The Slaver Wars: First Strike (The Slaver Wars Book Four)

by Weil, Raymond L.

  The Avenger darted forward and made her sudden downward turn, bringing her eighteen railgun batteries in line with the intended target. On completion of the turn they opened up, joined by five of the heavy dual laser turrets.

  The commander of the opposing Monarch cruiser swore in frustration as he realized what Commander Strong had done. He had been caught out of position, and the computer was now reporting major damage to his ship. Nevertheless, his own weapons were now locking onto the heavy strike cruiser. It was his turn to cause some damage.

  “Fire power beams,” Jeremy ordered, his eyes narrowing. “Stand by to micro-jump!”

  “Inbound weapons fire,” Kevin reported as his sensors detected the inbound ordinance. He knew all of this was generated by computer, but it damn sure looked and seemed real on his screens.

  “Power beams firing,” Lieutenant Preston at Tactical reported.

  “Solid hits,” Colonel Malen informed Jeremy as she saw the dark violet beams reach out and tap their target on the holographic display.

  Jeremy nodded and counted to five. On the damage control board, a few lights were turning red. “Jump!” he ordered.

  Instantly, a blue-white vortex of swirling light appeared directly in front of the Avenger. The Avenger’s weapons fire stopped as she accelerated rapidly into the heart of the vortex.

  “What the hell?” spoke the Monarch cruiser’s executive officer as the Avenger vanished from the sensor screens.

  “Where have they gone?” the ship’s commander demanded frantically. “Find them, and find them now!” He knew that Commander Strong hadn’t fled; he was up to some kind of trickery.

  But it was too late. Kelsey was the best navigator in the Fleet, and she had plotted a quick micro-jump that took the Avenger to a position just behind the Monarch cruiser. A blue-white vortex formed, and the Avenger popped out. Instantly, she opened up with her power beams, nailing both the FTL and sublight drive of the Monarch cruiser. A moment later, the computer simulation indicated that the Monarch was destroyed.

  On the Monarch, the commander watched helplessly as his ship powered down. He was left with life support and a few other systems until the computer operator restored full power back to the rest of the ship. His sensor screen was still working, and he watched helplessly as the strike cruiser, now joined by the two destroyers, turned on his light cruisers. Five minutes later, it was over. Commander Jeremy Strong had won again!

  “That was a clever maneuver, Commander,” Colonel Kyla Malen commented as she looked smugly at the screen that showed all three enemy ships had been destroyed. “Our own ships took only minor damage.”

  “They never expected us to use a micro-jump to catch them out of position,” Jeremy replied with a satisfied smile. “They shouldn't have followed us out of the planet’s gravity well; that’s what allowed us to perform that jump.”

  “I couldn’t have done better myself,” Ariel said. She had watched the entire war game closely, monitoring everything.

  She was very proud of Jeremy and the others. She wished that his father were alive to see how good a commander his son was becoming. Jason had been dead for hundreds of years, but his legacy was living on.

  Katie was listening to the exchange and allowed a knowing smile to cross her face. She doubted that anyone could beat Ariel when it came to tactics. The AI was constantly running computer simulations of different battle scenarios. This was the sixth war game they had participated in, and the Avenger had as yet to receive any major damage.

  What the crew wasn’t aware of was that Ariel was doing everything in her power to make sure Jeremy’s orders were carried out to the fullest. If he ordered a turn, she monitored the Avenger and even adjusted the ship’s systems as needed to make sure the command was carried out. If the weapons were ordered to be fired, she made sure the maximum amount of ordnance possible arrived on target. Even with the jump that Kelsey had plotted, she had carried it out several more decimal points to make sure it was extremely accurate. Ariel also knew that even without her help, Jeremy would have still won all six of the war games. She had just made sure the wins were even more impressive.

  “Take the ship back to Condition Five and secure from combat stations,” Jeremy ordered as he activated the ship’s interior com system. “Crew of the Avenger, congratulations on another victory. All three enemy ships have been destroyed, and we only received minor damage. Good job!”

  “That’s it for this series of battle drills,” Colonel Malen commented.

  She had been extremely surprised by Commander Strong’s command ability. His tactical skills were remarkable. When she had been told about the group of five that were coming aboard the Avenger she had been apprehensive. But not anymore all five were exemplary officers and extremely talented. She knew she should have realized that, considering whom some of their parents had been. The crew was still a little bit in awe of all five, considering their history. They were already getting the attitude that they would soon be the best ship in the Fleet.

  -

  Later, all five of them were in the officer’s mess eating a light meal. Jeremy enjoyed these rare opportunities where they could get together and talk privately.

  “Wasn’t that drill today great?” Kevin said as he chowed down on his normal meal of a hamburger and fries. “That Monarch never knew what hit them!”

  “They never expected the micro-jump,” Kelsey commented, her deep blue eyes looking over at Kevin. She grinned widely. “I put us right on their tail; there was nothing they could do.”

  “It was a perfect jump,” admitted Jeremy pleased with the way everything had worked out. “It’s a tactic that the Fleet should probably consider using against the Hocklyns.”

  “How can you eat so many hamburgers?” spoke Angela, shaking her head at Kevin. “You’re going to turn into a hamburger one of these days.”

  “I just like hamburgers,” Kevin answered defensively as he took another large bite.

  “Ariel would like to participate in one of the war games,” Katie mentioned, casually. She already suspected some of what the AI had been doing but had not mentioned it to anyone.

  “I have been thinking about that,” admitted Jeremy, leaning back and looking over at Katie. She was nothing like that crazy fifteen-year-old girl he had known so long ago. She was so much more mature and now a beautiful young woman. So far she had acted very properly, which was a relief to Jeremy considering how he felt about Kelsey.

  “What’s next on the agenda?” asked Kevin, putting his hamburger down, grabbing a couple of fries, and dipping them in ketchup. “More war games?”

  “We are supposed to report back to Ceres for a briefing by Admiral Teleck tomorrow,” responded Jeremy, looking over at his closest friend. “He’s the one that’s been receiving all of our battle efficiency reports from the war games. I haven’t used Ariel yet, but I definitely intend to. She may be our ace in the hole if we ever get into a really bad situation. I just haven’t found the right scenario to test her with.”

  Unseen by Jeremy, Ariel smiled to herself, feeling pleased. She could see and hear everything in the Avenger. She was always monitoring and watching the five. Unknown to any of them, it was something she had promised their parents long ago. She would always do whatever it took to keep all of them safe from harm.

  Kelsey looked over at Jeremy, her dark blue eyes focusing on his. “I guess the war’s coming soon. The crew is constantly talking about it. Some are pretty nervous about what we may be facing.”

  Jeremy nodded slowly. Years ago, Kelsey and he had decided to put off having a serious relationship or commitment until they were older. It was the only way they could serve on a ship together. They both still had deep feelings for each other, but they kept those out of sight unless they were on leave together.

  “I’ve heard a few people talking,” added Kevin, as he picked up his hamburger. “What do you think will happen, Jeremy?”

  “I don’t know,” answered Jeremy, truthfully. He w
ould never lie or mislead his friends. “We won’t know until we face an AI ship. If we can destroy one, then we might be able to win this war.”

  “The AIs,” Katie repeated, her green eyes showing some worry. “They’re the big unknown in all of this; I wish we knew more about them.”

  It had been a big decision for her to go into cryosleep, but she just couldn’t be left behind. She had known for years that her future was with Jeremy, Kelsey, Kevin, and Angela. They had gone through so much during the New Horizon incident that the five of them had formed a permanent bond of friendship.

  She had spoken in length with her mom and dad about what she wanted to do. She could still recall her mother crying, knowing she would never speak to her daughter again, but they had supported her decision and Katie had gone into cryosleep.

  “Don’t forget about the other three races that control their parts of the galaxy for the AIs,” Angela reminded them as she picked up her fork and took a bite of watermelon. “They could come and help the Hocklyns.”

  “We need more allies,” Jeremy stated with a growing frown. “Particularly the Albanians.”

  “The mystery race,” Kevin spoke his eyes glinting with curiosity. “What’s up with them?”

  “They control more worlds and are farther spread out then the Federation,” Katie informed them. She had looked up everything she could find on the Albanians, but the more she investigated the more confused she got. Something just didn’t add up.

  “Perhaps when they are attacked by the Hocklyns they will agree to help us,” responded Angela, laying down her fork and eyeing her now empty plate.

  “At least we have three other alien races that are willing to help us,” Kelsey added.

  Jeremy nodded. He just wondered what was ahead of them. This could be a very long war.

  -

  The next day, Jeremy watched as his shuttle made rendezvous with a Federation battle cruiser in high orbit around Ceres. He was sitting in the copilot’s seat, and Kelsey was piloting. She wanted to keep brushed up on her piloting skills since she claimed they could never know when they might come in handy.

  “That’s the WarHawk, Admiral Tolsen’s flagship,” Kelsey informed Jeremy as they neared the ship’s brightly lit flight bay. “I heard some scuttlebutt that he will be the admiral in charge of the defense of Gliese 667C when the Hocklyns return.”

  “He’s a good admiral,” Jeremy responded as he watched Kelsey deftly maneuver the shuttle into the flight bay and onto the indicated landing pad. “If Fleet Admirals Streth and Johnson both trust the man, then so do I.”

  “I wonder what he wants with you?” asked Kelsey, looking over at Jeremy. When they were by themselves, they always used each other’s first names. Only in the presence of others did they refer to each other by rank.

  “He’s assembling his fleet for the expected battle with the Hocklyns. Perhaps he wants the Avenger to be part of that.”

  Kelsey was silent for a moment as she depressed two buttons that opened the hatch and lowered the ramp. “This is why we went into cryosleep, Jeremy; we wanted to be part of this war.”

  Jeremy nodded as he unfastened his safety harness and stood up. “I don’t know how long this will take.”

  “I’ll be here,” Kelsey promised with a smile. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  She watched as Jeremy went into the main shuttle cabin and down the ramp. She wondered if it would be possible for her and Jeremy to spend some alone time together before being deployed for combat. Over the years, they had become very attached to one another. They always had a great time together whenever they could manage to get away. Besides that, Jeremy was great in bed, and she really needed some of his loving attention.

  Jeremy made his way to the Command Center of the WarHawk and, upon arriving, was admitted immediately by the two heavily armed marines standing guard at the entry hatch.

  Stepping inside, he spotted Admiral Tolsen standing at the holographic plotting table talking to a colonel who was probably the ship’s executive officer. The executive officer spotted Jeremy and spoke quietly to the admiral.

  Admiral Tolsen turned. Jeremy instantly stopped, stood at attention, and saluted. “Commander Jeremy Strong reporting as ordered, Sir.”

  “At ease, Commander,” replied Tolsen, returning Jeremy’s salute. “Take a look at this tactical display and tell me what you think.”

  Jeremy took the last few steps to the large holographic display and studied it for a moment. “This is Gliese 667C, isn’t it, Sir?”

  “Yes,” Tolsen replied with a slight nod. “If you were going to trap a Hocklyn fleet in this system, what would you recommend?”

  Jeremy was silent as he studied the image, which depicted the planets and the defenses around Caden’s World. “I assume we are adding additional satellite defenses to the planet?”

  “Yes, we are creating a full defensive grid,” Admiral Tolsen replied as he studied the young commander. “When we are finished, we will have two hundred laser satellites in orbit and twenty-six missile platforms. Beneath them will be twelve destroyers and two light cruisers in case anything gets through.”

  “Are we evacuating the planet?”

  “We are in the process of doing that now. In place of the miners and their families, we are landing two thousand space marines. They will see to it that the mines are still operating, and everything will look normal when the Hocklyns arrive. A number of the mine supervisors will be staying on to make sure everything looks legit.”

  “I would seed the system with hyper detection buoys so we know exactly when the Hocklyns arrive and their exact location,” Jeremy suggested. “If I were the Hocklyn commander, I would approach the system much more cautiously than the previous attack fleet. Particularly after the losses it took. I might send in a few light units to take some long distance scans before committing my forces.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” spoke Tolsen, nodding his head. He had been told that Commander Strong had a good head for military tactics. “Then what?” He was curious to hear what else the young commander might suggest.

  “I would jump into the system with my entire fleet right here,” Jeremy said, pointing to a spot just outside of Caden’s World’s gravity well. The spot he had pointed to was between the sun and the planet but extremely close to the gravity well.

  “Why there?” asked Tolsen, looking closely at the spot Commander Strong had indicated. That was awfully close to the planet’s gravity well. It would also be a risky jump unless it was well plotted.

  “For surprise,” Jeremy replied, looking at the admiral. “They will be expecting us to be focusing our sensors outward away from the inner system. If I were them, I would jump in there, close to the planet, and then split my fleet. I would send in half of it to destroy the orbital defenses and the defense fleet. I would hold the other part back in case an enemy fleet is lurking nearby. That way, I could engage an enemy fleet while the rest of my forces subjugate the planet and grab whatever information they can find.”

  “Information?” spoke Colonel Beck, looking confused. “Do you think that’s the purpose of this attack, information?”

  “Yes, I do,” responded Jeremy, looking over at the colonel. “Caden’s World is the only Federation world they currently know about. They could spend time searching the surrounding stars for more of our worlds, but why bother? All the information they need is right here.” Jeremy pointed directly at Caden’s World.

  Admiral Tolsen was quiet as he thought about what Strong had just said. It made a lot of sense. Admiral Teleck and he had already spent considerable time discussing this young commander. Commander Strong had won every war game he had been involved in with ease. It was time to give this young man more authority.

  “Commander Strong, effective immediately you are being placed in charge of a special task force,” Tolsen spoke in his commanding voice. “You will be assigned additional ships, including another heavy strike cruiser, two Monarch class cruisers, six light cruis
ers, six destroyers, and one battle carrier. All of these ships will come from the Ceres defense fleet.”

  Colonel Beck looked at Admiral Tolsen in surprise. “Admiral, I need to remind you that there might be a problem giving Commander Strong command of all of those ships with him being only a commander.”

  “It won’t be a problem,” answered Tolsen, looking gravely at Jeremy. “We will be giving Commander Strong the temporary rank of Rear Admiral. If he performs well, the rank will become permanent. We have also carefully chosen the commanding officers of all of these ships, and they are all younger than Commander Strong except the commander of the battle carrier. I have spoken to them myself, and they will do as he orders without hesitation.

  “Rear Admiral?” Jeremy stuttered in surprise, his eyes growing wide in shock. This was the last thing he had expected when he had stepped into the Command Center of the WarHawk.

  “You deserve it,” responded Admiral Tolsen, handing over the rank insignia that he had been holding in his left hand. “We are in a time of war, or shortly will be, and rapid promotion will be the norm for well qualified officers. You have demonstrated through the war games that you have the potential for higher command. Now return to your ship; it will take us a few days to finish getting your fleet prepared.”

  Jeremy walked back to the shuttle in a daze, scarcely believing what had just happened. As he stepped inside, he was met by Kelsey, who looked questionably at him.

  “What happened, Jeremy?”

  Jeremy opened his right hand and showed her the new rank insignias.

  “Rear Admiral!” she screamed in excitement, grabbing Jeremy and hugging him tightly. “Your father would be so proud!”

  Jeremy held Kelsey for a moment enjoying the feel of her body up next to his, and then he stepped back and looked seriously at her. “They’re giving me a fleet! Kelsey, I don’t know if I am ready for this.”

  Kelsey was silent for just a moment. “It’s just because of that doubt that you are,” she replied with a knowing smile. “You will make a good admiral. I can’t wait to get back to the Avenger and tell everyone. This is great!”