by Ryk Brown
“Flight ops reports Falcons are in position and ready to jump on schedule,” Ensign Souza announced.
“KKVs should be launching in three,” Luis added.
“Jump point in twenty seconds,” Mister Riley reported.
“Two……”
Nathan glanced at the battle timing display on the lower right corner of the main view screen, as the various timers counted down. Each timer showed the time remaining to each ship’s next action.
“One……”
Above the battle clocks, in the upper right portion of the Aurora’s spherical, wraparound view screen, a tactical map of the Sigma Draconis system—more specifically the small, rocky, hellish world known as Kalita—would show the position of every ship, friend or foe. Not only would it show their predicted positions, but it would indicate whether or not those positions were verified.
“Launch.”
Nathan looked back at the tactical map, his eyes on the six-armed icon representing the Jung battle platform following Kalita at one of the parent star’s gravitationally stable points.
“Five seconds to KKV impacts,” Luis reported.
“Jumping in ten,” Mister Riley added.
“Three……two……one……impacts.”
“Jumping in three……”
Nathan watched the tactical map as the icons for both the battle platform and the battleship both began to flash, indicating predicted KKV strikes and probable destruction of the targets.
“Two……”
They would not know for sure that the targets were destroyed until after they jumped into the system to engage the remaining Jung ships.
“One……jumping.”
The Aurora’s jump flash washed over the bridge, subdued greatly by the automatic filters in their main view screen.
“Jump complete,” Mister Riley reported.
Nathan looked at the view screen. Along the far right edge of the screen, about sixty degrees to starboard, he could make out the massive explosions of the battle platform. His eyes glanced at the tactical map, just as the flashing icon for the battle platform changed from the six-armed icon to a much larger collection of dots, indicating the destroyed platform’s debris field.
“Target charlie one, dead ahead,” Mister Navashee announced. “Target alpha one has been destroyed.”
“Locking all forward tubes on first cruiser,” Luis reported.
“Weapons free,” Nathan ordered.
“Weapons free, aye,” Luis replied.
“Target bravo one has been destroyed,” Mister Navashee added.
“Firing triplets on all forward tubes,” Luis announced.
Nathan saw the icon for the battleship change as well, as the red-orange balls of plasma left the Aurora’s forward tubes and streaked forward, on their way toward the first unsuspecting Jung cruiser.
“Plasma cannon locked on charlie two,” Luis reported. “Firing.”
“Jump flashes,” Mister Navashee said. “Scouts One and Two are attacking the frigates.”
“Turning onto target charlie two,” Mister Chiles announced.
“Five seconds to jump two,” Mister Chiles reported.
The image of the first Jung cruiser began to slide upward on the view screen, as flashes of white-yellow light reported the impact of their plasma torpedoes.
“Multiple torpedo impacts,” Mister Navashee reported.
“Jumping in three……”
“Charlie one has lost all port shields…”
“Two……”
“Charlie one is breaking up,” Mister Navashee added as secondary explosions began to deform the cruiser on the view screen.
“One……”
“Retargeting plasma cannon on target charlie two,” Luis announced.
“Jumping.”
Nathan looked at the tactical display again. As the jump flash washed over the bridge, the icon representing them disappeared, then reappeared just beyond the icon for the first cruiser, as it changed to a debris field as well.
“Jump complete,” Mister Riley announced.
“Pitching up,” Mister Chiles added.
The image of the second Jung cruiser that had just appeared at the top of the main view screen began to slide down toward its center as the Aurora’s helmsman raised the ship’s nose to bring her torpedo tubes onto the new target.
“Targets foxtrot one and two have both been destroyed,” Mister Navashee reported.
“Locking forward tubes on second cruiser,” Luis reported.
“Scouts have jumped. They should be engaging the other two frigates now,” Mister Navashee continued. “Multiple jump flashes low over Kalita. I’m showing twelve Falcons engaging surface targets.”
“Torpedoes locked,” Luis reported. “Firing triplets on all forward tubes.”
Again, red-orange balls of highly charged plasma left the Aurora, bound for the second Jung cruiser only a few kilometers away.
“Charlie two is maneuvering,” Mister Navashee warned. “She’s raising shields, and she’s firing.”
“Pitching to track charlie two,” the helmsman assured.
“Incoming missiles,” Mister Navashee reported. “Impact in ten seconds.”
“Locking plasma cannon and all four plasma torpedo cannons on charlie two,” Luis said.
“Escape jump ready,” Mister Riley reported.
“Firing plasma cannon. Firing plasma torpedo cannons,” Luis continued. “Torpedoes away.”
“Impact in five,” Mister Navashee warned.
“Jumping,” Mister Riley announced, dispensing with the usual three-second countdown.
Nathan watched the tactical display as the jump flash again washed over them. The icons representing the last two frigates began to flash, indicating that Scout ships One and Two should have both engaged and destroyed their last two planned targets. The icon representing the cruiser that had fired on them also began to flash.
“Jump complete,” Mister Riley reported.
“Coming about,” Mister Chiles added.
“Scanning the area of target charlie two,” Mister Navashee said as he stared at his sensor displays.
Nathan continued to watch the flashing icons representing the last three Jung ships left in the Sigma Draconis system.
“Target charlie two, destroyed,” Mister Navashee reported as the flashing cruiser icon changed to a debris field icon. “Jump flashes, over Kalita.”
“Incoming messages from Scouts One and Two,” Ensign Souza reported. “All frigates have been destroyed.”
The last two flashing icons changed to debris field icons on the tactical display.
“Turn complete,” Mister Chiles reported.
“Jumping to low orbit over Kalita,” Mister Riley added. “Jumping in three……”
Nathan felt a wave of relief wash over him.
“Two……”
This was the third such attack on Jung forces in nearby systems, and it had gone just as smoothly as the previous two.
“One……”
Thus far, none of their ships had taken any damage, and their crews had suffered no casualties.
“Jumping.”
They had lost Ghatazhak on the two previous engagements, but according to Commander Telles, the losses had been less than he had anticipated.
“Jump complete,” Mister Riley reported as the Aurora’s jump flash faded.
Nathan looked at the main view screen again as the reddish image of Kalita appeared along the bottom edge of the main view screen.
“Executing roll,” Mister Chiles reported.
The image of Kalita began to move along the bottom edge of the screen sliding around to the right, up the side, and across the top of the screen, as the Aurora rolled over to bring her main guns into position. The planet now above his head was an ugly reddish-brown color, with no visible water on the surface, and no polar ice caps. He could not imagine what life on the surface of Kalita could be like.
“Scans show all surface
defenses have been neutralized,” Mister Navashee reported.
“Primary target will be in range in ten seconds,” Luis announced. “Locking quads on primary target.”
The view from one of the quad rail gun’s targeting camera appeared in a window on the main view screen. The image magnified until the entire Jung military base on the surface of Kalita filled the window.
“Quads locked on target. Ready to fire,” Luis reported.
“Open fire,” Nathan ordered calmly.
“Firing quads.”
The aerial image of the Jung base on the surface became obscured by a gray, grainy fog, as thousands of rail gun rounds rained down upon the target. The image was quickly engulfed by a rising cloud of reddish-brown dust that swirled in chaotic patterns as the rail gun rounds continued to pummel the base. After only thirty seconds, the firing stopped.
“Target destroyed,” Mister Navashee reported.
“Green deck,” Nathan ordered.
“Green deck, aye,” Ensign Souza acknowledged.
Nathan continued to watch as the winds on the surface of Kalita slowly blew the dust cloud away, revealing a massive crater surrounded by a wide ejecta field, all marking the place where a Jung base once stood. As many as one thousand Jung soldiers had just died, possibly even ten times that number, but it had little effect on him.
“Combat jumpers are away,” Ensign Souza reported.
“They’re jumping,” Mister Navashee added. “Multiple jump flashes on the surface,” he continued. “Near the base, near the mining facility, and near the worker encampments.” He paused for a moment as he counted. “Total of twenty-eight flashes, Captain. All our forces are on the ground.”
“Any ships trying to depart the surface?” Nathan wondered.
“Negative, sir,” Mister Navashee answered. “However, Scouts One and Two are moving into position to enforce the departure quarantine.”
“Anything further out we might have missed?” Nathan added.
“Negative, Captain,” Luis replied. “The threat board shows clear. Second wave of Falcons is taking up BARCAP positions now.”
“Very well,” Nathan said. “Stand down from general quarters, and set ready condition two.”
“Stand down from general quarters and set ready two, aye,” Ensign Souza acknowledged.
Nathan rotated his command chair around to face aft. “This is getting too easy,” he said to Lieutenant Delaveaga as he rose from his seat and headed aft. “You have the conn, Lieutenant.”
Luis smiled. “Aye, sir.”
“Patch the feed from the Ghatazhak mobile command post to my ready room,” he instructed Ensign Souza on his way out.
“Aye, sir.”
Nathan stepped into his ready room, closing the hatch behind him. He moved around his desk and sat down, activating the large view screen on the forward bulkhead over the sofa that Lieutenant Commander Nash loved to stretch out on. A few clicks on his remote, and he had what he wanted… the views from every single Ghatazhak helmet camera currently fighting on the surface of Kalita. It would be a gruesome spectacle to witness, but Nathan felt he had to watch. The last three engagements had gone so well, that he feared losing contact with the brutality of their job. He hoped the images from the Ghatazhak helmet cameras would serve to remind him. What he saw took him by surprise.
The Ghatazhak helmet cameras were not sending him images of combat, but rather of rescue. Thousands of men being held in work camps on the hellish surface of Kalita. The men were dirty, with weather-worn skin and tattered clothing. Their homes were sturdy, but simple and without any creature comforts. The expressions on the men’s faces were a mixture of fear of what was to come, and determination to survive it for the sake of their loved ones. The women had expressions of sorrow the likes of which he had never seen, while the few children that he could see showed only hopelessness. Their lives, their world, their homes… they all appeared functional, but nothing more. Their existence had but one purpose… to serve the needs of the Jung, working the mines of Kalita.
What little guilt Nathan might have felt minutes earlier disappeared.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Naralena sat staring at the video display on the wall in Ellyus Barton’s well-appointed guest suite. As of late, her days had been spent relaxing as she watched countless Cetian news and entertainment programs, both current and past. Although she had learned much about both the Jung, and the Cetian culture, she felt somewhat guilty. The last five days had felt more like a vacation than a dangerous, off-world assignment on an enemy-held world.
“Learning much?” Jessica asked as she entered the room.
“Actually, yes. Did you know that the Jung are telling the people of this system that the Earth is still infected with the bio-digital plague?”
“Seriously?”
“It appears to be a recent development, going back a few weeks at most. However, it appears to be gaining momentum lately.”
“I know the Jung love to use propaganda—every government does—but it seems a bit far-fetched, doesn’t it?”
“They’re doing an awfully good job of it,” Naralena insisted. “Pictures and everything.”
“Where are they getting pictures?”
“I’m not sure about all of them, but I do recognize some of them. They’re from just after the Jung first invaded your world. They were likely altered to remove any trace of the Jung from the images, of course, but the end result is quite effective. It paints a portrait of a world that is constantly ravaged by the plague and is struggling to maintain a population large enough to support its own infrastructure.”
“I don’t get it,” Jessica admitted. “What’s the point?”
“The Jung are saying that they are trying to enforce a quarantine on the Earth to prevent them from spreading the plague, just like before.”
Jessica shook her head. “This is really suspicious. Why this effort? Why now?”
“To spread distrust?” Naralena suggested. “To build themselves up as protectors in the eyes of the local population?”
“Are they even bothering to tell the people of their attempt to conquer Earth?” Jessica wondered.
“Not a word. According to the Jung, they have ships parked outside the Sol system to prevent anyone from leaving it. If a ship doesn’t heed their warnings, they destroy it.”
“I suppose they have nice graphics for that one as well?”
“Of course.” Naralena looked at Jessica. “Do you think there is a correlation between our arrival and this new propaganda tactic?”
“It’s possible, I suppose,” Jessica admitted. “It’s also possible the Jung here at least know about the liberation of Earth. We were never quite sure of how many comm-drones were launched during that battle, or the direction they were launched. For all we know, the Jung have known about Earth’s liberation all along. Or this whole thing might have been planned from the start, as a ‘public opinion countermeasure’ of sorts. They probably thought of this long before our first jump, when they first learned about the jump-drive project. There’s no way to tell, really.”
“Then you’re not worried about it?”
“Worried? No, not really. No point,” Jessica insisted. “Nothing I can do about it. It is worthy of reporting to the Alliance, however, as it is bound to hamper development of relations after we clean the Jung out of this system.”
Naralena sighed. “I still can’t help but think that all of this could have been learned by monitoring emissions from the edge of the system, though.”
“Not really,” Jessica disagreed. “We tried that, and all we got was basic ship-to-ship stuff, and routine tests of their emergency broadcast network. The stuff you’ve been watching is streamed across their planetary network. They stopped using airborne broadcasts decades ago, just like we did. That’s one of the main reasons we came.”
“Yes, I remember. I guess I just feel a little guilty. I didn’t expect to be spending my days in enemy territory in a luxury apa
rtment, watching entertainment broadcasts and snacking all day long. My God, I think I’ve gained at least three kilograms since we got here!”
Jessica smiled. “Yeah, we did kind of luck out on that one, didn’t we,” she agreed as she plopped down on the other end of the sofa.
“Not all of us,” Naralena commented solemnly, looking down at the floor. She noticed that Jessica had her shoes on. “Going downstairs again?”
“Yup.”
“You’ve gone down to speak to Ellyus every evening since we’ve been here.”
“Just keeping my eye on things.”
“Has he offered anything new since his intel was retrieved?” Naralena wondered.
“Not really,” Jessica admitted. “I guess I just like hearing his stories. I mean, for decades he has been doing what I wanted to do since the first day I started special operations training. He’s got so much experience to share, and no one to share it with… all this time. Can you imagine? Keeping a secret for that long? Even from your wife and children? That takes a serious amount of discipline. Now that we’re here, he’s like a burst water pipe. I feel bad for him. I practically have to gag him and kick him out the door, or he would never shut up and go home to his wife.”
“Then, you’re probably getting some good intelligence from these conversations.”
“That’s the weird thing,” Jessica said. “I’m learning a lot about what he has gone through, and about the changes the Cetians have gone through, but nothing significant about the Jung forces.”
“But he showed us tons of images, troop counts, defenses…”
“All of which we could have gotten from a few closer passes had we chosen to put the Scout ships at greater risk, and possibly even tip our hand to the Jung. Besides, all of the information he has provided is at least a decade old, at best.”
“Well, he did say he pretty much gave up hope that anyone from Earth would ever contact him again,” Naralena reminded her.
“Yes, he did,” Jessica agreed, “and yes, that would explain his outdated intel.”
“So, these talks you’re having with him, you’re pretty much like his therapist, then?” Naralena joked.
“Yeah, I guess so.”
