Resolute Victory (The War for Terra)

by James Prosser

“Rust?”

  Henry got to his feet. Ben had retracted, but came to him. Henry looked again at his fingers before showing the little metal flakes to the other man. Emma was closer to the wall, but she was staring at Henry, hard. He suddenly began to jump in place. There was a strange echo as he landed. He leapt again, this time jumping as high as he could and landing with great deliberateness. Each time the hollow sound echoed beneath his feet, almost beneath his ability to hear it.

  “The whole damn thing is fake,” Henry said, stepping closer to Emma. “Do you have the map?”

  Emma nodded and reached into her coat. She had to rummage around to find the little cloth bag that held Henry’s things. When she pulled it out, he grabbed it quickly and opened the pouch. Reaching in, he found the thin piece of plasticized paper that Cole had given him. The three knelt down and cleared a place on the gray ground. Henry opened the map and began to trace his finger along the thin etched lines.

  “Ben,” he asked. “Do you have a compass fix?”

  The trio had been travelling with as little equipment as possible. They had learned the Ch’Tauk could track most electronic signals from far away and so kept most of the devices either off or at very low power. Hastings had a small geo compass that read the magnetic lines of the planet to give a coordinate fix. He snapped the handheld disk open and tapped the face. A small blue readout popped up and spiraled for a moment as the compass found its bearings.

  “It says we’re nearly there,” Hastings said. “We just need to go up and inwards a bit. I can look for some good climbing spots if you want, while you two get the shelter up.”

  “I don’t think we need the shelter, Ben,” Henry said. “And I don’t think we need to climb anymore.”

  Henry moved to the rock face where the cliff extended. He ran his bare fingers along the surface until he found a narrow crack. Following the crack, he uncovered a circular depression in the otherwise solid face of stone. He looked back to Emma and smiled. She gave him a strange look as if she knew he had found something and trusted he would tell soon.

  “Ben, give me a hand,” Henry said, walking back along the road. They came to the broken off cliff face where Emma had been rescued. He searched for the small outcropping of granite they had used to brace themselves. Henry saw that the rock had moved nearly two centimeters under the pressure of his push. The roadbed underneath seem nearly new in comparison to the surrounding tarmac.

  “I need something to brace against,” he told Ben. “I think I just found our door.”

  The two men formed a strange brace as Hastings pressed his feet against the rock face. Henry angled himself so he could press his back against Hastings’ back. He grunted with effort as the other man pressed back. Henry’s feet dug into the granite rock until Henry heard another grinding sound. It took almost ten more minutes of slow pushing before the granite was pushed all the way against the cliff edge. Henry heard Emma’s voice shouting from the other site.

  “Henry!” she called to him. “You silly old man. You’ve found it!”

  The two men pushed away from the sheer drop and stood. Each of them was out of breath but excited to see what they had done. As they came around the bend, Henry saw Emma with her head inserted into the rock edge.

  “Emma?” Henry asked the headless woman. “What are you doing?”

  Emma re-emerged from the rock. From the angle he was looking from, he had not seen the opening along the crack. It had momentarily looked as if she had pushed her head into the rock face. He smiled to see her look back. She gave a look of pride to him that filled his heart.

  “You did it, Henry,” Emma said. “You found the installation.”

  He ran to her side and picked her up. As he lowered her, he pressed his lips against hers. She was warm and tasted like mud, but he held the kiss anyway. When they released, Hastings was already sticking his head into the hole.

  “Ayup,” the man said. “We’ll need the torches if we want to see inside there. It’s darker than a witch’s…”

  “Ben!” Henry said. “There is a lady present.”

  “I know,” Hastings replied, pulling back with a toothy grin. “But his girlfriend doesn’t mind.”

  The three laughed before pulling small lights from their equipment pouches. Henry flicked his on. He was startled at how bright the little lights were in the murky light of the cliff. When he shined the light into the hole, however, he could not make out anything but a ramp leading upwards.

  “It looks like we made it,” Henry said. “Now the fun part begins.”

  12

  Battleship Victory

  From the cramped bridge of the battleship Victory, Banu Rao watched the final preparations. Captain Loesser was seated in the command well, checking over holographic reports and finalizing the procedures for the coming operation.

  “Captain,” Rao asked from the upper deck. “When you called me up here, I was under the impression we were about to begin.”

  Loesser continued to tap commands on the arm of the chair. Rao had become less enamored of the man over the last few weeks since departing Perigee station. He had once seemed so promising an officer. In recent days, however, he had become quiet and less controllable. He had still carried out every one of Rao’s orders, but the speed and efficiency had seemed to slow. The man finally turned to face the former minister.

  “We’re almost ready,” Loesser said in his clipped tones. “A machine like this takes time to get ready. If we do this wrong, your campaign is over before it begins. You may want to call the other ministers up to watch, though. It will just be a few more minutes.”

  Loesser turned back to his displays and continued to tap keys. Banu stared at the back of his neatly trimmed head and seethed. Loesser was supposed to be taking orders and showing the galaxy why humans were better than the insectoid Ch’Tauk. He seemed more like Admiral Chang lately, more interested in rules and command structure than carrying out Rao’s wishes. There were a few other candidates on board who could serve in that command chair as well, and Rao had already scouted their loyalty.

  Banu pushed his way past several other officers working on the circular bridge. The layout of the Independence class battleships was based on older Earth designs with each station close to the next for easy access. Rao favored the newer designs with their raised command decks and sunken operations center in front. The old bridge was too cramped and didn’t allow visitors to the bridge any comfort. He pushed past another technician to reach the communications center.

  The officer in charge of communications had been recruited from one of the rescue missions in years past. She was young, much younger than any of the other crew, and thin. Rao had been told she spoke several languages fluently and had a remarkable mind, but he could not see it. She was skinny, with long red hair and a pouty expression that made Banu want to kiss her, despite not being attracted to the girl at all.

  “Please alert the ministers to meet me in the forward observation lounge, Ensign,” Rao ordered the young woman. “I want the best view of this event.”

  “Yes, sir. Will you be going alone or shall I call a security team to escort you?” the girl asked with an innocent look.

  “We will be accompanied by Captain Loesser,” Rao said, raising his voice so that the captain could hear over the din. “I am sure he can send the orders to fire by remote.”

  Loesser looked over to the communications station in alarm. The man seemed to be managing multiple duties and giving orders to the various departments by himself. He glared at Rao from the command chair. It took a few tense moments for him to realize it was not a battle he could win. He reluctantly switched off his projections and stood.

  “Minister Rao,” Loesser said, using the title that no longer applied. “If you would be so kind as to accompany me to the observation lounge.”

  “Of course, Captain,” Rao replied, gloating in his victory. “Thank you for the offer. You may want to transfer command to the lounge before we go. I don’t want anyone e
lse accidentally tapping a control they shouldn’t.”

  There was another tense moment before Loesser looked to his tactical officer. The dark skinned man nodded at the unspoken command and began transferring command authorization away from the bridge. Loesser looked back at Rao. He had once been in command of a supply ship with full autonomy to carry out his orders. Now, it seemed, he was relegated to being Banu Rao’s lackey on his own ship.

  “Minister,” Loesser said, raising an arm to indicate the bridge exit.

  The two men stepped around the command wall and left the bridge. Rao noticed the captain’s steps seemed even more formal than before. If he didn’t know better, he thought the man sounded angry while walking. They proceeded past the doors leading to Rao’s quarters and the captain’s office. Rao had insisted on having the rooms closest to the bridge for himself. Loesser had taken one of the crew quarters below in an attempt to appease the minister, but insisted that his office be left near the bridge.

  They entered the lift without speaking and Rao tapped the destination code. The Victory had been extensively modified since given to Rao and the new operating systems required more security than other ships. The lift system had also been rerouted along the spine of the ship, no longer taking the most direct route to each level, but now stopping at only one spot along the route in each section. Loesser reached out and stopped the lift, locking the doors and freezing the call system.

  “Banu, we have to talk,” Loesser said, turning to confront him.

  “I really don’t think this is the time, Captain,” Rao responded without looking. “We have a very important test firing to watch. I think whatever it is you want can wait until then.”

  “No, Banu,” Loesser replied, stepping in front of Rao so the man would have to look at him. “This cannot wait. You have been contravening my authority on the bridge and in front of my crew. I will not allow you to speak to me like this again on my ship.”

  Banu Rao was an above average-sized man who had grown soft in the middle. He was more massive than Loesser and seemed bigger in the small lift than the taller man. He looked up into the eyes of the captain. Loesser’s eyes twitched as the two men looked at each other. Rao had a magnetism of personality that had made him an able politician. There was always the air of a threat, though, behind the charming speech. Loesser felt the full brunt of the threat as he looked back at the politician.

  “Captain Loesser,” Rao began. “Let me make one thing perfectly clear about our relationship. You may be the captain of this ship, a position that has been held by others and may still be again, but I am this ship’s commander. I acquired it from Chang. I ordered the installation of the cannon. I am the one who had you brought over from the floating grocery store you were on before. I will speak to you in the manner I would speak to any functionary and you will listen and obey. Is that understood?”

  “Rao, I …”

  “Mister Loesser,” Rao interrupted. “The question required only a yes or no answer. I would prefer yes, but another officer might prefer no. Now, do you understand?”

  Loesser stared back at the threat. He knew that Rao had been talking to other officers on board and his own position was tenuous at best. He thought briefly about giving Rao the satisfaction of saying no. The consequences, though, of leaving anyone else in charge of the ship and her systems was too much. Loesser exhaled a breath he hadn’t known he was holding. He licked his lips and looked away from Rao.

  “Yes, Minister,” Loesser replied, turning back to the lift controls. “I understand.

  “Thank you, Captain Loesser,” Rao said with a pleased smile. “Now, we really must get to the observation lounge and commence the operation. The other ministers will be waiting.”

  Loesser tapped the control pad to restart the lift. The two men rode the rest of the way forward in silence. When the doors opened, Rao waited for the other man to depart first. It was another reminder to Loesser that Rao would always be right behind him, controlling his actions. They walked down a short hallway made of bare metal that had been constructed quickly. The room they were going to was originally built as a forward resupply port. The engineers that Rao had allied with had enclosed the room and covered the forward area with a large viewing wall. Rounded walls and a thick spar of metal climbing each side told the story of the room’s original service past.

  As Rao entered, the other ministers turned. He had called Loesser back so that he could precede the other man. His head was held high and proud as he surveyed the magnificent view projected on the rounded wall.

  Three years ago, the cruise ship Terran Princess had been called to the location of the carrier vessel Baal. They had followed a trail of messages left by an enterprising officer on board the Resolute. What they found was a damaged hulk and an insane admiral hiding among the wide asteroid field of a rogue planet. Baal had cleared a small area where they could mask their energy signature among the ferrous asteroids, and had broadcast a faulty jamming signal when the cruise ship approached. Rao remembered the terror as the civilian ship engaged the battleship, remembered the knowledge that they would certainly die. It had helped shape his distrust of the military mind and fuelled his need to take command of the Alliance.

  The projection showed the same rogue planet from three years ago. Rao felt the loneliness of the place deep in his soul. The last time he looked upon the sight, he had been cowering in the hold of a transport. Now he was in command of the most powerful weapon in the galaxy. He would end the loneliness of the black sphere and let it join its smaller brothers and sisters in becoming rubble.

  “My friends, the long wait is over. You will now witness the culmination of everything I have tried to do to restore the people of Terra to their mother Earth,” Rao said, gaining strength from the stares of the other ministers. “Two years ago, we came across the notes of a brilliant man. Doctor Erik Heyerdahl was working on this project when the invasion of Earth occurred. Sadly, he was killed in the retaking of Karisia and we lost his mind. His research partners survived, however, and made the decision to join me in my crusade to retake our world. The Hyper Velocity Accelerator Cannon is the end result of years of research and development and will be the instrument of our victory.”

  The ministers began to stir from his hold. Minister Drachma stepped forward, still dressed in the robes she wore when presiding over Lee Pearce’s trial. Behind her were several others who had been vocal about his policies over the years. The porcine woman, Illovee, stood just to her right.

  “Minister Rao,” she began in her soft tones. “You tell us that you have been working on this project for years, but this is the first we have heard of this device. Why did you not share this device with the military if it is so powerful?”

  “My dear minister, I know your people live in an integrated society where the military and civilian populations are nearly identical, but human beings are far more complicated,” Rao began. “Admiral Chang has such a limited view of victory. He believes that to win, we must simply retake Earth and the Ch’Tauk will leave us alone. I believe that the only way to defeat an enemy is utterly and completely.”

  “Ministers, I need to begin the firing sequence,” Captain Loesser interrupted. “If you would take up positions along the wall where the shielding is thickest, please.”

  Minister Rao glared at the captain as he stepped to the back wall of the room. He was standing where the doors would part if they opened, and the other ministers spread out on either side. Minister Drachma and Illowee, the porcine ambassador from Tomel, were farthest away on either side. The projection covered the curving upper portion of the room so everyone could see clearly. Loesser stepped to the far end to a console. He tapped a few keys and brought up a heads-up display of the readouts from the bridge.

  “This is Captain Loesser, I need a report for firing readiness,” the man said. “Estimated firing time and power levels on my command.”

  “Roger, Captain,” the voice of the tactical officer came over the speakers. �
��Firing time and power levels at your command. We are green across all boards with relative kill object at standby.”

  Loesser looked to the display showing the status of the device. They had intercepted one of the asteroids when they arrived in the system and had modified it to fit the firing chamber. It had been smoothed and polished to the size of two meters across. The magnetic properties of the rock made it ideal for the test and they had already prepped two more of the stones, each a little bigger than the first. He tapped a few keys to bring up the strength of the rail cannon and activated the ship’s M-space engine.

  There was a slight rumble from deep within the ship. Loesser felt the power of the ship under his feet as he pressed further power into play. The cannon used the ship’s inter-dimensional engines to alter local physics and allow a projectile to be pushed to velocities approaching the speed of light. The lower levels had already been cleared of personnel, due to the strange energies and their matter-altering effects. Only the ship’s engineer and two of the technicians were below to supervise the firing.

  “Power levels at one-half,” Loesser called out to the tactical officer. “Increasing static drive system to seventy-five percent for firing.”

  “Seventy-five, aye,” the man replied. “We are seeing some localized distortions below decks, sir. Deck twelve is venting atmosphere.”

  “Close off that section and recalibrate the M-space engines. We’ll need to lock that down next time.”

  “Acknowledged, sir. I am reading power levels at seventy-five.”

  “Aye, seventy-five percent,” Loesser replied. “Let’s bring up the targeting scanners and give me a crosshair on my display.”

  The image on the projection abruptly changed to a close-up of the dark planet. It had deep ravines and pits where asteroid impacts had broken the crust. There was a blurry flash as a red cross surrounded by a circle snapped into place to the right of the center mass of the planet. Loesser tapped keys and the cross moved left and centered. The planet now looked artificial, as a ring of red energy surrounded it on the projection.