. He moved inside and was ushered into one of the many pods. As he sat down, the straps tightened across his body, and another interface unit dropped down from above.
“Put it on,” said the marine.
Nate only now realised it was Lieutenant Armstrong, the man they’d met upon their first arrival here. He gave Nate a poor attempt at a smile and then tapped something to his right. A smoked cylinder moved down from the ceiling and stopped on reaching his shoulders, masking his view of the others and turning them into faded blobs.
“Son, you’ll command your drones from here.”
“I’ll what? Why?”
The man laughed.
“Because you’re going in with the assault. We’re out of here. That ships needs to be held off, or we all die.”
He banged his hands on the side of the unit.
“Good luck!”
The unit activated, and to his amazement he was back inside his X1 drone, though its position had shifted while they circled in a holding pattern ahead of the fleet. He could feel strange movement in his body, and at that second, it was obvious that the Jackals were leaving the ship.
“All squadrons, report in,” said Holder.
One by one the pilots called in, confirming that forty were connected and active. Nate looked at the status screen and audibly groaned. There were only eight X1 drones still flying. That meant they’d lost twelve in the preliminary fighting.
“Launching secondary drones now, form up at waypoint theta.”
Dozens of lights popped up on his tactical overlay as X1 drones deployed from the Jackals. They launched until thirty-two more were in space and moving into position between the fleet and the station.
“Ironclads and Raptors with me, everybody else protect the dropships.”
Pulses of light from the many nearby drones temporarily marked their positions as they boosted their powerful engines, and then they raced away. Nate sneaked a look back and watched the five Confederate ships sitting in silence near the station. They were colossal war machines, all five sharing the same basic hull and engine system. Between them they might have wreaked terrible damage on the station, but he knew they were leaving, and soon. There was always the possibility of collateral damage as well, and that was something all of them would have to avoid.
But then the three heavily armed Confederate Class ships adjusted their posture so that their forward batteries angled closer to the station.
“Roger,” said the leader of Cobra Squadron, “In position around our birds.”
Nate smiled, before realising that he was part of that cargo now. His eyes scanned the open space between his drone and the ships until he found the Jackals. They were so much bigger than the drones, yet in space little more than dots. There were eight from every ship, giving them an awe inspiring forty dropships, each filled to the brim with marines and robotic Grunts. He suspected there might even be a few squads of mercenaries mixed in with them.
“Watch your fire zones. We’ve got incoming,” said Holder, “Follow me in.”
Nate’s eyes snapped back to the orbital facility. It was now close, and so massive it looked like he was flying over a monstrous artificial nation, filled with buildings, towers, and mountains, but all protected under the safety of the three primary smooth angular half domes. It might have been a massive colony ship, with its curved sections and glowing light had it not been for its colossal size.
That is a thing of beauty!
The two squadrons, now reinforced with more drones, swept in to close range around the station, and still there was no substantial gunfire. Nate checked his scanner for power surges, and the inevitable attack from the powerful systems being developed inside the station.
“Defensive systems are powering up,” said Matilda, “I see spikes along the upper perimeter.”
“Got it,” replied Holder, “Move to the next waypoint and roll down. Put the secondary towers between us the primary guns.�
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Then a large series of explosions rippled across the rear of the facility. One after the other in a terrible cascading bombardment that filled space with debris. It went on for a full five seconds, and then it stopped. A quarter of the station was now obscured in the cloud. Nate looked on in stunned disbelief as the sound of the Colonel returned to his drone.
“We’ve opened up breaches along the shipyard. Spartan will lead you in. Good luck, my friends.”
And then the five ships vanished in a flash of light, as though they’d never been there. Nate had not seen the ships move like this before, and the only sign they left was a faint glow from the ring nacelles at the rear of each ship. With the huge ships gone, Nate suddenly felt alone and vulnerable. He was not inside the armoured hull of a ship, but one of the many Jackals, each of which could be struck down by a single well aimed shot.
“This is Spartan. Prepare for an assault landing.”
Nate audibly choked, to his eternal embarrassment. This was the attack, and he was helping to lead the amphibious assault right into battle. This man was the most famous man in the Alliance, perhaps even in this part of the galaxy, and it almost put him into a panic.
Stay cool, Nate, stay cool. You’ve done this before.
“We have the troops, and we have the weapons,” said Spartan, “Now, get me on that station, and I will make them regret ever turning a hand against our friends.”
Acknowledgements rattled in, and the majority of the remaining drones formed up around the Jackals, but Nate was already a long way from the assault party. Dozens of key targets popped up, the priority areas that could target the Jackals on the way in to the shipyards. Nate selected one, and the other pilots quickly did the same. There was little point in all hitting one place. One thing they’d quickly learnt in the simulators was that with careful coordination, they could maximise their firepower and their numbers.
“We’re going for the central gun towers above the shipyard.”
“Affirmative, Star Crusader. Take two more with you.”
The formation dropped down just as the defensive batteries opened up. Billy was there, as well as another pair formed up to their flank.
“Yes, Sir.”
Cassandra and Matilda formed up to his left as they moved into position. Nate had no idea where the others were, as everywhere around him was now a maelstrom of gunfire, explosions, and missiles. It was unlike any battle he’d ever seen, and they were losing craft, fast.
“Follow me in fast, everything you’ve got.”
Down they went, at deadly speeds that made it almost certain one of them would make a mistake and hit part of the station. Guns lashed at them, but luckily most of them were designed to hit bombers and warships. The Byotai were no fans of light guns, and of all the races, the ones most obsessed with mass driver technology. Medium and large calibre turrets deployed, filling the area around the station with projectiles. In seconds, the place was a killing ground, leaving four more drones destroyed before they could get low enough.
“We have to get below those guns and closer to the superstructure,” said Cassandra.
“No,” said Nate, “We have to stay high. Our job is to protect the Jackals. Either they shoot at us, or them. Better for the drones to take the hits.”
“Agreed,” said Holder, “Attack their weapon systems. Do not hold back. I will come from vector three-two and meet you on the other side.”
“Sir!”
The sixteen drones rolled off to the left and to the right, just like World War II fighter planes as the small groups went about their business. Nate went right for the centre and into the heart of the mass drivers. Streaks of metal slugs passed, but the drones were wickedly fast and capable of pulling maneuverers impossible for manned craft. Nate came in low towards the shipyards, racing out from behind the large section to face the massive central dome. Matilda’s drone vanished from view and disappeared from the overlay. Cassandra cut across the front, narrowly avoiding colliding with Nate before forming back up on his other flank.
“Matilda’s gone, Nate,” she said, in a monotone voice.
“Yeah, I saw. Billy, you still with me?”
“Yeah, I’m here, Boss.”
“Good. Follow me in, and blow up everything you see. No subtlety now.”
They accelerated ahead, while the other drones scattered about to strafe multiple parts of the station. Three drones exploded before they could even fire. Nate pushed the engine to the maximum and darted between two of the tallest towers. Billy and Cassandra were right behind as they emerged in front of a large gun battery. The unit was as big as three Jackals joined together and consisted of a triple bank of medium size mass drivers.
“Hit it!”
The X1s blasted away, unleashing a torrent of plasma shells into the lightly armoured housing. The super-heated rounds slammed inside and exploded like miniature suns. In seconds, the entire battery exploded, setting off multiple secondary explosions nearby.
“To the right!” Billy yelled.
Nate looked and then his view turned black. There was a short pause, and then he could see from a completely new perspective.
“X1 powered and active,” said the computer.
Without intervention, the unit deployed from its Jackal and moved out in front of the troop carrier. Nate shook his head, trying to get his bearings back.
“Billy?”
“Here.”
To Nate’s surprise, he found his friend right there and flying a newly deployed drone.
“Like I said, watch out for the guns,” said Billy.
Nate shook his head.
“Yeah, thanks for that. What about Cassandra?”
It took just two seconds to confirm she’d survived and was moving off to meet with Valdis and the others. There were attack runs all around the station now as the Jackals inched closer and closer. Four more drones had just launched from the Jackals and moved in alongside Nate. He noted they were from two other squadrons, but had chosen to fall in behind him. Behind them was the large formation of Jackals, and they were still moving in towards the station, with a large group of drones in front for cover.
“What now, Star Crusader?” asked the one to his left.
“We move back in and keep hitting those guns. Follow us in.”
As before, he blipped the engine and then raced away from the slower Jackals. They had ten, perhaps fifteen seconds before making contact, and had the perfect view of their target. All Byotai facilities were very different to Alliance ones, but this was by far the strangest and most exotic. The rings, domes, and curves gave it an unusual alien look, and based on the database information, housed anything up to half a million crew, pilots, and civilians. From a distance, the thing had looked bright white, but now he could see the light colour was merely for the large protective sections that covered almost half of its structure. The huge central dome bulged upwards with a small one at each end. A battery of elegant spires pushed up and down from the centre section, all connected by a spider’s web of smooth limbs and plates. City sized areas glowed with artificial light, glinting windows partially hidden under the smooth plate sections that hid them as though functioning as a thick umbrella.
Unlike many similar facilities in the Alliance, this one had clearly been well planned from the start, rather than built up in stages. That, or it had been assembled in modular sections from a design that valued the aesthetic over function. The facility seemed to be divided up into complex zones, with a smaller percentage around base of the rear domed section dedicated to shipyards and manufacture.
“Good work. We’re thirty seconds out,” said Spartan.
Nate sighed, thankful that they’d nearly achieved their first objective. But then came a message he didn’t want to hear.
“Pilots. We’ve got a problem,” said Holder, “New targets launching from the station.”
Nate looked ahead and hit the zoom toggle on his optical cameras. The unit focussed on the shipyard area still bur
ning from the multiple bombardments. At first he could see nothing, and then as another explosion shrouded part of the facility, he saw them.
“Got it, twelve targets, black colour. They’re fast!”
“Affirmative,” said Holder.
Before she could say more, the new fighter reached the drones. They were at least as fast and opened fire with multiple weapons, quickly knocking out eight for no losses and then moved in to the first wave of ten Jackals.
“All fighters converge on the new targets. Protect the dropships!”
Nate altered his course and boosted the engines. The first of the craft were ahead and the scanners having a tough time locking onto them. Their hulls were shaped like shrunken down cruisers, with a pair of small v-shaped wings on each side carrying multiple hardpoints. A single large engine jutted out from its haunches on each side. The snub nosed front looked very heavily armoured, and at each side were a pair of large, fully enclosed cannon mounts. The entire thing had the tough exterior of a Byotai ship, but with the wing shape commonly seen on Star Empire ships. It was bigger and heavier than any fighter Nate had seen, perhaps even putting it into the corvette class of craft. They were at least as big as the Jackal dropships, yet moved more like a medium fighter.
“One Jackal is down, get in there, fast!”
Nate thought he was having a heart attack as he pushed his drone onwards. The Jackal tore apart, and the others swung past it towards their destination. They were now a kilometre away from the shipyards, and making for a massive open section along the side directly beneath one of the thickly armoured domes. Inside were scores of dry docks, with three still burning from the heavy impact. Nate tagged the nearest of the powerful fighters and then signalled to his wingmen.
“Follow me in. Let’s get him.”
The four drones circled in above the heavy fighter, provisionally classed as a T1 Lion Heavy fighter.
“Hit it!”
The guns opened up, and at least four shells thumped into the rear. There were some minor flashes, but then at least six small mass driver turrets turned around. They filled the space around the craft with so much metal that all of the drones ripped apart, leaving just Nate. Luckily for him, Billy passed too close and took the impact. Nate swung around to fire again, but two more of the black fighters were in his way.
Star Crusader: Battle Fleet Victorious Page 20
