“Shit!” he shouted as his visor was covered in rocks.
He had just enough time to hit the seal button, which brought a thick metal shutter down over the visor to protect the vulnerable hardened glass. As it dropped down the visibility in the suit vanished until the internal lights kicked in to illuminate the interior of the helmet. He tried to move his arms and legs but all four were locked into place. For a second he started to panic then he remembered his training, his people knew where he was and the suit was easily capable of staying secure and sealed for hours of use. At least, he hoped so.
CHAPTER FIVE
The needs for aircraft of all sorts never diminished, even after mankind spread through the worlds of the new Confederacy. These machines comprised transports, strike craft and fighters and all were optimised for operations in a variety of atmospheric conditions. The Marine Corps and Navy concentrated on multi-role variants of common designs, the Army on their specific roles of ground attack and transportation. Unlike the craft used by the Navy, all Army combat aircraft were for atmospheric flight only, with even their versions of the Thunderbolt fighter being fitted with greater weapon loads and tracking pods at the expense of the ability to fight in space.
Aircraft of the Confederate Armed Forces
The CiC was dark and the temperature slightly cool. Unlike most of the sections of the ship it was quieter, just the sound of low voices and tapping on computer displays. The limited illumination came from the subdued tones of the red tube lights fitted along the walls. The computers and display screens gave off multiple colours that flickered around the room, casting hard shadows on the faces of the operators. This was the beating heart of the battlegroup, and from this one room many ships, fighters and ground-based units were coordinated with skill and precision. In the centre of the room was a three dimensional tactical display that currently displayed the disposition of the ground combat units on Avagana. There were already thousands of marines, commandos and army personnel fighting across the continent as well as small garrisons trapped inside their forts in the other colonies. New Carlos was still under attack but the forces of the Army and their heavy armour were rapidly retaking the open ground around the city. In just seven hours two cities had been relieved and two armoured columns were making their way to relieve New Carlos, over a day ahead of schedule.
The heavy armour of the Army was proving decisive, as were the heavy artillery and overwhelming firepower of the unstoppable battalions of soldiers. They were less flexible than the marines but well equipped for the grinding attritional combat of major field operations. With the newly arrived air support from the Thunderbolt and Lightning fighters the ground war was certainly turning around fast. With the arrival of these news forces General Shears had taken over command of all field Army units on Avagana. He was conducting a pincer movement around the northern and southern approaches to the city. According to his estimates the region would be completely pacified by the end of the day. At this rate the Marine Corps forces could be withdrawn to the transports in orbit and on the ground.
In the CiC, Captain Hardy watched over the Fleet, ever watchful of the potential for danger from either the surface or from new vessels arriving from space. On his display he watched the latest batch of landing craft and transports drop down from orbit. The army transports seemed to be able to disgorge an almost unlimited number of infantry and aircraft. Hardy wondered to himself how things may have gone if the Army had been able to land at the same time as the Marine Corps? Still, the whole point of the Marines was that they were fast, flexible and powerful. If they had relied just on the Army, Avagana would have fallen days before.
He noticed the ship’s log on the side of one view screen now listed scores of vessels that had tried to pass through the blockade. Some had tried to head for the surface but most were making a break for open space. This number of civilian traffic was going to be a problem if it kept increasing at this rate, as more and more of the fighters were having to be used to help screen craft attempting to flee the warzone. Though craft heading from Avagana were being watched carefully, it was perfectly legal for vessels to travel to and from the other six colonies, and these were the most worrisome.
The heavy metal door slid open and in walked Admiral Jarvis, flanked by two armed guards. They were both commandos with over a decade’s experience in space and ground combat operations. The marines wore full PDS suits and were therefore covered in armour from head to toe. Each man carried an L48 carbine with the small calibre module fitted for use in interstellar operations.
The use of the standard large calibre L48 round would be devastating in the confines of such a vessel in space. These men were the only fully equipped units on the ship. The rest would have to break out weapons from the lockers, if and when an emergency occurred. As they entered the CiC, the two additional guards that protected the sensitive part of the ship stepped aside and saluted. Unlike the two marines accompanying the Admiral, these men wore no armour, only standard issue combat fatigues and pistols. The use of heavier weapons was being strictly controlled due to the possibility of infiltration and hijacking throughout the Fleet.
Admiral Jarvis moved directly past them and to the table where General Rivers was checking the campaign details. Her guards stood close by but not too close as to be obtrusive. News had arrived only a few hours earlier of an attempt to secure the bridge of the CCS Santa Maria. Fortunately, her marine guards had managed to prevent casualties. Since then there was a crackdown on all with links to a number of religious factions and left-wing militant organisations.
Captain Hardy and General Rivers stood to attention as she approached.
“Admiral, you received my message?” asked the General.
“Indeed I did. Army units are pushing back the Zealots and their allies. I don’t see the problem.”
General Rivers hit a few buttons so that the map pulled backwards and towards the coast. Much of the coastline was rocky and packed with large, almost insurmountable cliffs. Three points were flagged on the display where the coast flattened and led to sheltered coves and beaches. Around these areas were large numbers of the enemy moving to the water. Further inland were the rapidly advancing armies of the Confederacy who were snapping at their heels. The coloured markers also indicated a number of utility aircraft landing near the enemy forces.
“What am I looking at?” she asked.
“These are the retreating troops from the attacks in the South. They have been beaten in open battle and are retreating cross-country to the sea. General Shears has ordered several of the armoured units to pursue them, the remainder are helping with the relief of the outposts and cities,” he pointed at the moving icons on the map.
“These aircraft appear to be chartered flights that are taking away the retreating units. Most are small, no more than three of four crew but there are a few larger cargo craft that can move a few hundred at a time,” explained the General. “Right now I am more interested in securing the colony.”
Admiral Jarvis examined the display. “Well, it does mean they will live for another day but for now the security of Avagana is the most important factor. So far this is all good news, what about their shock troops? Are they falling back too?” she asked impatiently.
“This is one of the problems,” he zoomed in closer to the waterline. The view enlarged to show numerous vessels, some as small as rowing boats, others the size of passenger vessels, as they helped people aboard. Some of the larger ones were launching their own aircraft to help bring people away from the shore.
“Who are they?”
“We aren’t sure yet but the news feeds are saying some of the relief agencies from New Georgia are helping evacuate refugees and civilians from the fighting. Two of the Churches are also funding ships to help them leave the area.”
On one of the screens was a video feed from a Navy reconnaissance jet as it blasted past the beach. The cameras clearly showed the numbers of people making their way to the boats and the large
number of infantry on the beach helping them board. The soldiers were not Confederate troops, their uniforms were a grey colour and their craft were common to the militia forces of the Seven Colonies.
“Okay, I see the problem. We have civilian forces, as well as what I am sure will be described as peacekeepers, helping to clear them from the battlefield. You realise this will allow them to regroup to continue the fight in the future? Even so, we can’t end this revolt without directly engaging their vessels on the coast or in international waters. Any engagement with forces of the colonies will result in hostilities between us and their combined ground forces.” She moved the map across to track the movements of the ships. “I assume a full scale conflict between Avagana and the six colonies is a war we cannot win?”
“Not a chance. At present we are winning, their forces are retreating and we are seeing successes across the continent. If the other six colonies declare open support for the uprising we will face the combined forces of their militaries as well as mobilised militia, the religious orders and whatever shock troopers have survived. That’s assuming they don’t have more hidden away. Also, I would expect the rest of the colonies in the System would come down on one side or another. The entire sector would be ripped apart by civil war, all of this just so we can stop their beaten forces from retreating,” he added tersely.
Admiral Jarvis checked the disposition of the naval assets on the ground, specifically the marines and the limited number of aircraft they had deployed. She looked back at the map of the planet and the six hostile colonies that seemed to be doing everything possible to cause a rift between them and the Confederation Forces. The more she thought about the situation the more she was convinced the other colonies were trying to provoke a shooting war on the surface.
“So it would be in the interest of the insurgents to provoke us into attacking other colonial forces. They could use this to try and drag us, and the rest of the colonies, into a shooting war. We need to be careful. Once they take the survivors away from Avagana, where are they taking them?”
“Well, our reconnaissance handlers on the ground say the civilians are being taken to lots of different locations, some to New Georgia, others directly to the ports for transfer to liners trying to break the blockade.”
Captain Hardy interjected at the mention of the blockade.
“Admiral, in the last hour we have intercepted seventeen transports. Each claim they are carrying refugees from the combat area. We’ve turned three back but the rest were clear. No unauthorised personnel, no weapons and nobody from the religious orders that we know of.”
Admiral Jarvis turned back to the General.
“What about their new pets? Surely their experimental warriors aren’t just queuing up and climbing aboard the boats? Everything I have seen so far suggests they are well motivated, strong and able to fight for much longer than regular units.”
“Indeed not. At first we thought they were falling back to the coast, but it seems they aren’t heading for the coast at all. It’s the Zealots fanatics, foreign fighters and other volunteers who are trying to escape along with a number of civilians. Of course it is often hard to tell the difference between them, it’s not like they all wear a blue uniform! Most of the shock troops are making their way back underground and into the many catacombs and tunnels they have been working on. We started to try holding them back, but it’s safer all round to let them retreat than trying to destroy a cornered animal. The Air Force has had a field day mopping up as they fall back. A large contingent of them is working their way over ground and underground to the Bone Mill.”
Admiral Jarvis moved the map over to the infamous site and examined the aerial shots with interest. It was heavily pockmarked from battle and bombs, over two-dozen armoured vehicles were still belching smoke from recent battle.
“I thought the Bone Mill had already been bombarded? Why bother retreating to a smoking hole in the ground? Wouldn’t it be better for them to just expend their forces in a final push on the cities?”
“It has, that doesn’t stop them making their way back. I have given orders for them to be pursued back to the site but under no circumstances must we try to stop them. We’ve given them one clear route out of the battle area and they are taking it,” he said as he ran his finger along the display. The map zoomed in to the immediate area around the Bone Mill.
“When their forces are contained we will collapse the site once and for all!”
“Bury them alive, General? What about the connecting tunnels? From what we have seen they have extensive underground tunnel networks that travels miles in each direction. How will you pacify them?”
“I have a squadron of Thunderbolt fighters armed with low yield tactical neutron bombs on standby. Once they are secured at the Bone Mill, the strike will destroy the primary structure and the weapon will kill everything within a twenty kilometre radius.”
“So you’re going to nuke them. Are you happy with using the nuclear inventory from the Fleet? The nuclear option is always one of last resort. What if the colonies respond in kind? We don’t want to start a nuclear exchange,” she said in a concerned tone.
“I haven’t taken the decision lightly. Under the circumstances I think it is the best and most humane way to resolve the problem. A single strike will eliminate this genetic threat, as well as destroy whatever they have underground that has allowed them to create the creatures to start with. The neutron bombs have a much smaller area of destruction, under a kilometre. The radiation damage is short lived and should clear most of the tunnels with little residual radiation. The only other option is with conventional weapons, that will require a prolonged bombardment and is easily avoided by digging down deeper or taking the more remote tunnels.”
A red light started flashing on the communications desk. At the same time a continuous drone started to drown out the sound of conversation in the room. It was a sound that was heard only a few times a month and indicated narrowband data from High Command. The communications officer handed a datapad to Captain Hardy who read it then turned and marched directly to the two senior officers. His face was flushed, whether it was from the stress of the operation or the material he had just read, they couldn’t tell.
“Admiral, I have a secure transmission from Fleet Headquarters, it has just finished decoding. I think you will want to see it.”
“Of course,” she said almost dismissively, “thank you, Captain.”
She picked up her datapad and examined the contents of the message. It took only a few seconds to read before she sighed and lowered it to her side. The General looked at her, waiting for some comment on the news. She handed him the datapad but continued to explain the contents anyway.
“The signal is a delayed communication from Fleet HQ at Alpha Centauri. Apparently there has been a violent coup attempt on Terra Nova. Over thirty officers killed along with a number of the Council. The infiltration was by Fleet personnel who are currently being interrogated. The coup was led by separatists from Carthago and it says here that the movement is spreading. Some of the colonies are already debating secession from the Confederacy.”
“Good God, I thought we had it bad enough in this System,” General Rivers sighed.
“There’s more, they are warning that several militant monotheistic groups are planning something major and they think genetic manipulation will play a big part in it. Raids on laboratories on the Confederate Research Stations have shown collusion between some of the top biologists, one of whom has been selling data to a terrorist group.”
“We could have used this information weeks ago before this started,” said a very irritable Captain Hardy.
General Rivers read down the information on the datapad until he came to the last section of text. “It says all traffic from AC has been halted and any ships en route to Proxima have been turned around. A general quarantine alert for the Proxima System has been put into effect until the crisis is resolved.”
“I don’t understand,
Admiral, why are they blocking us?” the Captain asked.
“It is simple. Until the contamination is halted in the home System, they want to shield us from any fallout. They are assuming of course that nothing will have happened here.”
“A fat lot of good that will do us now. We are already facing a potential civil war between the colonies here if we don’t resolve the situation quickly. What worries me is how much better or worse are they faring compared to here? If you ask me I think Proxima is taking a hell of a beating right now. We’ve had hijackings, satellite occupation, capital ship engagement and now a full-scale ground war on Prime. How can it get any worse?”
“ You’re making a joke I assume, General?” said the Admiral sternly. “As I’m sure you are aware, the situation can always get worse!”
The General looked a little uncomfortable at the rebuking before changing the subject. “How long ago was the message sent?”
“Sixty-two days. Anything could have happened since then, hell the entire System could be overrun with Zealots and in the middle of a full-scale colonial war. We need information and we need it fast!” She turned to her communications officer.
“Lieutenant, check the relay link to Fleet HQ on Terra Nova!”
The officer flicked a few buttons and then scanned the various frequencies used by the communication facilities throughout the stations and ships of the Fleet. At first it appeared everything was normal, then the officer realised something wasn’t right. He tried a few more channels but they were all the same. Moving his hand across the screen he added various filters to the data streams but nothing changed the seemingly random nature of the noise. He turned back with a look of surprise on his face.
Star Crusades Uprising: The First Trilogy Page 27
