The Pike Chronicles: Books 5-8 (Pike Chronicles Space Opera Book 2)

by G. P. Hudson

  If not for Major Ilthos, he may have remained a Faction puppet. Ilthos showed him that his actions against Pike went against the prophecy. Tallos became filled with remorse as he began to understand his part in The Faction’s heresy. If the prophecy said that Jon Pike would rise to power, then he would do everything in his power to support that rise. And if the Great See’er said that Jon Pike was of the Temple, then Tallos would sacrifice his own life to protect Jon Pike.

  He accepted this, regardless of how bizarre it all seemed. He even went so far as to inform his Diakan forces of Pike’s status. Regardless of how Admiral Pike felt about it, Tallos believed it important for every Diakan under his command to understand that Jon Pike was holy. They were Diakans, after all. They deserved to know this. There was also the added benefit that the knowledge would make them fight harder.

  He had told his forces everything. They learned about Pike’s status, but also about Dathos’s betrayal, and The Faction’s conspiracy. Since many of his men had served under General Dathos, they needed to know about his treason.

  Tallos made sure that all Diakans under his command knew that they weren’t just fighting for humans. They were fighting for the prophecy, and the Temple itself. All of which meant that, above all, they fought for Diakus.

  Jon Pike was not just an Admiral, not just a human. He was a Diakan, and a holy one at that. Tallos knew that Pike had trouble acknowledging his role, but it didn’t matter. The Temple would guide Diakan destiny, as it always did, and that destiny was intertwined with Pike’s, whether he chose to accept it or not.

  “Surveillance drones have returned, General,” said Captain Rotos, Tallos’s second in command. “We have the intelligence on the Juttari defenses.”

  “Send it to me,” said Tallos, perched on his command chair, elevated above the rest of the bridge. The holographic displays surrounding him allowed a bird’s eye view of the bridge while giving him access to any information required.

  One of those displays lit up with the tactical feed, revealing a heavily defended Juttari system. Unsurprising, considering the advances the Alliance had made over last year. The Juttari had built several battle stations, dispersing countless weapon systems. A large fleet of several hundred ships complemented the deployment.

  Tallos was relieved that they had chosen not to attempt a jump gate attack. Trying to bully their way through that gate would have been nothing short of suicide.

  The Juttari defenses were interesting in that they did not simply cover the gate, as would be expected. The Juttari had logically anticipated a jump ship attack, and the defenses were dispersed in strategic locations throughout the system. Each location was anchored by a massive battle station, that appeared difficult if not impossible to board.

  Some of the battle stations were positioned in proximity to inhabited planets. Any attack on the planet would draw not only the planetary defenses, but the battle station as well. Even with the jump system, they would need to be in weapons range to mount an attack on any key target, putting them squarely in the kill zone.

  The Juttari had done their due diligence. They were certainly prepared. But could they prepare for what was coming?

  “Have the targets been selected?” said Tallos.

  “Yes, General. All ships have entered the data into their targeting systems,” said Rotos. “Jump bombs are armed and ready for launch.”

  Grim satisfaction filled General Tallos. He was the instrument of prophecy, and today was a day of glory. “What is the jump status of the fleet,” said Tallos.

  “Jump coordinates have been calculated, and entered. All ships are jump ready,” said Rotos.

  “Initiate jump.”

  Tallos’s fleet landed in the Juttari system in three groups. Each group just within the two hundred million kilometer jump bomb range of three of the main battle stations.

  “Launch first strike,” ordered Tallos. “Targets on main viewscreen.”

  The viewscreen changed to a split screen format, displaying the three monstrous battle stations. Within moments, hull breaches began to appear on the stations as explosions erupted from within. Flames burst out of the ugly fractures in the hulls, only to be snuffed out by the vacuum of space.

  “Unauthorized jumpspace disturbance identified,” said the ship’s AI. “Jump bombs deployed.”

  Juttari warships began appearing within weapons range of Tallos’s ships, but were just as soon crippled by violent explosions inside their hulls.

  “All ships, engage and destroy Juttari warships within weapons range,” ordered Tallos. He felt the feint but familiar vibration in his command chair, as his ship fired conventional weapons at its wounded prey. “Are the battle stations still active?”

  “Yes, Sir. I am reading multiple hull breaches, but they appear to have survived the initial strike.”

  Tallos couldn’t imagine anyone surviving the initial attack. It could only be an artificial intelligence keeping the stations online. “Launch another jump bomb strike on the stations. Finish them off.”

  “Yes, Sir. Relaying orders. Launching jump bombs.”

  On the viewscreen the massive battle stations began to buckle. More hull breaches appeared, dotting the surface of the giant weapon systems, until finally culminating into blinding explosions, obliterating the stations.

  Tallos filled with grim satisfaction. He glanced down at his tactical screen. The red threat icons representing the nearby Juttari warships began to disappear, as they too blew apart.

  “What is the fleet’s jump status?” said Tallos. “Are they prepared for the second jump?”

  “Yes, Sir,” said Captain Rotos, Tallos’s XO. “All ships are jump ready.”

  “Initiate jump.”

  The fleet landed in four separate groups this time, within jump bomb range of the remaining battle stations. A large number of Juttari ships hung back, watching events unfold. They hadn’t engaged with the other Juttari ships, and must now realize something had gone terribly wrong.

  As if to confirm Tallos’s thoughts, two Juttari warships broke from the fleet disappearing through the jump gate. Clearly they had enough intelligence on the new weapons to inform their superiors so that preparations could be made. Tallos wasn’t sure what those preparations might be, however. This new technology had put the Juttari at such disadvantage, that he just didn’t see how they could bounce back.

  “Launch jump bomb strike. Continue bombing until remaining stations have been destroyed.”

  “Unauthorized jumpspace disturbance identified,” said the ship’s AI. “Unable to deploy jump bombs.”

  “AI, clarify error. Why can’t the jump bombs be deployed?”

  “Deploying jump bombs would damage, and possibly destroy friendly vessels.”

  “All ships, emergency jump!” ordered Tallos.

  All around him Diakan ships began to blow apart.

  The emergency jump landed the fleet back where they had started, and the chaos of war was replaced by the tranquility of empty space.

  “Report,” said Tallos, afraid of what he was about to hear.

  “We have lost one-hundred-and-thirty-three ships, General.”

  Tallos felt anger spike through his body. It was a unique sensation, one he had had never experienced before. Why hadn’t his symbiont suppressed the emotion?

  He clenched his fists, as anger turned to rage. Tallos felt confused by the violent impulses. The reaction was short lived, however. Calm returned, as his symbiont finally reacted, and Tallos regained his composure.

  “It was a suicide attack,” continued Rotos, confirming what Tallos already knew. “The remaining Juttari warships jumped into our own ships, destroying both.”

  Impressive resolve, thought Tallos. In all his years fighting the Juttari, he had never seen anything like it. Those ships knew they couldn’t hold the system. They had seen the power of the jumpspace technology. Rather than retreat, they chose to sacrifice themselves, and in doing so, take their enemy with them. It was fright
ening and fascinating all at the same time.

  At that moment, a comm came through from Colonel Steeg, one of the Chaanisar commanders.

  “Yes, Colonel,” said Tallos.

  Steeg looked back at him from the display, his face hard, eyes steel. “Those ships were Chaanisar ships.”

  “No, Colonel. The destroyed ships were Diakan.”

  “That is not what I meant, General. The Juttari ships that just rammed into them, they were Chaanisar. The Juttari forced their deaths.”

  “I see,” said Tallos. “That explains much. I did not think the Juttari were so desperate that they would sacrifice themselves. Much easier for them to send their Chaanisar to their deaths.”

  “Unfortunately, you are correct, General.”

  “Do not forget that these Chaanisar are our enemies, Colonel.”

  “I know, General. If they were liberated they would be our brothers, but that is not to be. The best we can do for them now is to give them the gift of death.”

  “Yes, Colonel. Free them from their bondage by killing them.”

  “Fear not, General. We Chaanisar know our duty. All who fight for the Juttari will be killed.”

  “Thank you, Colonel. Tallos out.”

  Colonel Steeg’s face blinked off the display, leaving Tallos with a vague discomfort about the exchange. Did he need to worry about these Chaanisar? Were their loyalties divided? Tallos felt a sudden burning distrust of the Chaanisar in his fleet.

  The more he thought about it, the more he became convinced of their treachery. Murderous anger spiked through him yet again, and he struggled to hold it back. His symbiont reacted to the paranoia, and quashed all hostility burning through him, leaving him again calm and in control.

  What is happening to me? Tallos thought. Why are these primal emotions taking hold? And why is my symbiont having so much trouble dealing with them?

  With a level mind, he reassessed his fears of the Chaanisar. There was no evidence of any treason. Suspicion of them was entirely unfounded. Admiral Pike believed them to be trustworthy, and Admiral Pike was of the Temple. Tallos decided that when this campaign was over, that he would have his symbiont examined. Perhaps it needed to be replaced. Right now, he had a war to fight.

  Tallos straightened his uniform. “Have all Juttari warships been destroyed?”

  “Yes, Sir. Any remaining warships were destroyed in their suicide attack.”

  “Order the fleet to jump back into the Juttari system, and finish off the remaining battle stations.”

  Chapter 47

  A Kemmar force had been found near an Otan planet. The Otan had been primarily a merchant class, and had lived peacefully with both their human and Kemmar neighbors. After all those years, Captain Konos wondered what precipitated the abrupt Kemmar invasion.

  Konos found it ironic that the merchants had now become products, to be sold in the Kemmar slave trade. He wondered how many had survived the ordeal. The Kemmar were known for their brutality, something many humans experienced when they invaded the colonies the year prior.

  It was a shame that no one could foresee the unfolding events. The Otan and the colonies could have become allies, possibly saving each other. None of that was relevant now. All that mattered were the Kemmar ships arrayed before him.

  The Kemmar force wasn’t what Konos had been expecting. There were maybe one-hundred-and-fifty ships occupying the system. Considering this was an occupation force, he expected many more ships than that, especially since surveillance reports showed a much larger force. They were no real match against the UHSF armada. With or without jumpspace technology, it would be a slaughter.

  Except that there was a slight problem. The armada hadn’t arrived.

  “Are these the correct coordinates?” said Konos to his XO.

  “No, Sir, they are not,” said Commander Mani, immersed in the many reports streaming through on his displays.

  “What happened? Were they not entered correctly?”

  “Checking. Everything indicates the coordinates were correctly entered, Sir. We just jumped into the wrong system.”

  Konos couldn’t believe his ears. This was supposed to be state of the art technology. “How could that have happened?”

  Mani was furiously tapping on his console, consulting his array of displays. “It appears to be a malfunction, Sir.”

  “A malfunction?” said Konos, his frustration rising.

  “Yes, Sir. I’m trying to find the cause.”

  “Never mind that right now. Jump us to the correct coordinates. We can troubleshoot later.”

  “Yes, Sir. Initiating jump system.”

  Konos waited for the scene on the viewscreen to change, but it remained the same. “Commander? What’s going on?”

  “The jump system is not responding, Sir.”

  Konos tapped his comm display opening a channel with his chief engineer.

  “Mendyk here,” said a female voice, but instead of seeing the chief’s face, he had a view of the Intrepid’s bustling engineering section.

  “Chief, what’s going on with the jump system? Why can’t we jump?”

  “Trying to figure that out, Sir.”

  “How long until you can get it working again?”

  “I’ll be able to answer that question when I figure out what’s wrong with it, Sir”

  “Unauthorized jumpspace disturbances detected,” said the computer. “Launching jump bombs.”

  “Damnit,” said Konos. “Keep me posted.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “How many disturbances are we talking about, Commander?”

  “Dozens, Sir.”

  “Are the jump bombs working at least?”

  “Yes, Sir. Jump bombs are away.”

  Konos looked down at his comm display as red threat icons began to materialize all around the Intrepid.

  “Initiate point defense system. Deploy countermeasures. Launch all fighters and bombers.”

  “Point defense system is online. Birds are launching.”

  “Tactical, engage any enemy ship not destroyed by the jump bombs. Fire at will.”

  On his own display, many of the red threat icons began to disappear, as the jump bombs did their damage, ripping through the guts of each warship. The Intrepid lanced out at the remaining ships with energy bolts, and missiles, while the fighters and bombers swooped in to finish off their crippled foes.

  The surviving ships hit back with their own weapons. Concussions rocked the Intrepid, but it was not enough. The jump bombs and the Intrepid’s combined weapon systems had taken their toll. Steadily the red threat icons blinked off his tactical screen.

  “Unauthorized jumpspace disturbances detected,” said the computer. “Launching jump bombs.”

  Just as before, new threat icons began to appear around the Intrepid, only to be greeted by the Intrepid’s jump bombs, and its array of more conventional weapons.

  “Sir, we have a problem,” said Mani. “We are running out of jump bombs.”

  “How many do we have left?”

  “Just twenty, Sir. The computer has been utilizing multiple bombs to destroy the Kemmar warships.”

  Konos cursed under his breath. The Intrepid was supposed to receive more jump bombs, but Calledonius had interfered. He said that since the Intrepid was a carrier, that it didn’t require as many as the other ships. The fighters and bombers all had jump systems, and they could do with less jump bombs. On the other hand, a destroyer, or a cruiser, depended solely on their weapons systems, so they required more. Konos hadn’t argued the decision at the time, and he was coming to regret it.

  “Tactical, switch to manual jump bomb control. Conserve as many as possible. One bomb per ship, followed by conventional weapons.”

  “Yes, Sir. Switching to manual control.”

  Konos wished he had a way of knowing how to target the Kemmar bridge. Or even better, their reactor. Then just one jump bomb could take a ship out of the fight. They were currently launching the bombs blindl
y into the enemy ships. While they always wounded the enemy, they didn’t always take them out of the fight.

  Turning back to the display, it was clear there were too many enemy warships. Even if they rationed their jump bombs, they just didn’t have enough.

  “Kemmar have scrambled fighters,” said Mani.

  The smaller ships suddenly appeared on his tactical display. Hundreds of them. What little advantage their own fighters and bombers had given them was now gone. He had yet to see a Kemmar fighter with a jump system, but that was one small advantage. As far as he could see, he had one option left.

  “Helm, bring the FTL drive online,” said Konos. “We’re going to make a run for it.” Those fighters wouldn’t catch them at FTL speeds, even if the warships could. Either way, it was better than sitting still for Kemmar target practice.

  “FTL drive is online, Sir,” said the Helmsman.

  “Commander Mani, recall our birds. Order one fighter to jump to the last known fleet coordinates. Have them advise the fleet of our current situation, and that we will be moving toward them at FTL speeds. Helm, plot a course for our previous jump coordinates.”

  “Orders sent, Sir. Birds are returning to nest.”

  Konos waited for their birds to return to the Intrepid’s hangar bay. The Kemmar fighters were rapidly closing in. New Kemmar warships jumped into weapons range. The remaining jump bombs continued to be deployed. The Intrepid had no choice.

  “All birds are on board, Sir,” said Mani.

  “Helm, take us out of here. Maximum velocity,” said Konos.

  Space around the Intrepid shimmered as the translucent FTL bubble took shape within the space-time foam, shooting the Intrepid forward.

  As the Intrepid raced away, several Kemmar ships engaged their own FTL drives, pursuing the UHSF carrier. More concerning, however, were the ones that vanished. Konos knew that they had jumped ahead of the Intrepid, and lay in wait for the carrier to reach them.

  Chapter 48

  Jon’s fleet landed on the far end of the Telepylos system, close to the two white hot binary stars circling each other. The asteroid field, where the Reivers used to live, lay in between them and the Kemmar fleet.