by Terry Mixon
The probes picked up a number of distress beacons, so some of his people had escaped.
“Send a recall signal,” Jared said grimly. “Get the pods moving in this general direction. There’s something down there with a lot of firepower, so we can’t risk coming to them.”
The probes weren’t seeing any large pieces of debris from the destroyer. She was gone. So was most of her crew, in all probability. That was an unexpected gut punch.
There’d be time to grieve later. “Take a probe in deeper. Put it on an automatic course to orbit the planet once. We need to see what we’re facing and it won’t be able to signal us until it gets back out of the atmosphere.”
“Aye, sir.”
Several minutes passed while the commands made their way to the probe and the view from the probe changed as it angled into the outer reaches of the gas giant’s atmosphere. The signal faded before they saw anything. They’d just have to hope the probe survived to tell them what it found.
The emergency pods slowly began reporting in. Only twelve of them had ejected in time, none of them fully loaded. Sixty-three survivors out of hundreds. Scott Roche was not among them. The senior surviving officer was Lieutenant Angela Ellis, Ginnie Dare’s marine detachment commander.
Jared had known they might find trouble at the gas giant, and so had Scott Roche. He’d taken every precaution, but it hadn’t made one bit of difference. Now Eliyanna Kaiser’s New York was the only surviving ship from Breckenridge’s task force. He’d send her out to recover the pods at a safe distance as soon as he could.
Half an hour later, Invincible reacquired the probe’s signal from the other side of the gas giant.
“Incoming telemetry,” the man said.
Jared focused in on the detailed picture emerging from the passive scans. The probe had found a small station high in the planet’s atmosphere. The station had a massive array of missile tubes on its upper surface, too, so it was the source of that massive salvo.
It was also transmitting a signal deeper into the atmosphere. The probe noted that and turned to follow it down.
The obscuring clouds vanished abruptly. The view was stunning. A layer of colorful clouds above and below sandwiched a sky as clear as a sunny day back home.
Floating in the middle of that was a massive space station. Mighty arms sprang out of its body and linked to four vessels on humongous grav cradles.
Each of those ships was instantly recognizable as a battlecruiser. The probe couldn’t tell, but Jared was certain the bad guys were bringing them to life.
Hiding them there was brilliant. The atmospheric pressure at that depth was low enough that the large ships could maneuver without burning up like Invincible almost had. They could lurk just out of sight and let the station support them.
His forces, in their current condition, couldn’t stand against that kind of firepower. Those ships had to be computer-controlled, just like the destroyers the AI had before they’d defeated it. Those had almost wrecked his fleet.
The firepower he was looking at now would finish the job as certainly as night followed day.
Chapter Thirty-One
Olivia walked through the woods behind the Fleet marines. They in turn trailed her scouts. It seemed they were traveling in the order of most silent to least.
The scouts were woodsmen, chosen because they knew what to look for. Things that might be out of place in the forest near the agricultural area. They were ghosts, flitting through the trees and underbrush as though they were never there.
The marines moved as a group, spearheading the assault task force. Even heavily armored and carrying a ridiculous amount of weaponry, they managed to keep the sound of their passing to the occasional rustle of leaves or swishing limb. Certainly nothing that would carry for any distance.
She, on the other hand, was the one who’d tripped over a log. After they’d warned her about it. She might as well go running through the woods, screaming at the top of her lungs. At least that was how she felt.
The rest of the attack force, comprised of more city-oriented members of the resistance, followed further behind where their lack of woodcraft kept them out of the range of sharp ears.
Sean Meyer walked beside her and was obviously staying close in case he had to make a grab for her.
The marines had given her a short lecture on things she could do and things she couldn’t. That’s how she knew she could speak to him softly, but not to whisper. Whispers apparently carried for long distances. That seemed counter-intuitive.
She probably should avoid falling down again, too.
They’d parked the lifts some way back at another farm. The farmer in question had come out to see who was there with a shotgun. It had taken some speedy talking to get him to hear them out.
She’d left some men behind to make certain he didn’t call anyone, but he didn’t seem like a lookout for Abigail.
One of the scouts appeared out of the darkness almost in her face. She hoped she hadn’t been about to scream when Commander Meyer clamped a hand over her mouth, but she couldn’t be completely certain.
Once the officer seemed satisfied she wasn’t going to do anything to give them away, he let her go.
“Thank you,” she said softly. She glared at the woodsman. “For God’s sake, don’t try to scare me to death.”
He had the grace to look mildly embarrassed. “Sorry, Coordinator. Our men are at the inside edge of the forest. The main warehouse has people inside. They’re showing up clear through the walls in the gear the marines gave us. Too many to count. That building has a butt load of people stuffed inside. Hundreds.”
“What about guards?” Meyers asked. Two of the marines were gathered around and listening closely.
“Three sets of them outside the building. They’re using lifts to hide behind. Show up just fine on those binoculars.” He nodded to the Fleet officer. “We’ll be keeping those, if you don’t mind.”
“You get my people where we can take out the sentries and you can keep the rest of the gear, too,” Meyer declared.
The man grinned. “Don’t need your people to get those idiots. They’re watching things on their coms. Ruined their night vision. They won’t see the boys sneaking up.”
“I’d appreciate you taking a few marines along,” Meyer said dryly. “Just in case they need to shoot someone.”
“Then we’d best be about it, before someone that knows their ass from a hole in the ground comes along.”
The man led the marines off and Olivia watched them go with some trepidation. “What exactly did you just give them?”
The Fleet officer grinned. “Nothing too bad, as long as you trust those boys. Night vision gear, Fleet marine knives, flechette pistols, civilian stunners, and a couple of long-range flechette rifles.”
“Sniper rifles? I do trust them, but I bet the game wardens won’t be thanking you. If those men aren’t poachers on the side, I’d be astonished.”
“Then issue them a year-round hunting pass. Think of it as motivation. They’ll work super hard to be sure none of the sentries gets out a peep for that kind of swag.
“Here’s what we’re going to do. We’ll advance until we reach the open area and stop. Once the marines take out the sentries, we’ll advance slowly while they secure the exterior of the building. Once we’re ready to rush, we go in. Stunners only, unless we absolutely have to kill. We don’t know who the bad guys are until they open fire.”
Olivia nodded. “I’ll leave that in your hands. I’ll also stay outside until you give the all clear.”
He went off to coordinate with his people and came back a few minutes later. They had to wait about twenty minutes before the woodsman appeared again. This time making some noise to announce his presence.
“We got the guards trussed up. The marines said for you to get into the forward positions.”
Meyer clapped him on the shoulder. “Good work. Tell them we’ll be along directly.”
All the message c
arrying was necessary because they weren’t going to chance someone catching a stray com transmission.
He turned to Olivia once the man was gone. “I’ll lead the teams into place. You stay back to the rear and keep low. You’d rather not catch a stray flechette once the party starts.”
“No worries there. My security people won’t let me anywhere near the fighting. Good luck and be careful.”
It took about half an hour to get everyone in position to attack the building. She prayed there weren’t as many guards as the numbers suggested. That would be a disaster. It also wouldn’t make any sense. Why have so many people guarding the Fleet prisoners. Most of Abigail’s trusted people had to be in the council building.
Olivia never heard the signal to go, but she saw the attack begin. Small charges blew holes in the thin metal walls of the building and the marines rushed in. Almost immediately, Olivia heard flechette pistols firing. Blue stunner beams strobed in the darkness.
She was behind a lift, but she crouched lower. Her guards watched the attack unfold and kept their weapons ready. In the dark, there really wasn’t that much to see.
That is, until one of the large doors abruptly slid open and people poured out into the night. Right toward her hiding spot. Some of her people fired into the enemy with stunners, but there were far too many bad guys for them to stop.
The lead security man cursed and grabbed her shoulder. “Run for the trees. Holloway and Jennings, keep her safe while we cover your withdrawal.”
The two men grabbed her and ran for the woods. Someone must’ve seen them. That was obvious when one of the two men pitched forward, his head a bloody mess.
The other man shoved her toward the trees. “Run!” He whirled and opened fire.
Olivia didn’t hesitate. She ran as though her life depended on it.
The people behind her must’ve had stunners, too. She saw a blue beam snap past her and hit a tree. She threw herself to the side and rolled for cover. She didn’t make it and the world went dark.
* * * * *
Kelsey had stopped fearing for her life months ago, but that didn’t keep her heart from rising into her throat when Lord Hawthorne almost crashed them on the island where the people from the various life pods were gathering.
“I thought you knew how to fly,” she demanded as the ship settled to the plascrete.
She saw a Fleet guide rising cautiously from behind a blast barrier where he’d thrown himself. The man watched the ship suspiciously, probably not sure it was going to stay still. Kelsey couldn’t blame him.
Lord Hawthorne turned toward her. “I did train,” he said more than a shade defensively. “I’m a little rusty.”
“You don’t say.”
The people she’d called ahead for came out of a hanger near the ship at a run, Talbot in the lead. He ran up the ramp she’d lowered and made his way to the flight deck.
“That was either the worst landing I’ve ever seen, or the most amazing recovery of a complete guidance failure in history. Which was it?”
The Rebel Empire noble gave the marine a sour look. “I can see why the two of you get along so well.”
She laughed. “Tell me you have some pinnace pilots. Please.”
“Two of the best,” he assured her. “We’re going to be stuffed to the bulkheads in this thing. It’s designed for three or four dozen people. We’ll be dragging along three or four times that number. With the life support gear you brought, we’ll be able to make it to Persephone, but we won’t enjoy it.”
“I grabbed everything on your list,” she said as she got to her feet. “Persephone has two stealthed pinnaces, if they’re still functional. We have enough crew for the ship and marines to make an assault on that new base. We just have to get there before those ships come to life.
“I had the crew on Boxer Station send over every engineer they had. If there’s a problem with the pinnaces or ship, they’ll do the best they can to fix them. They can’t mess with Persephone’s computer, but it hasn’t seen fit to raise a stink about the people we had examining all the systems before now.”
The pilots came in and took over for William and herself. She walked William out of the cutter and gave him a hug. The act seemed to surprise him, but he’d get over it.
“You’ve helped us so much. I’ll leave your cutter at Boxer Station. The engineers can give it a good maintenance check while we’re gone.”
“Be careful, Highness. The cutter doesn’t matter. It’s a relic of history. You, on the other hand, matter a great deal.”
“I’m surprisingly hard to kill. I’ll be as careful as the situation allows. See you soon, William.”
“Return to your people hale and whole, with the heads of your enemies at your feet, warrior princess.” He stepped back and swept into an exquisite bow.
Kelsey was still gaping as he spun on his heel and walked off toward the hanger.
“I’m not doing that,” Talbot said as she walked back up the ramp.
“I hope to God no one else is, either. Can you imagine dealing with that all the time?”
The cutter was packed with people. It was going to get smelly fast, based on what she was already sensing. And with her enhanced sense of smell, that could get pretty ugly. Good thing she was going to button up in her Raider armor for the trip. She’d snagged it along with everything the marines needed for the assault.
All the equipment reduced the available space even further, but they didn’t have a choice. She hoped everyone had used the bathroom. The line would be murder.
“How long for the trip out?” he asked as she got into her armor.
“Three hours with pushing the drives on this thing. One of Baxter’s people said it would hold. Then we make the run from Boxer Station out to the gas giant. Call that another five or six, since we don’t dare stand out. Any way you cut it, this is going to be a long drive.”
She finished buttoning up and began sliding her weapons into their normal locations, including her new swords. She’d brought them along in case things got really bad.
They waited for everyone to get settled in and closed the ramp. The ship was standing room only. The cutter lifted off and they were on their way to a fight that they had to win. If, of course, they managed to get their ride working.
* * * * *
Jared somehow missed Lord Hawthorne’s cutter leaving Harrison’s World. It was already halfway to Boxer Station when one of his staff gave him a status on it.
He called them and asked to speak to Kelsey. She came on a few moments later.
“Bandar here.”
“Kelsey, where are you going and what are you planning to do once you get there?”
“Persephone. We’re bringing her online. She might be able to get close to that station before it knows we’re on the way. I have Talbot and a full crew of marines at my side. If we don’t take these ships out, we’re all screwed anyway.”
“I wish to hell you’d cleared this with me ahead of time.”
“It’s in the report I sent you before I left.”
He brought it up and scanned it. Yes, she’d tacked her intentions at the very end. She’d obviously expected he’d skim the summary. He really needed to read every word next time.
“Remind me to explain the difference between asking permission and begging forgiveness to you at some point,” he said with a sigh. “Well, it’s too late to stop you now. Do you have enough people?”
“We have almost fifty. A mix of marines and crew. It’ll be tight, but we’ll manage. Look, you have enough on your plate. I’m going to let you go. Wish me luck.”
He sighed and did so before terminating the call. It burned him up that she was rushing off to save them again and he was sitting here, unable to even shoot at anyone if they failed.
That made him pause. He couldn’t control any aspect of any of the situations he was monitoring. At this point, he was useless here. That wouldn’t be the case if he went out to join them.
From what h
e remembered of that ship, it could use a lot more crew than they could possibly stuff into that cutter. He had plenty of people to spare on the crippled superdreadnought. They’d been ferrying them up from Harrison’s World for the last few hours. Marines, too.
He immediately called Zia to hold two pinnaces. He then compiled a list of crew members that would be of use on the Marine Raider ship. He sent the list to Invincible with instructions to summon them to marine country.
Then he called Lord Hawthorne’s cutter and informed the pilots of his plan to meet them out there. He ordered them to keep that information to themselves. It was time to turn the tables on Princess Kelsey and do something to help save them.
He left for marine country at a run. He’d have time to get into unpowered armor and vacuum gear. He’d also make sure that every man and woman was as heavily armed and well protected as possible. If they got into a fight, they might need every bit of damage they could deliver.
Chapter Thirty-Two
It took almost an hour for Sean to get the situation at the farm locked down. A hardcore group of fighters took some of the prisoners hostage. Eventually, he sent the marines through the roof and stunned everyone after sharpshooters took out the most fanatic of the defenders with flechettes through the wall.
They’d accounted for the missing Fleet personnel, even if some of them were a bit battered. Seeing Gina the marine holding a sobbing Fleet crew woman was the highpoint of his week.
There were a number of other prisoners. Sean suspected they were Coordinator West’s political allies. He sent some men to round her up.
And they came back empty-handed.
Worried, he sent everyone he could spare to scour the area for her. They found the bodies of her guards near the forest, but found no sign of the coordinator herself.
“Find me whoever was in charge of this facility,” he told one of West’s people.
That turned out to be a scientist of some kind. Two grim faced guards held the man up between them. It looked as though they’d prefer to be marching him outside and shooting him.
