by D. J. Holmes
Emilie gave Raloja a quick smile and turned to look down the hatch. As soon as the Folians saw her, they raised their weapons. Raloja quickly moved past her and placed herself directly in their line of sight. The response from the Folians was instantaneous. Their normally bland facial expressions all twisted into what Emilie presumed was surprise or shock.
“Greetings my friends and allies,” Raloja said as she spread her arms wide and gracefully descended the shuttle’s rear ramp. She was once again dressed in her radiant Triad attire and her long flowing robe trailed along the ground behind her. “I have come to speak with your leaders. I am Raloja, one of the Triad of Rulen colony. “I bring news about the Karacknid occupation of my worlds. News your Conclave must hear.”
One of the Folians barked out an unintelligible order. The rest of the armed guards lowered their weapons, then the same Folian pulled out a COM unit and spoke into it at a furious pace. Raloja turned her head slightly, not enough to look back up the shuttle, but enough to get Emilie’s attention. She gave a slight wave of her hand. Emilie understood. If she was going to get back into orbit unmolested, now was the time. Punching the button to close the shuttle’s access ramp, she quickly moved back towards the cockpit. “Take a seat,” she said to Shaw and her marines as she passed them. “Let’s hope you’re not needed.” As soon as she entered the cockpit she placed a hand on the pilot’s shoulder. “Take us back into orbit. Though be gentle about it. Let’s not look like we are running away.”
As the shuttle’s engines started to whine Emilie strapped herself in and rolled her shoulders to ease their tension. The Folians could order her shuttle to power down or they could just blow it up as it took off. Neither happened and within minutes Emilie found herself heading back towards Intrepid. It didn’t take long for the shuttle to dock and for her to make her way back to the bridge.
“How did it go?” Jones asked when she and Alvarez returned to their command chairs. “You were quick.”
“Raloja disembarked and spoke to the Folians who had come to greet us,” Emilie explained. “I think it’s safe to say they were not expecting to see her. We used the confusion to get out of the way. It’s over to her now.”
Jones nodded. It was something they had discussed on the flight back from Rulen. Many of the members of the Conclave had not reacted well to Emilie’s presence. They had seen her as an outsider who couldn’t be trusted. Raloja going alone to speak to the Conclave members was the best chance they had at convincing them. As Emilie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, she could easily imagine what Raloja was sharing. Raloja had spoken about the atrocities the Karacknids had committed on her planet often enough to her and Alvarez. If Raloja’s testimony wouldn’t convince the members of the conclave of the folly of giving into the Karacknids, then nothing else would. At least, Emilie knew her conscience would be clear. If the Conclave members still chose to accept vassalage, they would be doing so without any excuse that they didn’t know what would come their way. Of course, if they still accepted vassalage, it would likely mean Intrepid would be captured or destroyed. Opening her eyes again, Emilie sought out the Karacknid dreadnought. It could still open fire on her ship at any moment. She had no idea how long it would take the Conclave to listen to Raloja. But, however long it would be, she wasn’t going to enjoy the wait. Not when a fight with the Karacknid dreadnought could break out at any second. “Make sure the cook arranges meals for everyone while they stay at their stations,” Emilie said as she turned to Lieutenant Maguire. “We could be here a while. We may as well get a warm meal in our bellies.”
“Aye Captain,” Maguire responded.
Though she was intentionally not watching the chrono meter, Emilie figured it had to have been at least a couple of hours before something happened. “We’re getting an encrypted COM message from Commodore Shraw. It’s audio and visual,” Intrepid’s COM officer informed her.
“Put on the main holo projector,” Emilie requested.
“Captain Kansas, it’s good to see you again,” Shraw said when the COM link was established. “I’m glad you were successful in your mission. From what I hear, Raloja is making quite the impression with the Conclave delegations. I must say, even I was shocked to hear what she shared.”
“So, the Conclave is starting to see sense?” Emilie asked, hope stirring within her.
“Starting may be an apt description,” Shraw responded. “I’m afraid the Karacknid dreadnought in orbit is still quite a persuasive argument in and of itself.”
Emilie nodded. “I understand. What does this mean for my ship and my crew? The Folians haven’t given us up yet but you’re saying they still could?”
“The Conclave has taken a break; each species’ delegation is discussing among themselves. I’m here because my people believe the Folians and the others want to reject the Karacknids offer. Or rather, rescind our acceptance. We actually agreed to the Karacknids conditions several days ago. We’ve just been working out the finer details with their representative. My species intends to go back on the promises we made. Raloja has shown us they were made in bad faith on the part of the Karacknids. I fear the others are having more reservations. They now believe what happened to your homeworld. They fear if they go back on their word, the Karacknid dreadnought will nuke Damial as well.
“I can’t say I blame them,” Emilie found herself saying. It was exactly the kind of thing she expected the Karacknids to do. “What are you thinking? I presume you’re not just making a social call?”
“If we could get the Karacknid dreadnought out of orbit, I think the other Conclave members will all agree that we cannot simply allow the Karacknids to take over our territories,” Shraw replied. “I was hoping you might be willing to help me with that.”
Emilie smashed her lips together as she thought. “You do know there’s no way Intrepid can beat a dreadnought. If I had ten cruisers we might stand a chance, but not alone.”
“If you are willing to trust me, you’ll not be alone Captain. But you might not like what I have to suggest.”
“You may as well try me,” Emilie replied.
“If you break orbit now, I don’t think the Folians will give you up. They are genuinely shocked by what Raloja has revealed,” Shraw explained. “Then, when you are far enough away from Damial, you could reveal who you really are. I imagine that might upset the Karacknids just a little. If you draw them away from the Folians’ homeworld, my squadron will aid you in taking it out.”
Taking it out, Emilie repeated to herself. She wasn’t sure if she had heard a more absurd idea. Fighting a Karacknid dreadnought one-on-one in an open battle would be the end of Intrepid. Shraw’s squadron was impressive, but Intrepid would be fighting on her own. “If I’m being honest,” she replied, “I’d much prefer a plan that involved taking the dreadnought by surprise. Together, our ships could destroy the Karacknid dreadnought in orbit with our energy weapons.”
Shraw nodded. “We could, but could you guarantee they wouldn’t have time to launch nukes at the planet’s surface? They will detect our energy weapons charging before we fired. They might only get a few seconds, but that might be all they needed. They’ve made the threat more than once. I believe they have missiles targeting Damial’s major cities right now.” When Emilie remained quiet Shraw nodded. “As I suspected. Trying to take them out in orbit is too risky. We could succeed but if Damial is nuked the Conclave might decide to give into the Karacknids all over again. Slavery is still better than being wiped out of existence.”
“All right,” Emilie said reluctantly, feeling she had no other choice. “Let’s go over your plan in detail. I’m still not convinced it’s remotely possible. But let’s think it through.”
Chapter 35
Sometimes the foolhardiest decisions bear fruit far beyond expectation. Sometimes they are just what they seem, foolhardy. Sadly, it is impossible to tell one from the other in the spur of the moment. A naval officer can only find out the hard way.
-Excerp
t from Empire Rising, 3002 AD.
Intrepid, Damial system
Still far from sure about what she was doing, Emilie nevertheless found herself watching Damial as it slowly shrank on Intrepid’s main holographic display. “All right, I think we’ve come far enough,” she said after seventy minutes. “Disengage our false electromagnetic signature and let’s show them who we really are. Go to seventy percent acceleration.”
Though it would take four minutes for the new electromagnetic radiation from Intrepid to reach the Karacknid dreadnought, the gravimetric waves given off by the cruiser’s acceleration rates were detected instantly. The Karacknids didn’t wait to act. Within seconds their engines and reactors powered up. Slowly at first, but with a sharply rising acceleration rate, the dreadnought broke orbit. Though Emilie had seen them in action before, she was impressed, nonetheless. The dreadnought out massed Intrepid by a factor of ten, yet it was still able to put out enough thrust to achieve an intercept trajectory. Emilie shook her head. If the dreadnought got off just one salvo her command would be wiped out. She scanned the rest of the Damial system. Two hours ago Commodore Shraw had taken his squadron out of orbit to carry out some training exercises. His ships were currently blasting away at an asteroid with their energy weapons. To the Karacknids, his actions were meant to look like posturing. Just like the Karacknids had threatened the Conclave with their nuclear weapons aimed at Damial’s cities, Shraw’s exercises were meant to be seen as an attempt to show the Karacknids strength in the face of their ongoing negotiations. It looks like they’re buying it, Emilie thought, or rather hoped. If the Karacknid Captain suspected Shraw’s squadron might turn hostile, it made more sense to take them out first. Yet Shraw’s ships were being ignored.
For nearly an hour Emilie let the Karacknid dreadnought think it would intercept her ship. Then, when it was far enough away from Damial, she gave the order to change course. As soon as Intrepid altered her trajectory, Shraw’s ships turned away from the asteroid they had been following. “Increase acceleration, take us to one hundred percent.”
Just as she and Shraw had predicted, the Karacknid capital ship also altered course. Except, it wasn’t turning to match Intrepid’s maneuver. It was decelerating and coming back towards Damial. Whether the Karacknid commander recognized Intrepid as a human warship, or he had just concluded that Shraw’s ships were up to no good, he had decided how best to respond. Damial was where he could do the most damage.
“We’re picking up a message from the planet,” Intrepid’s COM officer informed Emilie five minutes later. “It’s marked for Shraw, but the codes Shraw gave us can decrypt it.”
“Let’s see,” Emilie requested. On the screen an image of a Folian appeared. Emilie didn’t recognize it. Or more to the point, as it spoke, she couldn’t tell who it was. The Folians all looked alike to her.
“Commodore Shraw, what are you doing?” the Folian demanded. “You are antagonizing Captain Maralang. He has demanded to know who the unknown ship belongs to. He’s threatening to nuke the planet. Power down your ships and take Captain Kansas into custody. Now!”
“Shraw is sending a reply,” Intrepid’s COM officer said.
When Emilie nodded, Shraw’s face appeared in place of the Folian’s. “I know exactly what I’m doing Elder. You have heard what Raloja shared with all of us. The Karacknids cannot be trusted. They must be driven from our colonies. Captain Kansas and I intend to do just that. You can you order your ships to aid us, or, if we fail, you can risk what Maralang might do to your homeworld. Either way, I suggest you decide quickly.”
Emilie couldn’t help but smile at Shraw’s tone. She had taken the same tone with the Folians. It hadn’t worked then, but things were very different now. They were staring the destruction of their home planet in the face.
For several seconds Emilie watched the array of alien ships in orbit around Damial. For what seemed like an eternity they didn’t move. Then energy spikes were detected here and there. Within seconds the warships of each of the four Conclave species that were in orbit formed up into one fleet and turned towards the Karacknid dreadnought. Emilie looked over to Alverez and they shared a glance. They had done it! Some would probably say they had done it by force or trickery, but Emilie didn’t care. We’ve done it, the five species of the Conclave are going to fight!
“Now we have to see this through,” Alvarez said as he nodded towards the holo projection of the Karacknid dreadnought.
Emilie turned and followed his gaze. He was right. Shraw had sixteen ships in his squadron. His flagship was approximately the size of a human battlecruiser. The rest were smaller, they would be classed as destroyers and frigates in a Human Fleet. In terms of size, the Dreadnought out massed them all put together. “Launch our fighters,” Emilie snapped. “Slot us into the middle of Shraw’s formation like we planned.”
Just minutes after Intrepid joined the Gramrian ships, the Karacknid dreadnought opened fire. It released sixty-four missiles towards Intrepid’s position. Moments later, it turned and released another sixty-four missiles towards the ships coming towards it from Damial. Though Intrepid entered missile range of the dreadnought just a few minutes later, she was forced to hold fire until Shraw’s ships could join her. The dreadnought would easily swat away her missiles if they came in alone. By then, the Karacknid warship had another double salvo racing towards two groups of Conclave ships. “This is going to be a deadly fight,” Emilie said to her bridge crew. “But it will be quick. We just need to survive three salvos. Let’s make sure we do that, all right?” Emilie shared another glance with Alvarez. Three salvos was perhaps a bold prediction, but the Karacknid dreadnought had over six hundred missiles closing with it from two very different angles. Its point defenses were good, but she didn’t think they were that good.
Before the missiles from the Conclave ships reached the dreadnought, Intrepid and her consorts had to survive two Karacknid salvos. Four missiles dodged all the point defense fire Shraw’s ships could fire at them. Each missile easily shrugged off the last minute ECM the Gramrian ships tried to fool them with. Four of Shraw’s ships were wiped out of existence by the anti-matter explosions. On Intrepid’s sensors, it was like they had simply disappeared. There was no trace left of any of them.
Emilie took a deep breath and steadied herself for the next salvo. With four ships less, their point defense fire would be weakened. More Karacknid missiles would get through. Before the next salvo came, Shraw ordered another salvo from his own ships. Intrepid added her own missiles to the second wave of ordnance being directed at the enemy dreadnought. Then the Karacknid missiles came into point defense range. “Two are targeting us Captain,” Lieutenant Maguire shouted when there were still seven left.
In the blink of an eye Emilie did the calculation. There was almost no chance they would take out both missiles in the handful of seconds that were left. “Evasive maneuvers,” she screamed as she grabbed her command chair. Intrepid’s navigation officer threw the exploration cruiser into a twisting corkscrew. Point defense gunners still tried to hit the missiles but they failed. Both missiles got so close to Intrepid that on the display all three contacts merged. Emilie felt herself violently thrown around in her command chair. Then everything went dark.
Several seconds later Emilie regained consciousness. At least, she thought that’s what she was experiencing. She couldn’t open her eyes, but alarms were blaring in her ears. Pain was shooting through her chest where her restraints were biting into her. With as much strength as she could muster, she forced her eyes open. Only then did she realize she was still fighting g-forces. They weren’t strong enough to knock her out, but they were there. With her eyes no wider than slits, she looked around the bridge. Only the emergency lightning was on and it looked like most of her officers were still unconscious. On the holographic display, the image of space around Intrepid was moving wildly. We are in a spin, Emilie realized. That was good, it meant they were alive. But it also suggested Intrepid wasn’t doing
too well.
“Jones,” Emilie shouted as loudly as she could. The forces on her chest made it more like a whisper. “Jones,” she called again. The First Lieutenant was the only person she could see who seemed awake. At her second call, the Lieutenant’s head twist slightly in her direction. “End the evasive maneuvers. Get the ship levelled off,” she wheezed. When Jones didn’t appear to respond, Emilie almost slumped over and let the g-forces take her again. Then Jones’ hand started to move towards his command counsel. It moved almost in slow motion as he fought the g-forces. With one last thrust he grabbed the console. Sliding his hand along it he hit a series of buttons.
Instantly the g-forces died. All around Emilie heads that had been lolling started to shake or rise up. “Wake up everyone! Wake up,” she shouted much more loudly now that she could breathe properly. “We need damage reports and our sensors back online. We are not done for yet. But there could be another Karacknid salvo out there.”
When she looked to her right Emilie was relieved to see Alvarez had his eyes open. He tried to smile at her when their eyes met, but it turned into a grimace. Emilie frowned. He had a large lump on his forehead. As she stared at it, it seemed to be growing right in front of her. “Don’t move,” she said as she held out a hand towards him. “Take it easy.” A part of her wanted to get someone to take him to the infirmary right away. Yet she knew she had more important things to do. Like find out if the infirmary even exists, she thought. “Don’t move,” she repeated and forced herself to turn back towards Lieutenant Jones. “Do we have any damage reports yet?”
