Refusing Excalibur

by Zachary Jones

  Victor suspected the second battle would be more difficult.

  The First Imperial Battlefleet, the cream of the Lysandran Empire, led by their greatest living admiral, Thera Loris, the woman who broke the Republic of Savannah’s defenses and left it exposed to the wrath of her emperor. An emperor who was with her even now, almost within reach.

  Victor clenched the fingers of his artificial hand into a fist at the thought of killing Magnus Lacano. Admiral Loris too perhaps. The reinforced polymer creaked under the strain.

  The memory of that awful day flashed in his mind once more. The fire consuming his world, the unbreakable grip of the Imperial Marines holding him to the observation window, and the emperor’s perfect teeth as he bared them in a hateful smile.

  When the Alexander was just a few minutes out from the Alliance fleet, a transmission came in from the Gryphon. It was, unsurprisingly, from Holace Quill.

  Victor accepted the transmission. “High Councilor.”

  “Captain Blackhand,” High Councilor Quill said with a grim smile on his face. It made him look a little like Magnus Lacano. “I would say this battle had gone quite well, don’t you think?”

  “I think we’ve still got another battle to fight,” Victor said.

  Quill nodded. “Indeed, we do. Which is why I’m calling you. I thought I would give you the honor of playing an integral role in the next battle.”

  “I’m listening,” Victor said.

  “Dock with the Gryphon. My engineers will install some equipment on your ship,” Holace said.

  “What kind of equipment?” Victor asked.

  “A Lysandran IFF transmitter, along with modified drive rings that will change your ship’s drive signature to look like that of a Lysandran frigate,” Quill said.

  “You want to disguise my ship as a Lysandran warship?” Victor asked. “To what purpose?”

  “I’ll tell you when you come aboard,” Holace Quill said. “I’d rather not detail my plan, even over an encrypted channel.”

  “Understood. I’ll dock with the Gryphon as soon as possible,” Victor said.

  “Excellent. I’ll see you then, Captain Blackhand.”

  The transmission ended.

  “Fara, put us on docking approach with the Gryphon,” Victor said.

  “Already done, Captain,” Fara said.

  Victor called engineering. “Cormac, get ready to let some Mustanger techs aboard. They’ll make a few modifications.”

  “What kind of modifications?” Cormac asked.

  “New drive rings and a Lysandran Identify Friend or Foe transmitter,” Victor said.

  “I see. So Holace Quill wants to disguise the Alexander as a Lysandran warship,” Cormac said.

  “That’s about the size of it, yes,” Victor said. “I just hope the good guys realize it’s us.”

  “Yet another hazardous mission then,” Cormac said. “I will be ready to receive the engineers when they arrive, as well as supervise their work.”

  Victor smiled. “In that case I’ll know it’ll be done right.” He closed the channel and settled back to wait.

  The Alexander plunged into the Alliance fleet as the multiplanetary collection of warships remained clustered around the Janus system jump point. Closing with the Gryphon, Fara communicated with the battleship’s bridge, requesting permission to dock, which was quickly granted.

  Its cavernous hangar opened, and the frigate slipped inside.

  Once the Alexander was secure inside the belly of the battleship and her engines shutdown, hangar techs in space suits swarmed from the airlocks and flew toward the Alexander under the power of their suit thrusters.

  Among them were a pair of heavy-duty utility robots, their grasping claws folded into their bodies like the pincers of a crab.

  “They’re not even waiting for the engines to cool,” Fara said.

  “No, they’re not,” Victor said. It was clear they were working on a tight schedule. Otherwise, why risk the hazard of working around hot engines? He called engineering. “Cormac, looks like they’re not wasting any time. They’re already moving to work on the engines.”

  “I see, Captain. I’m flushing the engines with coolant to make them less dangerous to work with,” Cormac said.

  “Won’t that damage the containment rings?” Victor asked.

  “Yes,” said Cormac. “But we are getting new ones.”

  “Okay, go ahead, Cormac. I’d like to think of my ship as a safe working environment,” Victor said.

  Fara snorted. “Right, safe.”

  Victor shrugged. “It’s all relative.” He rose from his seat. “You have the bridge, Fara. I’m going to the docking bay to let in our guests.”

  Fara kicked up her feet onto the control console. “In that case I’ll take a nap.”

  “Industrious as always,” Victor said, leaving the bridge.

  When Victor reached the main airlock at the front of the Alexander, he opened the inner and outer doors; the pressure between the Gryphon and Alexander was already equalized by the time he got there.

  “Permission to come aboard, Captain Blackhand?” asked a nervous engineering officer, leading a team of techs carrying a sealed crate.

  Victor nodded to the crate. “Is that the IFF?”

  The engineering officer nodded. “Yes, sir.”

  Victor sidestepped them. “Welcome aboard. Please confer with Chief Engineer Cormac before you start pulling things apart. He’s rather protective of his ship.”

  The officer nodded and saluted. “Yes, sir.” The engineering officer and his team marched in, just barely squeezing through the airlock hatch while carrying the crate.

  When the engineers cleared the hatch, Holace Quill awaited outside.

  “Captain Blackhand,” the high councilor said.

  “High Councilor Quill,” Victor said, walking through the airlock until he stood at the threshold dividing his ship from the Gryphon. “I assume you have the details of my mission for me?”

  The high councilor gave Victor a predatory smile and said, “Why, yes, Captain Blackhand. I think you’ll like it.”

  “Don’t leave me in suspense, High Councilor,” Victor said.

  The high councilor handed Victor a tablet. “The mission details are here. Right now the First Imperial Battlefleet is completely ignorant of the destruction of the rest of their forces. Therefore, I want your ship, disguised as a Lysandran frigate, to jump into the Gaddon system and give them the all-clear.”

  Victor grimaced. “If you’re planning to lure them to Mustang and do to them what we just did to the Second and Third Imperial Battlefleets, it won’t work. Thera Loris is too cautious to fall for a trick like that.”

  Holace Quill shook his head. “I’m aware, Captain. I don’t want you to lure the First Imperial Battlefleet to Mustang. Just draw them close to the jump point. Close enough they can’t escape when the Alliance fleet jumps through.”

  “How am I supposed to signal the Alliance fleet to spring the ambush, to jump back through? It’ll look suspicious if my ship is loitering near the jump point,” Victor said.

  “You’ll be carrying a small jump drone with you. It’ll wait inside the jump point. Just send the signal, and it will jump back to Mustang to tell the fleet to move in,” the high councilor said.

  “So I just need to get them close enough to make escape impossible but not close enough to shoot at Allied ships while they jump in.” Victor looked down at the tablet and then back to the high councilor. “This will be a tough fight, High Councilor. Much tougher than the one we just fought. The First Imperial Battlefleet will be in combat formation the whole time. You can’t catch Thera Loris with her pants down like you did Tolen Phane.”

  “I don’t doubt it will be a hard fight. But after destroying two of their fleets, the Lysandrans will be outnumbered by almost two to one. I’m fairly confident in our chances of victory,” Holace said. “And there’s one more thing to consider. Emperor Magnus is with the First Imperial Battleflee
t. With your ship disguised, you might get close enough to his flagship to strike a fatal blow.”

  A quiver of vengeful anticipation ran through Victor’s body. “So, this isn’t just a mission. This is the ultimate payment you promised me.”

  Holace nodded. “After all your years of excellent service to Mustang, after all we have accomplished together, I have not forgotten what I said to you years ago. This will be your best chance to make Magnus pay for what he did to your world. And, after today, I will make sure his empire pays as well.” Holace said the last sentence with particular venom.

  “I’ll need to replenish my munitions,” Victor said.

  “Take whatever you want. My armory and magazines are at your disposal,” Holace said.

  “In that case, High Councilor, show me your inventory,” Victor said.

  ***

  Victor felt uneasy about having dozens of Mustanger engineers swarming around the interior and exterior of his ship, pulling out and replacing far more bits of equipment than he thought was really needed to make the Alexander look like a Lysandran vessel.

  But the fact that every change was made under the supervision and approval of Cormac put Victor at ease, though he did feel a bit guilty that the starchild had to spend his time frittering about the ship.

  Victor himself had taken up the much less noisome task of loading the new weapons aboard the Alexander, replacing the weapons expended during the previous battle and loading a few special weapons just for taking his shot at Magnus Lacano.

  Mines too. Four of the biggest mines the Alexander could carry. They were too big to fit in the missile tubes, so they had to be carried externally.

  Even with the Lysandran IFF transmitter and other changes, Victor knew he’d never get close enough to Emperor Magnus’ ship to attack the battleship directly. However, if he somehow did, the Alexander didn’t have the firepower to have a realistic chance at destroying a battleship like the Spear of Lacano.

  But the big mines had a chance. Victor just needed to drop them where the Spear of Lacano would pass close enough to set off their proximity detectors.

  “The Gryphon’s engineers are almost done, Captain,” Cormac said, his lanky frame covered in a space suit, and his blond hair soaked in sweat.

  Victor nodded. “Good work, as always, Cormac.” He nodded to the screen he had been studying, showing the installation of the mines. “Do you think the extra munitions will be an issue?”

  “We’ll be flying heavy, probably heavier than a frigate that just fought a battle should. But, as long as we don’t get too close, I doubt the Lysandrans will notice.” Cormac nodded toward the screen Victor stood by. “I assume those are for the emperor?”

  “That’s the plan,” Victor said. “We just need to set the warheads to home in on the Spear of Lacano’s IFF and then drop them in her path.”

  Cormac nodded his long head. “Understood, though we’ll have to be careful not to look like we’re laying mines in the path of the emperor’s battleship.”

  “If our disguise holds up, then that shouldn’t be a problem,” Victor said. “They’ll be moving toward us anyway.”

  Cormac nodded again. “It seems you have thought this out. I am glad you settled on a plan that does not involve a suicide attack.”

  Victor gave Cormac a grim, lopsided smile. “It wouldn’t have been fair to you and the crew. And, besides, Gaz would’ve felt left out.”

  “Have you checked on him?” Cormac asked.

  “Yes. Dr. Chen says he’s asleep,” Victor said. “Which is good. I’d rather not have Gaz show up at the airlock on crutches, asking to join the fight.”

  “A wise decision,” Cormac said. “Gaz has always had an unhealthy attraction to taking risks.”

  Victor raised an eyebrow. “Granted you don’t make a habit of getting into firefights the way Gaz—”

  “And you.”

  “—Gaz and I do, but you’ve stuck by despite all the crazy ploys I’ve pulled off,” Victor said.

  “You do take risks with the ship and with the lives of the crew,” Cormac said. “But they are tactical risks with large financial rewards attached to them. Or need I remind you that I have earned enough serving as your chief engineer to retire in comfort.”

  “Is that what you plan on doing, when this finally all ends?” Victor asked.

  Cormac looked off in the distance. “When that time comes,” he said, his voice full of longing, “I think I will buy a starship. One that will let me go home without luring anyone else there.”

  Victor nodded. He envied Cormac for having a home he could go back to. “I can understand that. I’ll be more than happy to help you get that ship whenever you desire. Though the Alex will miss you. I don’t think there’s a better engineer in the galaxy than you.”

  Cormac nodded and placed a hand on a bulkhead. “This has been a good ship. The Mustangers built her well. I admit, I will look back with fondness on the years I have spent as part of your crew.”

  “I was certainly glad to have you, Cormac,” Victor said.

  “Hopefully, Captain, when all is said and done, you will find a new place to call home,” Cormac said. “A place where you may find some peace.”

  “A nice sentiment,” Victor said, smiling sadly. “But I don’t think peace is in my future.” He shrugged. “I doubt I’d know what to do with peace if I found it. I’ve been fighting almost twenty years now.”

  “That just means you deserve to find peace more than most, Captain,” Cormac said. “And, given your skills at fighting, I wouldn’t be surprised if you eventually run out of enemies to fight.”

  “That’s the thing, Cormac,” Victor said. “In this galaxy, there's always another enemy to fight.”

  Chapter 23

  The Alexander flashed into existence in the Gaddon system, cruising from the Mustang jump point at one hundred meters per second.

  “Launching courier drone.” Victor hit the release, dropping the small robotic spacecraft. As soon as it detached, it fired cold-gas thrusters to cancel out its momentum and to remain inside the jump point. It would have enough propellant left over to keep its station here for twenty-four hours.

  With the drone away, Victor turned his attention to the sensor screen to watch the greatest object of interest in the otherwise barren system: the First Imperial Battlefleet. It was over a billion kilometers away, hovering near the other jump point in the system, waiting for the Alliance fleet that had already passed them.

  They had no idea what was about to happen.

  “Transmitting,” Victor said, beaming the prerecorded message to the First Imperial Battlefleet to inform them that the Mustang system was now secure. It would take an hour for the Lysandrans to receive the message.

  “Captain, I got Lysandran warships two hundred million kilometers out. Looks like a picket force,” Fara said. “A cruiser and four frigates.”

  Victor switched his attention to the close contacts, mentally kicking himself for fixating on the main fleet. “I see them.”

  “They’ll see us in ten minutes,” Fara said.

  “Our IFF should hold up at this distance,” Victor said.

  “It won’t if they decide to inspect us visually,” Fara said.

  “Well, let’s not give them reason to do that,” Victor said. “Head toward the main fleet. I’m going to say hi to the picket ships.”

  Victor sent out the short message, identifying his ship as the Imperial frigate Vorenus and him as Commander Mandar Thrace.

  If the Lysandrans had checked their records, a frigate named Vorenus in the Second Imperial Battlefleet was, indeed, commanded by a Mandar Thrace. What they didn’t, and couldn’t, know was the Vorenus and its commanding officer were little more than an expanding cloud of gas on an escape trajectory from the Mustang system.

  “So now we just wait, right?” Fara asked.

  “Yes,” Victor said.

  Wait they did. Eleven minutes after hailing the pickets, the lead cruiser responded.r />
  “Vorenus, this is Swiftsure. We’ve received your message and acknowledge. Hold station near the jump point until you receive new orders from the First Fleet.”

  “Acknowledged,” Victor said on the comms, then closed them off. “So far, so good. Fara, you heard him. Stay near the jump point, but keep your distance from the pickets. That is, without looking like you’re keeping your distance of course.”

  “Sure thing. I’ll keep it nice and casual, Captain,” Fara said.

  “Captain?” Cormac said through the intercom.

  “I hear you, Cormac. What is it?” Victor said.

  “I have been monitoring the new drive rings and noticed their emission spectrum changes as their temperature goes up,” Cormac said.

  “And since you're calling me, you must think this could be a problem,” Victor said.

  “Yes, Captain. If the engines get too hot, then their emissions will no longer match those of the Lysandran frigate we’re pretending to be,” Cormac said. “You should limit the ship’s acceleration to no more than 100 gs.”

  “That’s less than half the acceleration the Alexander is normally capable of, Cormac,” Victor said.

  “The Alexander can still reach her full acceleration. She just won’t look like a Lysandran frigate at full thrust,” Cormac said.

  “All right, I understand, Cormac,” Victor said. “Thanks for the heads-up. Fara, you get all that?”

  “Yep. I’ll be easy on the gas, Captain,” Fara said.

  Victor nodded and let out a long breath. It wouldn’t look too suspicious for a frigate to limit its acceleration to 100 gs. Or at least he hoped it wouldn’t from the Lysandrans’ point of view.

  A little over two hours after jumping in, the Alexander received a response from the First Imperial Fleet.

  Admiral Thera Loris’ face appeared on the screen. Her hair was longer, but otherwise she looked much the same as she did when he had met her shortly after the Battle of Savannah.

  “Vorenus, I have received your message,” she said. “Know the emperor is pleased to learn that the Mustang system has been secured. Hold your position near the jump point until the fleet arrives. I’ll be dispatching the frigate Darius to inform Admiral Phane of our approach.”