"The port entrance is our only weak area. The walls of this asteroid are many kilometers thick, and to the best of our knowledge, they can't be breached by any weapons that the Raiders possess. The doors themselves are several meters thick and can't be damaged by most weapons that the Raiders have, including torpedoes. Following our takeover of this base, I had the doors reinforced to make them less susceptible to the form of assault that we used at Raider Three. At the onset of an attack, we'll lower the habitat's emergency airlock gates to protect against a breach of the docking platform's outside wall. If the Raiders do manage to dislodge the large doors, they'll probably attack with fighters, but fighters won't be able to breach the habitat with the emergency gates lowered. Under no circumstances should any ship leave the protection of the base without specific orders because the Raider's superior numbers give them a decided advantage outside.
"This secure vid link will remain open for the duration of the attack, so you'll always have immediate information on the situation status. Any questions, captains?"
"How many of our ships are nearby?" Captain Powers of the Chiron asked.
"We haven't received a reply to our message yet, but at last report the Song was five days out and the Ottawa was nine days away. Both the Geneva and the Thor are more than a month away. We're on our own for at least five days, but we're in an almost impregnable base here. The Star Gazer reported the first contact but it's not responding to our hails now. We can't send anyone to investigate, so we'll have to assume it's lost."
"What are the outer defensives of this station?" Captain Wilmot of the O'Keefe asked.
"Mainly laser arrays, but I've beefed up defenses considerably since we took possession. It was one of my top priorities because of our proximity to the frontier and our distance from other bases. The Raiders had dotted the asteroid surface with phased laser arrays when they owned the station, and I tripled the number when we took over by salvaging arrays from the Raider ships that we destroyed here, along with every usable array we found in the Raider's salvage area. The outside of the asteroid has more lasers per square meter than the Chiron. I've also installed a dozen torpedo launching stations around the port entrance, again using salvaged equipment and munitions from Raider ships. Anyone trying to come in is going to get a pretty nasty surprise if they think that the base's armament is the same as it was before our occupation."
When no further questions were raised, Jenetta said, "If that's it, let's prepare for action."
The four ships disengaged from the docking piers and took their assigned positions. No one questioned Jenetta's orders, although each ship's captain held higher GSC rank. They were in her port, and Space Command regs on positional authority for commanding officers, put her in command here, despite her lower rank and seniority. One of the captains could only assume command if she voluntarily relinquished it, else they risked facing charges of mutiny. And if they refused to follow her orders, relative to the safety and security of the base, they could be court-martialed.
* * *
"I hear noises," Nelligen said upon entering the room where Vyx was relaxing in Rivemwilth's large recliner.
It was good that housekeeping bots cleaned the base regularly, because the three men, fully expecting to die in a few months when the food ran out, had largely stopped caring about their personal hygiene or the condition of the base.
"What kind of noises?"
"I don't know. They're coming from the flight bay. I picked them up on a monitor. At first I thought that I was imagining it, but I wasn't, and they're getting louder."
Vyx moved the recliner to an upright position and then stood up. "Show me."
The two men walked to the communications center that Nelligen had taken over as his own. He hadn't been able to reestablish radio communications, but he had restored most of the security systems, and a wall of monitors showed every part of the base. He turned up the audio on one of the three monitors that offered different views of the flight bay. A distinctive noise could be heard.
"That's not a natural sound," Vyx said. "Could the video unit be causing it, like a feedback noise or something?"
"Nope. I checked that. It's external to the unit."
"It could be a boring machine. Perhaps we're about to have visitors."
"Think the Tsgardi are back?"
"I don't know. It doesn't make sense that they'd return, but nobody else could know that we're buried here. Better call Byers."
Vyx continued to watch and listen to the monitor as Nelligen fetched Byers.
"Tsgardi?" Byers said as soon as he entered the room.
"Don't know."
"I know that you don't intend to become a slave," Byers said, "but I've decided that it's better than dying in here. I'll go with them this time. I'll have a better chance of escaping from that, than from this tomb."
"Same here," Nelligen said. "A difficult life is better than no life, and there's always the chance of escape."
"Okay, if that's the way you want it." Vyx looked down at himself and sniffed. He hadn't showered in about a week. "I think that I'll clean up since company is coming."
* * *
Chapter Seventeen
~ September 3rd, 2274 ~
"This is Captain Tolatsak of the Raider Battleship Colossus. I demand the immediate surrender of this base and all personnel inside." The face of a gruff and nasty looking Terran filled the monitor.
"This is Commander Carver, base commander of Stewart Space Command Base," Jenetta replied. "This is a Space Command base in Galactic Alliance space, and I have no intention of surrendering this base to you or anyone else."
"This is Raider property, little girl. You seized our base illegally."
"If you have a complaint, you may file a lawsuit with the Galactic Alliance Council Court. If your claims are upheld, I'm sure that the base will be returned to you."
"Very amusing, Commander, but we don't recognize your government, nor it's authority in this sector of space. That station is our property and we demand its immediate return. You won't be allowed to keep it. We'll destroy it, and you, rather than allowing it to be occupied by Spacc forces."
"Whether or not you recognize the existence of the Galactic Alliance is immaterial, Captain. We certainly recognize your organization, and your days of piracy, slavery, murder, and theft are numbered in this part of space. You should find yourself a safer line of work because this one leads to a penal colony, if you're fortunate enough to survive."
"Enough talk. My fleet of twenty-five warships surrounds the asteroid. We know that you only have two warships in the port, and no more than two more within a month's travel time. The Song and Ottawa will not arrive in time to make a tactical difference here. Do you surrender, or die?"
"We'll defend this base at all costs. Are you prepared to die for your pirate bosses?"
Captain Tolatsak scowled as the com line went dead.
Jenetta looked at the position table in the center of the room where the base's sensor net was creating a three-dimensional holographic image of the asteroid and the ships surrounding it. So far, the ships were holding position at twenty-five thousand kilometers from the asteroid, making Stewart's lasers largely ineffective. As Jenetta stared at their positions on the plot, several of the ships in the Raider force began moving towards the asteroid, firing torpedoes and laser cannons at the port's entrance doors as they came. They were smart enough not to waste torpedoes firing at the outer walls.
"Com," Jenetta said, "tell the Echo Group laser gunners to open fire on incoming torpedoes as soon as they get a lock on a target. Tell the other laser gunners and the torpedo gunners to hold their fire until the ships approach to within five thousand km."
As the torpedoes reached effective laser range, the designated Stewart gunners controlling laser arrays around the port entrance opened up, destroying either the torpedoes or their guidance systems. The light destroyers making the run didn't fare any better. As they reached a point five thousand kilometers fr
om the port entrance, they experienced a rain of coherent light that no Raider captain familiar with the previous defenses would ever have expected. All three small warships were destroyed by the unexpectedly severe laser fire from the base before they could get back out of effective range. They continued to drift along their former courses, but it was doubtful that very many crewmen were left alive, considering the abundance of holes in their hulls. One ship passed the asteroid, and continued into space, but two impacted on the surface. The base's seismic sensors registered the hits, but the kilometers of rock prevented any damage to the base. However, several laser arrays were damaged by the impacts.
"The titanium skin on those old Tsgardi-built vessels is like tissue paper," Jenetta said.
"That run doesn't make sense, Commander," Lieutenant Ashraf said to Jenetta. "He just sacrificed three ships. They could have fired their torpedoes from a safe range."
"They were three of his oldest and weakest ships. He was testing our defenses. If you look at their attack paths, you'll see that they approached on routes that formerly wouldn't have drawn much fire because the array coverage there was very poor. He's obviously familiar with the station's former defenses and he knows now that we've substantially increased our laser strength."
"But he could have sent just one ship?"
"If he had sent one, we wouldn't have responded with as much strength. Now he knows the position of every array and he knows that they're manned by gunners who know what they're doing."
"What good does it do him?"
"All information about an enemy's defenses is useful when preparing for battle. It will help him formulate his next attack."
"What do you think that he'll do?"
"Well, Captain Tolatsak is discovering the same thing that we did at Raider Three. It's difficult to get a turtle to stick its neck out so that you can yank it out of its shell. Threats don't work, and he can't outflank us or launch an assault against our rear positions, because there's only one way in or out. I don't think that he really expected us to just surrender the base, but he had to try. Now he's being forced to admit that the only way to get to the turtle meat, is to crack open the shell. He doesn't have the luxury of laying siege to wait us out. Aside from the fact that we could hold out for years, there's the matter of additional Space Command ships arriving. He believes that he has a month to dig us out before a sufficient force can be assembled to threaten his blockade of the base. After that he'll have a real battle on his hands."
"How come he hasn't blocked our communications?"
"Either through oversight, or he doesn't think that it makes a difference. He would also be cutting off communication to his spotter ships and to whoever pulls his strings if he doesn't have an RF relay satellite available. He might even be aware that I've had several RF relay satellites placed beyond the range of jamming signals to preclude our being totally isolated. He knows that he's got nine days before the Song and Ottawa could get here together. The Song is closer, but it can't take on twenty-two ships alone. Together they stand a better chance, but two against twenty-two is still too great for just a destroyer and medium cruiser." Jenetta paused for a couple of seconds. "Com, notify the torpedo gunners to watch for a ship being launched directly towards the port's entrance doors. They have permission to fire at will on such a ship."
The seconds turned to minutes and the minutes to hours as the base defenders waited for a second attack that never came. Food was brought to the CIC, so that the senior staff could eat without leaving. Gunners were relieved on a four-hour rotating schedule so that they could eat or rest. After almost eighteen hours in the combat information center, Jenetta returned to her quarters so that she could feed her cats, shower, and put on clean clothes. After she returned to the CIC, Lieutenant Ashraf left to shower and change clothes also.
A few hours later, Jenetta went to get some rest in a nearby room that had been setup with 'oh-gee' cots. She lay down fully dressed, and was asleep in minutes.
Lieutenant Ashraf awakened Jenetta after a few hours of sleep. "The Raiders are up to something."
"What sort of something?"
"Our sensors indicate that tiny objects are moving towards the base. They're not under power."
"What do you think they are?"
"They look like individuals in E.V.A. suits, or they could be bots."
"Tolatsak has got to be kidding. Does he really think that they can get past our sensor net?"
"More tests?"
"Maybe. Okay, tell our laser gunners to open fire on all targets of opportunity. Then send out some bots afterward to look around. Wake me again if anything doesn't look right."
"Aye, Commander. Oh, one more thing. Another ship has joined the group outside, bringing their total to twenty-three."
"Another ship? What kind?"
"A destroyer."
"Hmmm. Either a little late to the party, or they were occupied elsewhere. The Star Gazer did report twenty-six originally."
* * *
Vyx, Nelligen, and Byers were watching the monitor when the tip of a boring tool suddenly popped through the pile of rock covering the flight bay entrance. It was withdrawn, and a video probe on a flexible cable replaced it. The probe revolved around the end of the cable briefly before also being withdrawn.
Over the next few hours, the sounds of heavy equipment could be heard on the monitor. The sounds grew consistently louder as the equipment got closer.
A little more than twenty-four hours after the first sounds were heard, the snout of an ore loader could be seen on the monitor. Because the rock blocking the entrance was all loose material, everything above the height of the shuttle door had to be removed before anyone could enter. As soon as the pile was low enough to allow for entrance, the ore loader was retracted and several figures in E.V.A. suits moved into the flight bay. They paused briefly to look at the mummified remains of the dead Tsgardi that had been piled in there, then proceeded to the airlock. As the outer door was closed and locked, the airlock pressurized. Completing its cycle, the inner door lock was released, and the visitors passed into the base. Standing there, facing them, were Vyx, Nelligen, and Byers, with their laser weapons drawn.
To say that the three visitors were surprised would be a gross understatement. They stood facing the three Space Command operatives in what might otherwise seem to be an amusing situation. The mirrored faceplates of their suits masked their identities from the three SCI agents, so the guns pointed at them never wavered. After ten seconds or so, one of the visitors slowly reached up and removed his helmet, revealing himself to be a Terran.
"I'm John Denault of Bradley Mining Surveys, an independent exploration company, he said nervously." Pointing to his companions, he said, "This is Claire Dennis and Josef Sitz."
Vyx, Nelligen, and Byers just stared. This was a turn of events that they hadn't anticipated. They lowered their weapons partway because the intruders seemed to be unarmed.
"We're sorry to burst in on you like this," Denault continued, "but we didn't know this place was inhabited. We were on the surface doing a survey when we saw a ship firing on the cliff wall to collapse it. We wondered what they were burying, and decided to find out after they left orbit. Our sensors indicated that there was a hollow area behind the collapsed rock, so we thought that it might be a cavern or mine. Uh, where's your other entrance?"
The other two visitors had removed their helmets by this time.
Vyx shook his head. "That's our only entrance. We owe you a debt of gratitude. We were attacked by the Tsgardi."
"Yes, we saw some in the flight bay."
"There's another large group down in one of the storerooms. I guess they figured that since they couldn't overrun us, they'd bury us."
"If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing here? Is this a mining operation?"
"Uh, no," Vyx answered, thinking quickly. "This is a Space Command remote outpost."
"Space Command?" Denault said with a confused expression on his face.
>
"Yes," Vyx said quickly. "There are a number like this sprinkled throughout the former Frontier Zone. We didn't operate any bases here, but we had small outposts for security and monitoring purposes."
"I see. Hold on, I'm receiving a message." Denault paused for a few seconds, cupping his hand over the ear that held a tiny receiver. "According to our com operator, a GSC battleship has just entered orbit. They've identified themselves as the GSC Thor."
"The Thor?" Vyx said, remembering that the Thor was at Stewart when they left with the Maid. "Would you tell them that they're most welcome and that we need their assistance in cleaning up after an encounter with Tsgardi slavers?"
Denault relayed the message to his com operator, who relayed it to the Thor. After a minute of standing around, Denault again cupped his hand over his ear. "They'll be sending a party down shortly."
"Thank you. In the meantime, I offer you the hospitality of our little outpost. Would you care for some coffee?"
Denault looked at his companions, who nodded. "Thanks, I would like a chance to get out of this suit for a while, and perhaps use a restroom. Now that we're in normal gravity, I'm really beginning to feel the urge."
"Of course," Vyx said, "follow me."
A shuttle from the Thor landed about an hour later. The entrance to the flight bay was still mostly blocked, so a half dozen crewmembers in E.V.A. suits got out of the shuttle outside the rock fall area and walked into the base, as the mining people had done. Vyx was waiting just inside the airlock, without the laser pistol this time.
"Lieutenant Commander Kinley," the leader of the group said after they had removed their helmets.
Trader Vyx Page 29
