Frontiers Saga 10: Liberation

by Ryk Brown

  “Jumper One copies. Standing by.”

  “Falcon, Waddell,” the major called from the back of the jump shuttle.

  “Go ahead, sir,” Loki answered as he calculated the upcoming jump sequence.

  “Did Nash give you any details about her condition?”

  “No, sir, none. She did seem anxious though.”

  “You think she can’t move or something, sir?” Josh asked over the comms.

  “Doubtful,” the major answered. “She would have said something if that were the case. How soon do we go?”

  Loki glanced at the digital mission clock on his console. “I’m finishing up the jump plots now, sir. We need to be on the extraction point in just under seven minutes. With turns between jumps, we should depart in two.”

  “Understood,” Major Waddell answered. “You’ll jump in first, a little high and to the side. We’ll jump in ten seconds after you.”

  “Understood,” Loki said.

  “Be sure to stay out of our flight path after you jump in. If the LZ is hot, we may have to jump right back out, and we don’t want to jump through you.”

  “Understood,” Loki responded.

  “Yeah, that would suck,” Josh added.

  “Jumper One, Falcon. Transmitting jump plots now. First jump in ninety seconds.”

  * * *

  Eli pretended not to be interested as General Bacca’s aide spoke to the general in their native language. Despite its similarities to the Romansh language used in the Alps, the people of Earth had never quite figured it out, and the Jung had yet to demonstrate a desire to teach them.

  General Bacca turned toward Eli just as the icons updated on the system map displayed on the control room’s main view screen. Eli immediately noticed that the icon representing the Aurora had suddenly moved away from the cruiser that had been attacking it and that the icon representing the Celestia on the surface of Metis had disappeared altogether.

  “Am I to assume that the Celestia has been destroyed, General?” Eli asked.

  “Unfortunately, it does not appear so,” the general answered. “Our frigates report that the Celestia is no longer on Metis.”

  “Where is she then?”

  “We do not know. We can only assume she departed while the moon was on the far side of Jupiter, no doubt maintaining a trajectory that has kept her hidden on her way out.”

  “And the Aurora?”

  “She was engaged by our cruiser. They were able to get several missiles past the Aurora’s defenses. It appears that some of her weapons were damaged during recent engagements, reducing her ability to defend herself. She was forced to jump away at the last moment to avoid being severely damaged.”

  “Then her jump drive is still working,” Eli commented.

  “Apparently so,” the general said. “However, they only jumped a very short distance—a mere thirty light seconds, to be exact. This is not in line with her previous jump tactics.”

  “How so?” Eli asked.

  “In past encounters, the Aurora has jumped distances that allowed her to reposition herself, most likely through a series of small jumps, and return for another strike before we were able to ascertain her new position and therefore calculate her next attack. It has been quite effective.”

  “And thirty seconds is not far enough?”

  “The higher her speed, the longer it takes for the Aurora to complete a turn. At her current speed, it would take her nearly a minute to run a mere forty-five degrees.”

  “Has she turned?”

  “No more than ten to fifteen degrees,” the general explained. “She is attempting to zigzag, as you call it, in order to keep our ships from coming out of their FTL hops at such close range as to be able to target her. However, she continues to accelerate at sub-light speeds.” General Bacca stood staring at the system map on the main view screen at the front of the command center.

  “Then you believe the Aurora’s jump drive is damaged, just as the intelligence indicates,” Eli said.

  “I am not yet convinced this is the case,” the general said. “Captain Roberts is no fool. He is playing his role quite carefully. He is either legitimately trying to escape our pursuit, reserving what little jump energy remains in the process, or he is attempting to lead us away from the Celestia.”

  “What about the Celestia, then?” Eli wondered. “Maybe you should send your frigates after her.”

  “The Celestia is of little concern. Her need to remain undetected will keep her in a narrow departure corridor for some time. Once we have dealt with the Aurora, finding the Celestia should not prove difficult.”

  “Then what are your plans, General?”

  “We have positioned tactical craft on the far side of Jupiter to watch for the Celestia should she attempt to change course to elude later detection. Meanwhile, we will continue to play this cat-and-mouse game a bit longer, at least until our ships begin to reach the limit from which they could quickly return to Earth.”

  “You still think the Aurora is laying a trap?” Eli asked.

  “All things are possible, Governor,” the general said. “The wise leader is prepared for all possibilities.”

  One of the junior officers in the command center called to the general from the center of the room, pointing to one of the side display screens as he spoke in Jung. Eli noticed the officer’s urgent tone and looked at the view screen that was now showing a map of the area south of Sydney, Australia. There was a small, pulsing, red dot along a country road, only a kilometer or two off the main highway. As the officer spoke, the image on the next view screen over changed to show near-Earth orbit. Another red symbol appeared with some Jung lettering and numbers next to it.

  The general turned back toward Eli. Eli smiled. “Another possibility, General?”

  “It seems Mister Guerrero was not as inept as we feared.”

  “Who?” Eli asked.

  “One of the many Terrans we reprogrammed to act as infiltrators into the resistance. One of our combat shuttles participating in the search has detected a short-range tracking signal, the type used by our covert operatives to tag a target. Apparently, Mister Guerrero used one of the devices.”

  “Are you sure about this?” Eli asked. “I was under the impression that she was farther south.”

  The general turned toward the view screen showing the map of the area south of Sydney. “The signal was first detected here,” the general said, pointing at the pulsing, red dot, “on a hillside a few kilometers from Mister Guerrero’s impact sight.”

  “How is it she was able to get so far north without being tracked?”

  “The devices are very small and have limited range, a few kilometers at best. We lost the track when the damaged shuttle was forced to return to base. By the time additional assets reached the search area, the signal was gone. Somehow, she had managed to leave the area rather quickly. We only reacquired the signal a few minutes ago. It does not appear to be moving at the moment.”

  “Are you sure it’s even the same person?” Eli wondered. “Perhaps she discovered the device and is using it as a ruse.”

  “Anything is possible,” the general insisted. “However, we have also detected an anomalous energy signature in the same area. The signal was only active for a few minutes, but it coincided with the presence of one of the Aurora’s small jump-capable spacecraft, the same one that we have seen on numerous occasions over the last few hours. I suspect the anomalous energy signature is this woman using some type of communication device, and that spacecraft is relaying those communications back to the Aurora as we speak.”

  “Do you have any confirmation of that?” Eli wondered.

  “Not at the moment, but we shall soon enough. I have ordered all units involved in the search to immediately converge on the locat
ion of the energy signature.” General Bacca smiled. “If the young woman is there and she is from the Aurora, perhaps we can determine their true plan through her immediate interrogation.”

  * * *

  “Maintain course and continue full burn, Mister Chiles,” Nathan ordered.

  “Maintaining course, aye,” the helmsman answered. “Continuing mains at full power.”

  “How long are we going to run, sir?” the Aurora’s tactical officer wondered.

  “As long as they’re willing to chase us, Mister Randeen,” Nathan answered. “The longer they chase us, the farther away the Celestia gets, and the more difficult she becomes to find.”

  “We can’t keep doing this forever,” Mister Randeen said. “Sooner or later, they’ll try to…”

  “Contacts!” Mister Navashee called from the sensor station. “Two ships! Dead ahead!”

  “They’re the frigates!” Mister Randeen reported with excitement. “Ten thousand kilometers and closing fast!”

  The bridge shook as rail gun rounds slammed into the Aurora’s outer hull.

  “We’re taking rail gun fire on our bow!” the systems officer reported.

  “Prepare to fire plasma torpedoes!” Nathan ordered.

  “Charging torpedoes…”

  “Helm! Put our nose on the closest target!” Nathan ordered as the bridge continued to shake from the bombardment of Jung rail gun rounds. He tapped his comm-set. “Combat! Captain! Stand by to fire the lower quads as we turn! Your choice of targets!”

  “On collision course with the starboard target,” Mister Chiles reported.

  “Plasma torpedoes are charged!” Mister Randeen announced.

  “Lock torpedoes on the starboard contact and fire!”

  “Multiple contacts!” Mister Navashee announced. “Both contacts are firing missiles! Impact in twenty seconds!”

  “Torpedoes away!” Mister Randeen reported. “Spinning up point-defenses!”

  “Two of eight destroyed!” Mister Navashee reported. “Fifteen seconds!”

  “Helm, hard to starboard! Tactical! Pound contact two with our lower quads as we pass!” Nathan felt the adrenaline surge through his veins as the ship rolled to starboard and started her turn. “New jump! Fifteen light seconds! Any course!”

  “Missiles are turning with us! Four down, four still coming!” Mister Navashee announced. “Ten seconds!”

  “They’ve breached our defense perimeter!”

  “Escape jump plotted!” the helmsman announced.

  “Five seconds to impact!”

  “Jump!” Nathan ordered without hesitation.

  The bridge filled with the blue-white jump flash as the Aurora slipped away from the incoming Jung missiles. The barrage of enemy rail gun fire had disappeared as well. Nathan slumped back in his seat. “Damn, that was too close. Helm, reverse your turn and pitch up five degrees relative to the ecliptic. I want us on a heading at least thirty degrees to port of our current one.”

  “Reversing my turn, five degrees up relative, aye,” Mister Chiles answered.

  Nathan leaned on his right arm, tapping his lips with his index finger. “They’re using their FTL drives to make short, faster-than-light jumps of their own. They’re trying to cut us off.”

  Mister Riley turned from the navigator’s station to face the captain. “They must have really good FTL systems, sir. An FTL hop that short is extremely difficult to do safely.”

  “They can’t out jump us,” Mister Randeen said.

  “At such short ranges, they can jump just as effectively as we can,” Nathan said. “It may take them a few seconds longer to cover the same distance, but the tactical effectiveness is the same.” Nathan sighed. “They’re not stupid. They’re using our own tactics to fight us.”

  “Turn complete,” Mister Chiles reported.

  Nathan sighed. “At least we know they took the bait.” Nathan turned toward the sensor station to his left. “Did we do any damage?”

  “Their light is just catching up to us now.” Mister Navashee smiled. “I have to tell you, sir; being able to watch our engagement again half a minute later is great. It looks like the second contact lost its forward shields on the port side. It also took a few rail gun rounds on that side. Their forward missile turret may be damaged, but she’s still maneuvering.”

  “Keep your eye on them, Mister Navashee,” Nathan said. “I want to know the moment one of them goes to FTL again.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “They’re going to keep cutting us off and forcing us to engage them on their terms. They’re trying to get us to use up what they think is the last of our jump charge.” Nathan smiled as he tapped his comm-set. “Damage report.”

  “Outer hull damage all across our forward section,” Master Chief Montrose answered over the comm-set. “The inner hull is still intact. We also lost two forward rail guns.”

  “They’re trying to whittle down our point-defenses,” Mister Randeen surmised.

  “How about our jump drive, Master Chief?” Nathan asked.

  “All emitters are good. Jump drive is still online.”

  “Casualties?”

  “None yet. Bumps and bruises mostly.”

  “Very well,” Nathan said, tapping his comm-set again.

  “Captain, I can’t find the cruiser,” Mister Navashee reported from the sensor station. “He may have gone to FTL.”

  “What’s our current speed?” Nathan wondered.

  “Just passing fifteen thousand kilometers per second,” Mister Riley reported.

  “Continue full burn,” Nathan ordered. “We need them to keep believing that we’re making a sub-light run for it.”

  “Captain, soon we’ll be moving faster than what we believe to be the top speed of the Jung’s ship-to-ship missiles. At that point, they’ll have no choice but to engage us head on.”

  “It might sell it a bit more if we keep zigzagging intermittently,” the navigator said.

  “Good thinking, Mister Riley,” Nathan said. “The harder it is for them to cut us off, the more it looks like we’re actually trying to escape and not just trying to lead them away from the Celestia. Good thinking indeed. Feel free to alter course at will, including our relative angle. Just keep us in the same general direction. If nothing else, it will keep them from coming out of FTL directly in our path like the last time.”

  * * *

  Josh was instantly thrown forward, his restraints digging into his shoulders as the Falcon’s jump flash subsided and the interceptor found itself in atmospheric flight.

  “Jump complete!” Loki called from the back seat of the Falcon’s cockpit.

  “No shit!” Josh declared as he struggled to gain control of the interceptor.

  “Three hundred meters and falling fast!” Loki reported. “Forward velocity: fifty meters per second!”

  Josh slammed the lift thrust throttles all the way forward, and the Falcon’s four lift turbines screamed to life. The ship’s rapid descent stopped abruptly, pushing them both down in their seats with great force. “Lift turbines at max power!” Josh grabbed the main atmospheric propulsion turbine throttles and started easing them forward. “Come, baby. Time to fly like a birdie.”

  “Multiple contacts!” Loki announced.

  “That was my next question.”

  “All around us! Closest contacts are two minutes out and closing.”

  “Interceptors?” Josh asked.

  “Not fast enough. Probably shuttles. Maybe combat landers or troop carriers.” Loki expanded his scan range, then refocused on another group of contacts farther out. “Fast movers are coming as well. Seven minutes out.”

  Josh felt his flight controls becoming easier to move as more air began to flow over the Falcon’s
lifting body and partial wings. He continued to add forward power as he pitched their nose up and start a wide right turn. “Pitching up and coming to starboard.” Josh looked outside. “It’s pitch black out there. I can’t see shit.”

  “We’re pointed toward the ocean and turning south,” Loki explained. “The city lights are to port and behind us right now.”

  The Falcon’s cockpit suddenly lit up with a blue-white flash.

  “Jumper One! Feet dry!” the voice announced over their helmet comms.

  “Jumper One, Falcon! Inbound contacts! Minute thirty out! Probably troop shuttles! More contacts, fast movers, maybe six and a half out!”

  Josh continued pulling the Falcon through a wide, climbing turn to starboard while the interceptor buffeted in the turbulent offshore winds as they turned into them.

  “Damn!” Loki swore. “Jumper One! Ground activity near the LZ! Probable ground forces moving into the area from the southwest along the road. We’ll try to slow them down.”

  “Jumper One copies,” the shuttle’s copilot answered. “We’ll get in and out quickly. Just keep them off our backs for five.”

  “Which ones you wanna deal with first?” Josh asked as he continued making tiny adjustments to maintain their turn. “The ground units or the shuttles?”

  “Tighten your turn and come about hard,” Loki said. “We can strafe the ground units first, then climb up and right to intercept the shuttles.”

  “Got it,” Josh answered. He reduced the Falcon’s main propulsion and rolled the interceptor onto its right side, pulling back hard on the control stick to pull the ship into an even tighter turn to starboard. Josh could feel himself being pushed down in his seat as the ship pulled more than twenty times normal gravity. Without the Falcon’s inertial dampeners, he knew they never would have survived the turn.

  “We’re going to lose altitude turning this tight, Josh!” Loki warned.

  “I’m on it,” Josh assured him as he added thrust out of the right sides of the interceptor to compensate for the loss of lift now that they were on their side.