Conflict: Rise Of Mankind Book 4

by John Walker

  Bombers were present for the moment the shields went down. Group Commander Revente told them the bridge would attempt to use Protocol Seven, a weapon which was compromised but might have limited effect on these ships. It was designed to lower the shields of the enemy, making them vulnerable to conventional attacks.

  Meagan tapped into Rudy’s com. “You okay over there?”

  “Feel like someone hit me with a shovel but yeah, I’m fine. You?”

  “Pretty close to the same.”

  “Nice trip, huh? On our way home then thrust into a fight out in the middle of nowhere.”

  “It’s why I signed up,” Rudy said. “Oh, here we go. Launch time. I’ll see you out there.”

  “Just be sure your guys don’t get in our way.” Meagan smiled. “You guys tend to be a little slow.”

  “Uh huh. That’s cause we actually think before we maneuver. Later, Pointer.”

  “Bye, Hale.”

  Each ship received clearance, bursting out of the hangar while the Behemoth continued on its path. They were moving toward a large moon, one that seemed to be orbiting a gas giant. The combination of both would cover their vessel’s signature, keeping them from scans until the right moment.

  As Meagan’s ship launched, she hoped that time frame wouldn’t be long. The fleet they encountered wouldn’t last against the enemy’s weapons, hell, she half believed they could take then down with three squadrons of fighters. The pulse cannons could stay on cool down. Perhaps an unkind assessment but probably an accurate one.

  Leaving the ship, she took a moment to look around. Looked like every other patch of space so far. Nothing remarkable, no nebulas, none of the stuff that vids used to make it exciting. She knew it would be plenty wild soon and less peripheral distractions would be welcome.

  They approached the alien vessels and her scanners documented their silhouettes, plugging them into the Friend part of her identifier. Part of the briefing spoke of their capabilities and while they might’ve been a match for Earth prior to alliance intervention, they were mostly relying on conventional weapons.

  Their one difference came from the defensive ships they put in front of their fleet. Those supposedly erected a pretty strong shield. Calculations suggested they might be able to hold off a few shots and that should’ve been all they needed. The Behemoth would get there fast. But she remained skeptical.

  As they closed in, she hailed them to establish a connection. The briefing suggested they were a bit twitchy and liked to go silent. Not the best traits for allies.

  “This is Gahlir of the Emancipated Flagship,” A voice translated over her speakers. “State your name and rank.”

  “Wing Commander Meagan Pointer. Look forward to working with you fellas. We’re closing in so please don’t shoot, okay?”

  “We will not fire. Welcome and thank you for your assistance. We look forward to fighting at your side.”

  “Us too. So you’ve seen the briefing on these guys?”

  “We’re prepared.”

  I wish that were true.

  “Good to hear!” Meagan adjusted course and maneuvered between the larger ships. The rest of her wing took position throughout the area, cutting their engines to idle. The less pulse energy they emitted, the less chance the enemy would catch on to the surprise attack. She took a deep breath and tried to settle her nerves.

  They should’ve sent more fighters.

  Apparently, two wings pushed the limit for emissions but it felt light. They had to essentially guard all these ships long enough to let them be effective. Considering how fast space combat got, she didn’t have confidence they’d be able to last long enough to see them do any real damage.

  Maybe I’m a naysayer…or maybe this fatigue is sapping any semblance of positivity.

  “We’re in position,” Rudy’s voice crackled in her ear. “You ready?”

  “Yep.” Meagan rolled her neck the best she could with her helmet on. “Can’t wait, right?”

  Her stomach dropped when she saw a flash on the horizon, the heat corona of the enemy on rapid approach. They’d be there in mere minutes, bringing another major battle to them. All the Behemoth pilots would walk away from their tour with more experience than most flyers would see in a lifetime.

  Providing we make it back to celebrate such a claim, then it’ll all be for something. God, I really am tired if I’m thinking like this. Get your head in the game, Pointer! This isn’t a time for day dreaming.

  Chapter 7

  Clea reclaimed her position beside Gray and checked the engineering reports. As they didn’t need to jump out of the system immediately, Maury took the opportunity to run some additional tests to triple check their work. A wave of relief gripped her heart as she read the positive results.

  With the tuners properly aligned, leaving would no longer be a problem. Now they just had to survive the encounter with the enemy before returning home.

  Clea felt torn about the decision to stay and help the people. On one hand, they would be utterly destroyed without the Behemoth’s help, possibly their entire culture. Emotionally, she knew it was wrong to abandon them but rationally, she struggled. The crew still suffered from the side effects of the bad jump, the ship itself had only just been fully restored and many of the repairs would be hard to test properly prior to going into combat.

  At least the most important elements, weapons and shields, were online but that just meant they were capable of fighting back. Successfully doing so generally required everyone to be at the top of their game. Adam’s investigation didn’t help much at all either. If word of it spread, morale would definitely take a hit.

  The possibility of a traitor made Clea think about her sister. The alliance had their share of individuals who went against the government for one reason or another. Most of the time, they were protesting the war, pressing hard to vie for peace. None of them knew just how hard the diplomats begged for it.

  The enemy simply would not listen to reason and no matter how many reports the government released or examples of their violence, a sect still remained dedicated to ending all conflict. Clea admired their tenacity but not their wisdom. They saw with their own eyes what was happening and somehow refused to believe the truth.

  Those monsters out there would never stop until each and every one of them died.

  Humans proved to be more pragmatic and though there were some activists, the fact that the fleet had been hit so hard in the first conflict rallied the population. The months following her joining the human crew were filled with zeal and a little xenophobia. Her commanding officer warned her it would happen but seeing it in person drove the point home.

  Now, years later Clea had been accepted. Even though her sister’s actions made the whole process take two steps back. She had to work twice as hard to prove her own loyalty and she was quite certain that Adam considered her to be the traitor more than once. Perhaps he still did but the fact he hadn’t spoken to her yet gave her hope.

  Whoever did betray them will not have a good time of it. These people hold loyalty quite high. Perhaps I should volunteer to help but then…I may be needed here. Without Adam on the bridge, I’m second in command technically. I wonder how that would play out if something happened to Gray.

  “I’m putting an ETA on the screen, sir,” Olly announced. “Please note the enemy will arrive in only thirteen minutes.”

  “A lifetime in war,” Gray said. “Redding, are we ready for this?”

  “Yes, sir. Engines are at full power. Weapons are charged and ready. Shields appear to be at maximum. Pilots are ready to disembark on our orders.” Redding paused. “Idling at just above engine shut down. We’re ready.”

  “Good. Let them get in here and prepare a volley and we’ll dive in.” Gray sighed. “I hate to use these people as bait but we’ll need a little surprise on our side if we’re going to make this work. Olly, you got Protocol Seven ready? Just in case it works?”

  “The modified version might cause havoc wi
th their systems,” Olly replied. “And it’s ready to go.”

  “Perfect. Here we go, ladies and gentlemen. Stay on task and we’ll come out of this just fine.”

  Clea wanted to believe him and she saw the others shared her sentiment, though they were a bit more robust when they spoke yes, sir. For her part, she continued to struggle with the variables set against them. Exhaustion, recent repairs, a bunch of ships to protect and an environment they were not familiar with, all heaped on them at the same time.

  If they won this fight, it would be quite the achievement and one they’d deserve some recognition for.

  ***

  Adam went down to the brig and called in Marshall Dupont to get his ideas for interrogating Tim. The Lieutenant Colonel of security had been at the job for the better part of eighteen years. He knew the laws of the military and methods to get information out of individuals better than anyone on board and likely had a specialist at his disposal.

  They gathered in the office just outside the interrogation room, speaking quietly.

  “The Uniform Code of Military Justice grants him the right to silence,” Adam muttered, “but we need to know who else was involved. If they try anything else, we have to stop them…right now, of all times, we need all systems operating at peak efficiency. We can’t have people worrying about being stabbed in the back.”

  “In cases of treason,” Marshall said, “we can press pretty hard for an answer but if he retains his silence, we’re not legally allowed to go beyond that. He needs to cooperate to be honest.”

  “How do we convince him then?”

  Marshall let out a breath. “Short of torturing him, which I don’t think we’re talking about doing, we might need a psychologist…or at least someone he trusts.”

  “I think he trusts Redding, but she’s a little busy right now with this attack. Any other thoughts?”

  “We do have a couple of shrinks on board who might get it out of him.”

  “That might be our best bet.”

  “Why don’t I talk to him first?” Marshall offered. “Maybe he’ll open up if I give him a view of how bad his situation is. If he knows he’s looking at doing some serious time in prison, up to and including execution, he might come clean.”

  “I thought we did away with execution,” Adam said. “People do time now, don’t they? Freighter work?”

  “There’s an antiquated article that hasn’t been revoked about field execution,” Marshall said. “I’m sure a lawyer would go to town on it but for now, it does protect the threat at least.”

  “Jesus, I don’t want to threaten Tim.”

  “We have to use whatever tools are at our disposal, Adam. If you want this information, we can’t be squeamish.”

  “What if he turns out to be totally innocent?”

  “He should’ve spoken up,” Marshall replied. “You can’t play silence without something to hide.”

  “Unless he doesn’t believe the person he’s protecting did anything.”

  “Damning evidence can be investigated but no evidence only leaves us one recourse.” Marshall gestured toward the cells. “That young man is our only clue about what happened to this ship. You tell me: are we going to find out what he knows or hope to God he was the only one involved until we get home? Note that when we return to Earth, our culprit may well leave the ship and never come back.”

  “Leaving us with no suspect.”

  “Correct. Whoever nearly killed us all won’t face any justice if we don’t find them now.”

  “Do what you have to do…short of torture.”

  Marshall shook his head. “There’s no protection for doing that to people and even if we did want to implement it, we couldn’t do it on the ship. Everything’s recorded. Believe me, this is a psychological game. Hurting the poor bastard won’t do us any good.”

  Adam nodded. He still didn’t feel good about the situation but Marshall was right. They needed to take action. As long as they weren’t attempting to coerce information out of him physically, he didn’t technically see anything wrong with it. He simply felt bad about the whole situation because of who they were interrogating.

  “Do it. Whoever you need to bring in, let’s get it done.”

  “We’re on it, Commander.” Marshall moved away and got on the com, contacting one of his own people.

  Adam sent a report to the captain detailing out what they were about to do and letting him know that Tim looked suspicious if not flat out guilty. Gray replied back only with understood, keep me posted. He knew how the captain felt about the navigator so it couldn’t have gone over well but then they must’ve been insanely busy up on the bridge.

  “Did you know those invaders who attacked us showed up?” Marshall asked.

  Adam nodded. “I read the report.”

  “I guess I had my head down in other things cause I’m the last to know. You sure we want to do this interrogation now? There seems to be bigger fish to fry.”

  “If we don’t fight out who Tim’s protecting and they screw us over during a fight, then that’s going to be the biggest fish we’ve seen.”

  “Fair enough.” Marshall gestured. “My interrogator’s almost here. He should be able to get something out of our guy.”

  “I look forward to seeing.” Marshall found a chair and peered at Tim through the one way glass. “I hope he breaks fast.”

  “Me too…considering the fight that’s about to break out, I’d rather be coordinating that than pressing one of our own. I guess we’ll see what happens.”

  We will at that, Adam thought. C’mon Tim, don’t make us wait.

  ***

  Olly tried to patiently wait for the fight but couldn’t quite keep himself still. After transmitting their historical data to their new shaky allies, he received a reciprocal file from them. He had to decode but it finished while they sat near the moon, idled down for their surprise attack.

  It contained some historical records of the culture’s first forays into space, how they too tried to explore beyond their solar system and lost vessels. Unfortunately for them, they’d already colonized a planet and began small skirmishes back and forth. By the time they sufficiently recovered from the exploration loss, they were in the midst of a full scale war.

  We still haven’t figured out what happened to our own expeditionary force. I wonder what it is about leaving one’s solar system. Maybe fate wants to smack down those of us not entirely ready to leave. Honestly, until we had jump technology, it wasn’t entirely practical. As soon as we perfected FTL with the alliance, we traveled mostly without incident.

  …well, except for this recent event of course.

  But Olly did truly believe there must be some correlation between this new culture’s tragedy and Earth’s. It couldn’t have been the enemy. Maybe the ships were still out there, exploring. Their own might be too, they had no way of truly knowing. Communication would eventually reach home base but if they couldn’t transmit for some reason…All those years though. Survival seemed impossible.

  Olly compiled the reports and sent them to the captain as low priority, for information purposes only. The ships approached, two again ready to go. Olly’s passive scans weren’t nearly as powerful as what he typically used but they granted him the essentials: distance to target, incoming speed and energy buildups.

  Redding could use these statistics to plan her movements and fire the weapons more effectively. The captain’s idea was bold but for the few seconds it would take to get into the action might be more than the fleets could handle, even with fighter support. The bombers might turn the tide. Their ordinance could be devastating.

  Let’s hope the wake doesn’t damage our new allies. That’s the last thing they need.

  Olly’s mind drifted to Tim and he wondered what was happening with his friend. Part of him wanted to tap into the security system and take a look at the data they were compiling but he decided against it. Any investigation they performed must’ve been confidential and sneaki
ng a look would only cause more trouble.

  Which is the last thing I need right now.

  The captain couldn’t really think Tim was capable of anything nefarious. It didn’t make sense. Everyone on the bridge knew him for quite a while. He always seemed straight forward, a man who kept his comments real. He didn’t flatter nor did he berate. As a team member, Olly found him to be easy to get along with.

  Goes to show you may never really know someone.

  ***

  Raeka stood beside Tarkin, reading the data on his screen. The incoming ships boasted similar power readings to the Behemoth but just different enough that they felt like they might have a chance. They calibrated the weapons for maximum power, forsaking energy efficiency for punch. Once the Behemoth got those shields down, they’d need to hit the bastards hard.

  The two men worked out how the other ships in the fleet should maneuver and related the orders through Gahlir. He coordinated the various captains and expressed that many of them needed to keep in a constant state of motion. Most battles against the founders meant the scouts did most of the moving but this time, they needed to avoid weapons with the potential to annihilate them instantly.

  Maybe the Behemoth should’ve shot one of us down after all, Raeka thought. It would’ve given us some respect for what we’re about to face.

  Shield ships from both sides took up position side by side and three high. Their collective shields connected and overlapped, a tactic Raeka hoped might hold back at least a few of the enemy blasts. They’d done so well in the past against each other, this defensive measure proved to be one of their strongest points.

  If any of his men were nervous, he couldn’t tell. They kept quiet, working hard and focusing their attention to their duties. His subordinates on the other vessels all reported in their faith in his command, reaffirming they were behind him all the way. The gesture was kind but unnecessary. He trusted them all to do their duties as well, even if it led to destruction.