The Lost Fleet: Dauntless

by Jack Campbell

  It still seemed to take forever for the next hour to crawl by. “Okay, Tanya. Let’s get ready to kick some Syndic butt.” She bared her teeth in an eager smile as Geary called the fleet. “All units, this is Captain Geary on the Dauntless. Execute Formation Fox Five at time four zero. I say again, execute Formation Fox Five at time four zero. Dauntless remains the formation guide.”

  Fox Five was an old formation, though as far as Geary could tell it hadn’t been used for a long time. It seemed perfectly suited to what the Syndics were doing and to what he wanted to do in the upcoming engagement, and it was one of the formations he’d included in the simulations, so his ship commanders weren’t totally unfamiliar with it.

  “Fox Five?” a voice queried. Co-President Rione, on the other hand, wasn’t at all familiar with it. “What does that involve?”

  Geary turned to smile at her, unaware until now that she’d come onto the bridge sometime in the last hour. “It’s a way of arranging my forces. A fairly complex way compared to the manner in which battles have been fought recently, but it should be very effective.”

  “How so?”

  “I have superior numbers,” Geary assured Rione. “The trick is getting those superior numbers to hit the enemy together so his defenses are overwhelmed.”

  She looked skeptical. “If I understand what I’m seeing on the displays, your ships are heading off in different directions.”

  “That’s the idea. Too many ships in one formation means you can’t employ them all together. An enemy force engaged on one side of the formation can’t be engaged by ships on the other side of the formation.”

  Rione shook her head. “I see you breaking your force into pieces. How does this help them work together?”

  “I’m afraid you’ll have to watch it in practice.” Geary felt too nervous and excited to want to try to further explain fleet tactics to a civilian. He’d practiced moving fleets around, he’d trained at it under some captains and admirals who awed him with their skill, and he’d done a lot of simulating such maneuvers in the last couple of weeks. But this was the first time he’d be doing it in earnest, the first time large numbers of ships would actually be moving and engaging the enemy on his orders, the first time his decisions would decide the fates of many ships and perhaps the entire fleet.

  He concentrated on the display to calm himself. As the ships moved in response to his order, the main body of the fleet was splitting into three sections. The section centered on Dauntless was significantly larger than the other two, a flattened oval facing the oncoming Syndic force. Moving to a position a million kilometers, or a bit over thirty light-seconds, above and forward of Dauntless were ships that were gradually forming a flat circle containing the second section of the main body, while another flat circle consisting of the rest of the main body was forming up thirty light-seconds below and forward. Together, the three formations resembled a huge nutcracker awaiting the Syndics, with the base centered in Dauntless and the two jaws positioned above and below the course the Syndics were taking.

  Off to either side, also thirty light-seconds away, two smaller discs aligned at right angles to the main body were rapidly coming into existence as lighter units, mainly light cruisers and destroyers, with a leavening of heavy cruisers, raced into position to form the cheeks of the nutcracker.

  Moving back, behind the lines of combatants, were the auxiliaries and the warships designated as their escorts.

  And all six pieces of the Alliance fleet were moving at a still-deliberate pace of .03 light speed, following the course and speed set by Dauntless, having abandoned the orbit around Kaliban that they’d occupied for the last two weeks and headed through space toward an intercept with the Syndic force.

  Geary gave a quiet sigh of relief as he saw the ships responding to orders. No one seemed to be pushing into an unassigned station, no one was charging off to be first to engage the Syndic force. Geary grimaced as he reviewed the formations, though. There was another command he had to send, to confirm the command arrangements for the coming battle, and he’d had to make a decision in that respect that he feared he’d regret. “All units, this is Captain Geary on the Dauntless, confirming the command structure for the upcoming engagement. In addition to exercising overall command of the fleet, I will exercise direct command of the main body.”

  He looked at the display as he continued speaking, focusing on the powerful formation forward and above the main body. “Formation Fox Five One will be commanded by Captain Duellos on the Courageous.” His gaze shifted, looking at the lower jaw of the fleet. “Formation Fox Five Two will be commanded by Captain Numos on the Orion.”

  Desjani gave Geary a sympathetic look. “Captain Numos is a senior captain.”

  “Yeah. I didn’t have any choice but to give him command of that formation.” No choice since I had no grounds for dishonoring him by bypassing him for that responsibility. But if he screws this up, I’ll have those grounds and damn the consequences.

  Geary activated his communications again. “Formation Fox Five Three is under the command of Commander Cresida on the Furious. Formation Fox Five Four is under the command of Commander Landis on the Valiant.” That took care of the light forces in the cheeks of the formation. “Captain Tulev in Leviathan is in command of Formation Fox Five Five.” The auxiliaries had needed someone in command of their escorts that Geary could count on, and he felt sure Tulev was that man. A dashing commander, even one as reliable as Duellos, might be tempted at some point to leave the auxiliaries unguarded in order to hurl the escorts into the battle. Tulev, steady and calm, should stick with the lightly armed auxiliaries to the death.

  Geary took another satisfied look at the display, pleased to see the disparate elements of the fleet going exactly where they all should go. Then he noticed some concern on the face of Captain Desjani. “What’s the matter?” Geary asked quietly. She hesitated. “I need to know your thinking, Captain Desjani. Candid and direct.”

  “Very well, sir.” Desjani spoke half-apologetically. “I know we’ve done simulations using this formation, but I’m still concerned about the distances between our forces. We seem to be spread out far enough to invite defeat in detail.”

  He nodded. “That’s a legitimate concern. Dividing the fleet and remaining passive would allow the enemy to hit each piece in turn and have local superiority when they did so. If we didn’t move, that’d be exactly what would happen. But we’re not going to be sitting still waiting for the Syndics to hit us. Or rather,” Geary corrected, “the other formations won’t be sitting still. The main body is going to offer itself as a target for the Syndic assault.”

  Oddly enough, the assurance that her ship would be charging straight into contact with the enemy clearly reassured Desjani. “Dauntless is to hold this course until contact?”

  “Right.” Geary smiled again. “We’re going to adjust the course as necessary if the Syndics don’t head right for us, and we’ll modify our speed at the right points. But when the Syndics get to us they’re going to have a lot of other things to worry about, too. Trust me.”

  She smiled back. “We do, Captain Geary.”

  For some reason, having that said almost rattled Geary again. The trust some of these people had in him was so absolute, it was unnerving. But he focused back on the maneuvers of his ships, seeing the individual discs forming up nicely. On a whim, he pivoted the display in front of him so he could look sideways down the ranks of ships in the main body oval centered on Dauntless. Normally such a formation would have destroyers to the lead, cruisers behind, then the grim, steady mass of battleships and battle cruisers. But since Geary had sent the lighter units off to the other pieces of the Fox Five formation, the main body consisted of just the heavy hitters, battleships and battle cruisers arrayed in an open formation with interlocking fields of fire in front and to the sides. Have the Syndics seen what I’m doing yet? Do they understand?

  He checked the Syndic formation. Still about six light-minutes away, the tim
e-late images showed the Syndic force hadn’t altered formation in response to the movements of the Alliance fleet. The Syndic ships were spread into the flat bar that thinned and extended forward toward the edges. In some ways, it resembled a hammerhead bearing down on the Alliance fleet. Geary recognized the general concept behind it. Simple, and effective against an enemy who didn’t take the right countermeasures, the hammer would concentrate the attacking force’s assault against a relatively small but critical area, allowing closeranked successive waves of warships to sweep through the center of the defending force and batter it repeatedly with no chance for the defenders to recover between waves. Very simple, indeed. The Syndic commander wouldn’t have to give any maneuvering orders to his or her fleet until it had swept completely through the Alliance forces, and then they could simply turn the entire formation to come back and repeat the battering if needed. Or release the formation into individual ships with orders to independently run down and overwhelm the scattered survivors of the first attack.

  Unfortunately for you guys, I have no intention of letting you get in that kind of blow.

  Geary waited until his ships had all reached their assigned stations. “All units assume full combat readiness. At time zero seven, all units accelerate to point zero five light speed and proceed along formation axis defined by Dauntless.” Two minutes later, the entire Alliance fleet accelerated in unison, pushing its speed upward. “Damn, that looks nice.”

  “It does.” Desjani grinned as Geary showed his surprise. “Didn’t you realize you’d said that out loud?”

  “No.” But he smiled again as he watched the display, showing the vast formation of the Alliance fleet rushing onward in perfect unison, while the Syndic force continued to charge straight toward the center of the main body, and thereby straight into the jaws of the nutcracker. It never hurts to have an arrogant or foolish opponent, does it?

  And now the really hard part had come, making sure he ordered the next maneuvers at the right times and in the right ways. Geary watched the data and the displays as the two opponents hurtled toward each other, trying to let his training and instincts feel the right moments to call the next orders. The images of the closest Syndic warships were still five minutes old by the time the Alliance saw them. Five minutes wasn’t a huge amount of time, especially given the momentum of those massive warships, but it was enough time for the Syndics to make some last minute moves to mess up Geary’s carefully coordinated attack. Especially if he moved his formations just a little too early and gave the Syndics the warning they needed.

  Minutes passed. At one point, he thought Desjani might’ve asked him something, but he stayed focused on the feel of the fleets rushing together, and she didn’t speak again.

  A few more minutes. Just a few more.

  Geary’s hand reached out and touched the communications control, his eyes never leaving the display. “Formation Fox Five One. At time four five accelerate to point one light speed and alter course down six zero degrees. Align your formation axis perpendicular to the Syndic formation. Adjust course as necessary to enter the top of the Syndic formation about one-third of the way behind its leading edge.”

  He paused, wanting to get the timing right. “Formation Fox Five Two. At time four five point five accelerate to point one light speed and alter course up five zero degrees. Align your formation axis perpendicular to the Syndic formation. Adjust course as necessary to enter the bottom of the Syndic formation about two thirds of the way behind its leading edge.”

  Forty seconds later came Captain Duellos’s cheerful acknowledgment of the orders to Formation Fox Five One. One minute after that, Captain Numos in command of Formation Fox Five Two acknowledged his orders with no apparent emotion.

  Geary waited, trying to keep his mind in that place where it could operate with all the distances and time delays in play. “Formations Fox Five Three and Fox Five Four. At time five zero accelerate to point one light speed and alter course to intercept the leading edges of the Syndic formation on your sides. Align formations to maintain right angles to the Syndic formation.”

  As the other formations began accelerating toward the enemy, he could almost physically feel the ships of the main body straining to leap forward at maximum acceleration and join in the attack. “Main body, hold your formation. Reverse headings and prepare to execute braking maneuver.”

  He might’ve caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of the shock on Desjani’s face or just imagined it. He waited as the Alliance ships swung one hundred and eighty degrees so that their sterns faced the enemy. Come on, come on, he urged the big warships. Get your butts around. Good. “Main body, brake velocity down to point two light, then reverse headings and prepare to engage.” Again he had the sense that the main body’s ships were straining at the leash. “All ships hold formation. You’ll have the entire Syndic attack coming through you in a few minutes and all the combat your hearts can handle.”

  Dauntless shuddered as her engines thrust against her motion, slowing her, then she swung up and around another time to face the enemy head-on once again.

  By this time, momentum had heavily committed the Syndics to their attack, but they could still react in minor ways if they figured out what Geary was doing. But because of the time-lag in being able to see the movements of the Alliance ships, it would take them a few minutes to spot that the jaws above and below their course had started closing. Minutes later, they’d see the cheeks of the nutcracker closing in from the sides. Even then, they might think they could engage the main body of the Alliance fleet before the jaws could bite down on them, but Geary’s braking maneuver had just altered the time to contact enough that the jaws would actually hit minutes before the van of the Syndic force hit the Alliance main body.

  They can try veering up or down to engage one of the jaws separately, but if they do that, I should be able to get the main body on them anyway, and the light units will still be able to hit their flanks. They’re not going to get out of this without getting hurt.

  “Blue shift on the Syndic ships,” the tactical watch reported.

  “They’re speeding up?” Desjani wondered.

  “Trying to counteract the effect of our braking maneuver and come to contact quicker. Maybe they think they’ll be able to blow right through the main body here and out of the trap,” Geary noted. “I don’t think they’ll make it. Duellos and Numos shouldn’t have any trouble compensating for the Syndics’ acceleration by increasing the angle of their intercept.”

  “We’ll have a harder time dealing with them at those speeds, though.”

  “Not really. We know where they’re going. They’re the one’s who’ll have a harder time, because they’ll have more trouble seeing us through the distortion.”

  As the last minutes to contact scrolled down, Geary had to imagine events in his mind’s eye, because time lag meant he wasn’t really seeing it as it happened. Dauntless’s sensors and Geary’s eyes told him that the two jaws of the nutcracker were still closing to contact, when at that moment the upper disc of Alliance ships was already cutting down through the Syndic hammer at a high angle even as the second disc should be cutting upward farther back. While the Alliance ships shot through the Syndic formation along its shortest axis, each Alliance ship was in contact with the enemy for only a few minutes, able to flay any ships within range and then racing onward before its own defenses were too heavily stressed. But while the Alliance ships were continuing outward, allowing time for their shields to recover, the Syndic ships were getting hit again and again by new Alliance warships as the narrow disc of the Alliance formation swept through the Syndic formation.

  But he couldn’t get lost in that vision. “All units in main body open fire as enemy ships enter your weapon engagement envelopes. Ensure first volley is grapeshot, followed by specters.”

  He feared for a long minute that he’d cut the timing too fine, left the final open-fire command too late, in his desire to make sure a concentrated barrage hit t
he Syndic formation that had just been savaged by two Alliance buzz saws. Then he heard Dauntless’s weapons officer reporting that the projected paths of Syndic ships were entering the engagement envelopes of the flagship’s weapons, and moments later reporting that Dauntless’s weapons systems were firing. Even given the time lag needed for his command to reach every ship in the main body, they should all have opened fire at the optimum time.

  Space between the Syndic force and the Alliance main body was suddenly populated by rapid bursts of light as a missile volley fired by the Syndics against the main body ran into and was wiped out by the wave of Alliance grapeshot. Moments later, space in front of the Dauntless lit up in a broad area as the charging Syndic warships ran head-on into the barrage of grapeshot, the ball bearings flashing into gas as collisions with Syndic shields converted their kinetic energy to heat and light. It looked for all the world like someone had painted a sweep of space with light.

  The huge flare was still fading when brighter and bigger lights started flaring like flashbulbs. Geary kept his expression dispassionate, knowing he was looking at the deaths of Syndic minor combatants whose shields had been overwhelmed, leaving the ships exposed to more grapeshot slamming them at high relative speeds.

  Right behind the grapeshot came the wave of specters, hammering weakened shields and in many cases breaking through to hit the Syndic ships.

  Within moments, the van of the Syndic force had been wiped out.

  Geary swallowed, trying not to think of how many lives had just been ended in those flashes of light. He glanced over at Desjani, who was studying the display intently, her hands clenching and unclenching.

  Holding their courses, though momentum left them little choice, follow-on waves of Syndic ships battered their way through the wreckage of the ships that had once made up their van. Instead of hitting an already softened-up Alliance main body with fresh attackers, the follow-on Syndics had themselves been hit by the two Alliance buzz saws even before they’d been further depleted by encountering the debris field. On the Alliance side, Geary’s ships were still almost untouched, their shields still at maximum.