Make or Break the Hero (The Hunter Legacy Book 4)

by Timothy Ellis

  I pinged the General's aide with the news that David was coming to set up the station's administration, and giving his contact details.

  Next, I had Jane launch a Sabre, and take it far enough away for an image to be taken of the Carrier from several angles. The images appeared on my pad. I opened a vid.

  "Hi Miriam. Like my new ship?" I grinned at her, although I still couldn't help wincing after. "It's an old Midway class Escort Carrier I captured a while ago. She's had some extensive work done to her, and I'm in the middle of getting more done. She'll be a sort of mobile base for me from now on. You did want me to be safer, so now I will be." I grinned again. "I'm currently in the Midnight system. We'll be leaving in a few hours to return to Cobol. Hopefully it won't be long now, before we meet again in Midgard. See you then." I blew her a kiss, and closed the vid. I attached the vid and images to an email, and sent it off.

  The first of the Drone Freighters left on its mission of deploying comnavsats and cargo delivery. It shot away from the station faster than the Liner had, at an unheard of speed for a freighter.

  An email came in from Bob.

  "Well my very rich young friend, what can I say?" He grinned. "I was watching my bank balance all morning, as it steadily increased as the deposits you organized were processed. I've never seen anything like this. Even my big break which allowed me to buy this shipyard, wasn’t anything on this scale. Who'd have guessed by doing the impossible for a youngster who didn’t know it was impossible, would pay off so nicely? Did you get the notification for the payment from the Americans?"

  I stopped the vid.

  Mixed up in the notifications of deposits from Sci-Fi and British sectors, was one from the Americans. They'd paid the license fees for three John Wayne specifications. At a guess, that would mean they were modifying the Tyr Missile Cruiser they'd purchased from me, into a Pocket Battleship, and doing two of their Actor class Cruisers as well. Or three Actor class. As muscle to support the Gunbus squadron, and Excalibur wing they were building, they were a good idea.

  I restarted Bob.

  "I've sent you the invoice for your Carrier refit, including all the equipment, fittings, and consumables left aboard. I've reduced it as far as I dare, given that you made me a very happy man this morning. Your ships are on the way to your new station, with all the cargo, and I'm thankful to see them go. Now I have some space to do things in again. I held back one of the freighters to wait for your droids. It should be on its way this evening. Enjoy your new toy. Derr out."

  The invoice was a little further down the stack. I opened it, and read a huge long list of all the components and equipment which went into the refit. At the bottom was an obvious mathmatical error. The total read one credit. I laughed. I guess he was happy. I added a million credits as a tip, and suggested he give his work force a bonus and a day off. I paid it feeling just as happy as he obviously did.

  I carried on wading the river of emails. When I finished, I started watching the battle feeds of the first few attacks on Midnight.

  Even more now, was I confused about why Lacey was just a Squadron Leader. His deployment had been very close to what I’d have done, given the notice they had about the impending attack. And his battle orders were decisive. He'd made a mess of his attack on me, the day we met, but he'd been badly misled about my ability and my ship. Had he known how good I was, and just what the capabilities of my ship were, I might not have won that battle so decisively.

  It was quite obvious I hadn't seen him at his best. Now I was. His tactics showed he understood how to use the Corvettes and Privateers he had.

  With time to set up an ambush, he'd positioned all of the ships with torpedo launchers, above and behind the jump point emergence area. He'd had two Corvettes, Camel and Unthinkable. He'd also had an Excalibur and the five Centurions. They'd formed a line, and as the Cruisers down jumped, had all fired torpedoes. The Cruisers had died without any possibility of doing anything. Some of the Talons had received the same treatment.

  At this point, the Gladiator wing had simply rushed the Talons, which proved to be a stupid thing to do. Fifteen squadrons of Talons, minus a few, can spam missiles in large quantities. The Gladiators were overwhelmed before the larger ships could reposition themselves to protect them. They'd lost a third of their number to missiles, before the range closed enough for dogfighting.

  It hadn't been Lacey's fault. The after action report had clearly shown the Flight Lieutenant, acting as Squadron Leader, had been openly critical of mercenaries before the battle, and had deliberately disobeyed Lacey's orders to stay well outside missile range, until the formations had been broken up by the bigger ships. He hadn't survived the battle, and he wasn't replaced for the second battle, with all ships specifically placed under Lacey's command.

  They'd left the debris field where it was. The battle the following day had been a repeat of the first, with the exceptions of the debris field causing enough damage to the down jumping ships, causing the Talon formations to fall apart quickly, allowing the Gladiators to finish the job with missiles at long range, instead of dogfighting.

  General Harriman had turned up in a medium freighter during the afternoon of day two, with replacement ordinance. Each battle after, had needed less actual action.

  Lacey had performed the role of a Group Captain, rather than a Squadron Leader. Once this war was over, I’d have to think about promoting him somehow. The main trouble was, I didn’t think I’d have a need for a higher rank than Squadron Leader.

  By five, as I came to the end of the battle feeds, Unthinkable, the Excalibur, and Centurions, were ready to transfer to BigMother, but she wasn’t ready for people yet. I had Jane move them instead.

  I thought about Lacey's face when he thought he'd be going back to a Centurion. They really did deserve a reward. I sent off another email.

  I told Angel I would be out for a few hours, and limped over to the still going party. As soon as I left the Cargo Bay, Jane buttoned the ship up, and Gunbus undocked to move to BigMother.

  Annette and the 266 squadron pilots were sitting at a table when I came in, and Annette waved me over. I’d no sooner sat down, than Jeeves had a ginger ale in front of me.

  Jane's avatar also came in, and sat at the table. I introduced her to the pilots, since they hadn't met her before, although they'd been talking to her regularly on the two Camels, and the Excalibur. They took some convincing she wasn’t human, even knowing she was an AI. Jane was that good at the impersonation now.

  I let them know their ships were now on the Carrier, and once she was ready for people, we'd be leaving. The Camels would dock before we went. They would have the choice of sleeping on their ships, or moving into suites on the Carrier. The word 'suites' generated a lot of interest, so I told them the layout and standard furnishings. They all agreed sleeping on the Carrier was a good idea.

  It had been ages since I was last at a good party, and never at one this big. People seemed to be enjoying themselves. I let the atmosphere flow over me. Jeeves brought the table a banquet of Chinese food, and we all helped ourselves. Jane even managed the illusion of eating with us.

  Just before seven, Janet advised me via my PC, BigMother was ready for people. I watched on a hollo screen only I could see, while the two Camel's docked. Towards the rear, on each side, were now two droid sized airlocks, at the Cargo Bay level. The two Camels had docked their own droid airlocks to them, and they were now securely attached to the Carrier. This would make large ship to Carrier transfers a lot easier in the future, except where the main cargo airlocks could be joined. You could join my Corvettes like that, but it was a waste of cargo airlocks, and at some time in the future, I might be needing the large locks for bigger ships, while also needing the smaller ones docked as well.

  I pinged General Harriman we would be leaving soon. He pinged back to wait for him.

  A few minutes later, he came in followed by his aide. She looked a bit awed by my head bruise, but the smile on her face stayed i
n place. The last time I'd seen her, I'd been in a dark place, wearing a thundercloud, and she couldn’t keep her smile going in my presence.

  "Jon, I wanted a word before you left," he said, as he came up to me. I stood. "I've had approval given for your station to move to Nexus once the war is over. If you leave where you want it with your Janet, I'll see the station there before I head back to Sydney."

  "Thank you sir."

  "You made your point with your original request. If you are seeing to the security of Nexus on a long term basis, it makes sense you have a base there. In fact, once the station is there, it makes sense that I move my HQ to your station, so I'm central to the whole sector. Would you have a problem with that?"

  "No sir. As long as the Militia pays its rent, I've no problem at all." Everyone around us laughed, and we both joined in. "Seriously though, I don’t see a problem. The station is large enough to make a good central hub for the sector, and hosting Militia ships shouldn’t be an issue. Talk to David Tollin about what you need when he gets here, and have Janet do any work to provide it. She made the CCC without any consultation, so she's quite capable of coordinating any building work you need done. I'm taking the station's building droids with me, and most of the repair droids, as the Carrier still needs a lot of work. But I've ordered more from Bob, which should be here in a couple of days. There are also a hundred security droids coming with belt suits, so they'll form the stations security force, looking like normal people, but run by Janet. The few remaining ones, will be left here for now."

  Jane had used three more, for the Liner and the two Drone Freighters. There were eight left to act as a security force until more arrived. But if need be, the pilots remaining here could also act as security.

  He nodded, and I thought for a moment.

  "If you need a ship to move around in, use my Liner, once David is finished with it. It's a lot faster than it used to be, and much more comfortable for travelling. Jane will be your pilot."

  She grinned at him. I don’t think he knew how to react.

  "I'm thinking of posting a full time fleet here at this jump point as well," I went on, "as long as the Sci-Fi sector don’t object. If they do, the next logical place is the Midnight jump point in Bad Wolf. We can screen everyone going in and out for contraband and ID fakes. And keep a permanent pirate watch. It would be something like three Pocket Battleships, and some Corvettes. A force no one in their right mind would take on. Just a thought for now. Have to see the war through first."

  "Fine Admiral. I'll see what the sector will allow. By the time you return, I should have an answer for you." I nodded. "Keep me in the loop please. While I'm in contact with the other Force leaders, hearing the news direct from you is better, and faster."

  "No problems sir."

  "Good luck to you then."

  We shook hands. He widened his gaze to take in the pilots around me.

  "To all of you," he went on. "You did the impossible here, and when you return, your actions will be recognized officially."

  He turned back to me.

  "And this time, Admiral, you won't be avoiding a public ceremony!"

  Everyone laughed at my sudden discomfort. The last time the Australian Militia had given me a medal, I'd been so deep in shock and loss, General Harriman had made the awards in his office.

  "We look forward to that General," I said deadpan.

  Everyone laughed again.

  The General and his aide left, and we did also.

  Thirty One

  I led the pilots to BigMother's main cargo airlock, Jeeves and Jane bringing up the rear. I was limping badly by this time, and ready for another visit to a Medical Bay. At the top of the ramp, I stopped.

  "Welcome to BigMother," I said.

  "Seriously?" asked Annette.

  "Seriously. The owner of Sydney Shipyard, who did the refit before she was prematurely pressed into service, renamed her as a joke. Her previous name was Junk Heap One."

  They all laughed.

  We looked into the ship. Unlike the other ships I had, we couldn’t see the end of the Cargo Bay from here. It seemed to go on forever, and at this end, it was completely empty. For a moment, I was daunted by the mere fact of entering such a ship, let alone it being mine.

  "Jeeves, we'll need a Doorman butler droid please. And you should move some cargo droids down here so they're handy for the lock."

  "Yes my Lord."

  The others chuckled. They'd heard this a couple of times already, but it was still funny for them.

  "Umm, Jane?"

  "Yes?"

  "Do we have to walk the whole way in?"

  The pilots all cracked up.

  I looked at Jane, with eyebrows raised.

  "You didn't ask," she said.

  The pilots just about fell over at this.

  "I'm asking."

  "Confirmed."

  We stood there waiting, the mirth slowly subsiding, as I pointed out if I had to walk, so did they.

  In the distance appeared some sort of vehicle, travelling very fast. It pulled up in front of us. On the front was a driver position, and behind, two rows of seats capable of moving twenty people.

  "Where was this?" I asked.

  "Near the quick access shaft for the right side launch tubes. Presumably to move pilots to ships quickly."

  "How many are there?"

  "Two this size, six for six people, and six for two people."

  "Does the station have any of these?"

  "Yes. Several dozen in various configurations. Mainly used for VIP's, and emergency situations."

  "So all this time I've been limping around the place, I could have been riding?"

  "Yes."

  More laughter. I sighed.

  "Now you tell me."

  "You didn’t ask."

  "Leave the station one six person… what do you call these things anyway?"

  "Trolley."

  "Leave the station one six person trolley, and all but two of the emergency medical ones, which I assume have room for patients to be lying down," she nodded, "and bring the rest on board. Have Janet requisition some new ones for the station from Bob."

  "Confirmed."

  "Jeeves, I want mixed sizes of trolleys available here all the time. And at the quick access shafts and stairwells on each level, where any travel distance is involved. Also at the other airlocks." There were now five. "If we need more, remind me when we arrive somewhere we can buy them. You might want to task a butler to just making sure they're waiting for people who are about to need one."

  "Yes my Lord."

  "If you're all quite through laughing, let's be moving."

  We climbed on board, Jane taking the driver's seat. The trolley set off at an alarming speed, and within minutes we were near the back end of the ship. Along the way, as the ship grew wider, there were large cargo bays off the central wide corridor. The further we went, the more of these had containers and pallets in them.

  We all got off, next to a stairwell, and what I assumed was a quick access shaft.

  I looked into the shaft. It was well lit, and I could see all the way up. It was just an empty space. They looked new, and I didn’t remember them being here when I'd first taken the ship. Bob must have added them. If so, I'd have to thank him.

  "How does this work Jane? I really don’t want to limp up all those stairs."

  "There are two shafts. This one is up, the other is for down. They work both ways, but having two means you don’t get collisions part way. You stand inside the shaft, near one of the corners is best, as there are more rails there. You push off with your knees, and you'll float upwards at the speed you push off at. When you reach the level you want, you grab hold of one of the rails, and pull yourself out. Just mind the gravity change. Like this."

  She stepped inside, and the seven of us looked in to see what she did. She bent her knees, and straightened. She soared upwards. Near the top, she grabbed a rail, and pulled herself out.

  "Who's firs
t?" I asked.

  "Me," said Annette.

  I waved her in.

  She bent her knees, and gave a good solid push off. She rose like a rocket, and where we'd seen Jane go out, she grabbed a rail, and flew out the exit.

  There was shriek of delight from above.

  "Watch out below!" came from above.

  Annette jumped back into the shaft, and came sailing down, landing lightly, bending her knees again, and sailing straight back up.

  Lacey was in the shaft before she reached the top, and took off after her. The others followed.

  Pilots, I thought, with a sigh.

  I stepped in myself, checked there was no-one above, bent my knees, the left one of which objected, and straightened gently. I slowly rose up the shaft until I came to a level marked Bridge, where I grabbed a rail and stopped myself. I stood there in midair, grasping the rail, before stepping out. The shift back to gravity nearly had me falling down, as my left leg objected to the transition.

  They were all standing there grinning. I ignored them, and went to the cat wall around the entrance to the shaft. I stepped over it carefully.

  "Cat wall," I said to the unasked question. "I have a ten and half week old kitten. This is to stop her wandering into the shaft by accident.

  "Where is Angel?" asked Annette.

  "Captain's suite," answered Jane. "Jeeves moved her, and all her things up here, as soon as Gunbus docked, and the ship was safe for people."

  I headed toward the Bridge at a brisk limp. The others followed.

  The Bridge looked nothing like it had used to. It was the same basic layout as Custer had, but it also had the look of the station CCC. The helm position was still in the center of the front console. There was more space between it and the seats on either side than I'd seen on any other Bridge. Angel's ramp was in position. I turned the front console off.

  The Captain's chair was well behind the helm position, and had the now usual pilot layout, allowing me to fly the ship from there.

  To the left and forward was the XO's chair, with its own console. To the right and forward was the coms station, also with its own console.