by D. J. Holmes
“The fleet will advance,” Gupta ordered as soon as the preparations were complete. Leaving the missile pods behind, her ships resumed their acceleration towards Holstein. Forest’s fighters, their numbers bolstered to over two hundred and forty, kept pace. “Fire the missile pods,” Gupta ordered ten minutes later. Behind her fleet, one thousand six hundred missile pods accelerated each of their three missiles out of their launch tubes. Instead of igniting their own engines, the missiles continued on a ballistic course towards Holstein. “Fire,” Gupta ordered thirty seconds after the wave of missiles passed her own ships. There had only been enough multistage missiles in the Sol system for each ship to be equipped with three salvos. Gupta hoped they would only need one today.
From her ships, two thousand one hundred and ninety missiles were launched towards Holstein. Forest’s fighters powered up their engines and raced in after them. It’s too late now, Gupta thought towards her opponent as the Karacknid fleet slowly broke orbit. It was clear they wanted to engage Forest’s fighters before they could reach the orbital stations.
In silence, Gupta watched her attack unfold. Against a Human opponent she might have felt some pity for those she was about to slaughter. It was not so for the Karacknids. Many of the ships in front of her had been part of the fleet that had attacked her homeworld. They would receive no mercy.
As soon as the anti-ship missiles from the missile pods got close enough to engage their own engines, they announced themselves to the Karacknids. Suddenly, an incoming missile salvo of just over two thousand jumped to six and a half. Two thousand the Karacknids could have handled, six was beyond their defenses. Hundreds of missiles breached their point defense fire to release their bomb pumped lasers. Evasive maneuvers caused many to miss, but more than enough struck home. Thirty-two Karacknid ships were destroyed outright and at least forty more suffered hits. Laser beams took out missile tubes, sensor arrays and point defense weapons. Perhaps just as deadly, the Karacknids’ evasive maneuvers and losses completely disrupted their formation. Into the gaps swarmed Forest’s fighters. Plasma missile detonations quickly followed. In the space of just two minutes, the missile salvo and follow-up fighter attack decimated the Karacknid fleet. Gupta nodded in approval. Forest had targeted every Karacknid battleship and dreadnought. Not one had survived unscathed.
“Bring the fleet to a halt,” she ordered when the scale of the destruction became apparent. Barely forty Karacknid warships were left intact and none looked to be undamaged. “Let’s get Forest’s fighters back to Avalon. We are going to refuel and rearm as many as we can. Then we’ll move in and finish the job. Power up the gravimetric COM and signal the rest of our fleet, they are to join us and prepare for the invasion.”
As Earth’s gravimetric COM sent out pulses to the troop transports and their escorts in the outer system, Gupta watched the remaining Karacknid ships. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they didn’t remain in orbit. Whatever commanders were left could likely guess what was coming their way. A follow-up attack by Forest’s fighters would obliterate them. As a result, most of them broke orbit and accelerated towards the shift passage that eventually led back to Jaranna and safety. The few that didn’t fell back to protect the repair station. Presumably, they were too damaged to try and escape. “Detach Flew’s squadron, they are to keep contact with the Karacknid forces and await Forest,” Gupta ordered. “We will continue on to Holstein.”
When her fleet came into range of the Karacknid defenses, Gupta kept one eye on the assault and one eye on the fleeing Karacknid ships. Commodore Flew had her own ships and the most recent Human designs of Captain Scott. They were the only ships in the fleet capable of keeping up with the Karacknids. After refueling and rearming fifty fighters, Forest set off after the fleeing enemy ships. When he closed with them, his fighters swooped in and caught the Karacknids in a crossfire with Flew’s ship. None of the Karacknids survived the attack.
“The orbitals are clear Admiral, what are your orders?” her Chief of Staff asked, bringing Gupta’s full focus back to Holstein.
“Scan the surface, locate every Karacknid military base and army formation, and begin bombarding them. Make sure we avoid all civilian buildings though. I imagine the populace has already suffered enough.” The many craters that littered Holstein’s surface were evidence enough of that. “Has there been any COM activity from the surface?”
Gupta’s COM officer shook her head. “No Admiral, it has been completely silent.”
Gupta nodded, keeping her emotions to herself. She hoped that meant that Major General Johnston’s marines were dug in and awaiting their chance to attack. It had been eleven months since the Karacknids had conquered the colony. She feared it might be more likely that no one was contacting them because none were left alive. “Signal General Jackson, he may begin his invasion.” The orbital battle had been won, but Holstein was still a long way away from returning to Human control. Even Gupta’s inexperienced eye told her there were a lot of Karacknid soldiers on the planet’s surface.
Chapter 38
In its infancy the Imperial Marines were largely confined to shipboard duties with just a handful of independent battalions. Now there are over forty million marines in active service. Most are deployed along the Antarian border. Perhaps even more than the Imperial Fleet, they are our greatest deterrent against that particular threat.
-Excerpt from Empire Rising, 3002 AD.
Holstein.
“General, general,” a voice gently said as Johnston felt someone shaking his shoulder. “General Johnston, Sir.”
“What… What is it?” he croaked as he cracked open his eyes. The small offshoot in the cave that he had turned into his quarters was flooded with light.
“There is something happening in orbit, I think you better come take a look.”
“Something? You mean a battle?” Johnston asked.
“I don’t know Sir. Corporal Winter just sent me to get you. He said something about the Karacknid fleet breaking orbit.”
“All right, I’m on my way marine,” Johnston replied as he brought a hand up to shield his eyes from the light penetrating his part of the cave. Having fallen asleep in the previous day’s uniform, Johnston didn’t bother to change. He only had two uniforms anyway. Carefully, he made his way through the small damp cave, trying not to tread on anyone or disrupt anyone’s personal items as he went. He had sixty marines crammed into the cave with him. With what supplies and weapons they had been able to save, there was barely room for anyone to move. As a result, tensions had been high for weeks. Right in the middle of the cave there was a metallic ladder that led up to a hole the marines had bored to the surface. After rolling his shoulders, Johnston started to climb. When he got to the top he gently eased open the camouflaged hatch. In a bunker just to his right, Corporal Winter was on watch. Climbing out, Johnston slipped in beside Winter, making sure to keep himself under the thermal camouflage.
“Look, there,” Walker said as he pointed through a small gap in the camouflage where they were able to look up to the sky through a break in the forest.
“Something is afoot,” Johnston said as he watched the glow from hundreds of engines light up the sky. It was night on Holstein and the Karacknid warships that had been in low orbit drowned out the stars as their engines boosted them onto a new trajectory. “They’re either leaving to go on the offensive, or we have a fleet about to attempt to retake the planet.”
“Our ships?” Winter asked as hope filled his voice. “You think they have finally come?”
Johnston looked at the corporal’s ragged uniform. Though it was very faded, it was easy to tell that he was wearing the uniform of the UN army rather than marines. That meant he understood even less about naval warfare than most of the men in the cave below. Searching his memory, Johnston reminded himself that Winter had once commanded a Hercules battle tank. It had long since been destroyed by the Karacknids. “It could be,” he said not wanting to shatter the soldier’s hopes. The last force project
ions he had seen before leaving Earth were twelve months old. Yet Johnston remembered them clearly. Given the number of ships the Karacknids had in orbit, and the massive fleet they had witnessed heading towards Earth after Holstein had fallen, he doubted there were any UN warships left in all of Human space. Never mind enough to try and re-take Holstein. So then where are they going? Johnston asked himself.
With no way of getting an answer to this question, Johnston contented himself with staying in the bunker and watching the night sky. Within just five minutes the Karacknid ships disappeared from view. Then he was left with nothing but the stars and the slowly moving Karacknid repair station. Johnston and Winter jumped when it suddenly exploded above them. Suddenly the sky was filled with shooting stars as debris fell into the atmosphere and burned up. Johnston had to stop himself from jumping in joy. “They are under attack!” he shouted as he looked at Winter and grabbed the corporal by his shoulders and shook him. “They are under attack.” As quickly as he had grabbed him, Johnston released him and looked back up at the marvelous sight above him. For months and months the Karacknids had been hunting his people, killing them off one by one. Now they were the hunted. And they were losing! That thought kicked Johnston’s mind into gear. If the Karacknids were losing in space, it meant a landing force would come to retake the planet. He didn’t know how it was possible. He had accepted what had seemed like the inevitable conclusion. That the UN fleet had been destroyed and Earth conquered. And yet the Karacknids were under attack! With a start he realized he needed to get his marines ready and into position. At once he started to think through all the different tactical options he had analyzed. For months he had spent hours and hours every day planning and planning for this eventuality. Not that he had expected it, but he had needed the distraction. Now that it had come he could finally put some of it to use! We may have been defeated, Johnston said to himself as he thought of all the marines he had lost, but you didn’t wipe us out. Now it’s time to fight back. “Stay here,” Johnston said as he slapped Winter on the shoulder. “Keep watch, I’ll send word for you when we’re ready to depart.”
Jumping up, Johnston heaved open the hatch and almost fell into the cave. Holding each side of the ladder he slid right down to the bottom. “Listen up,” he said as his voice boomed through the cave. “There’s a fleet of ours taking on the Karacknids. If they win, they’ll be landing troops. That means marines are even now preparing to assault this world. We’ve all seen how many surface to air weapons the Karacknids have set up around the capital. It’s time we took some of them out. Get your gear and those of you who have combat armor still functioning, armor up. We are leaving in ten minutes. Go, go, go!” As soon as he finished speaking, pandemonium broke out as the marines and soldiers almost fought one another for space as they grabbed their weapons and combat armor. Johnston returned to his small alcove. He needed to retrieve his own weapons and one of his portable COM units. When he got his equipment, he made his way to the mouth of the cave. Captain Sancho, the senior marine in his group, was already there. “You know where to go Captain?” Johnston asked.
“Yes Sir,” the Captain responded as she gave Johnston a salute.
Johnston nodded in approval. As the only senior officers in the cave, they had spent many hours together in conversation. Over that time he had watched her slowly lose her sense of purpose. He guessed she had experienced the same thing with him. Yet now it was back. Her eyes were shining with anticipation. “Then get going Captain.”
“Move out,” Sancho shouted, then turned out of the cave and broke into a light jog. Johnston grimaced at her speed, though he understood it. Sancho was in her combat armor and could have maintained a jog of triple the speed for more than an hour. However, many of the marines were wearing nothing more than their camouflage fatigues. Their armor had been destroyed or run out of power reserves. With no generators powerful enough to recharge them, many had been abandoned. But they still have their plasma rifles, Johnston reminded himself. That was all they needed. As the marines, soldiers and a handful of Holstein’s militia filed out past him, Johnston counted them. Ninety was the final number. His initial force had numbered more than six thousand. It had been weeks since Johnston had any contact with other hidden groups of marines, but he doubted there were more than five hundred of them in total by now. And yet we are still here, and the Karacknids are going to know about it.
Johnston waited until the last marine was out of sight before pulling a COM unit out of his utility belt. He programmed it to wait ten minutes and then broadcast a signal into orbit. It contained the best landing sites his forces had scouted and the positions of the underground bunkers the Karacknids had constructed around Holstein’s capital. He was certain there were others that remained undiscovered, but if they could retake the planet, they would be found and dealt with eventually. Setting the COM unit down, he turned and took off in the direction of his forces.
It took just thirty minutes for his marines to get into position. During the long jog Johnston had half expected Karacknid shuttles or other ground forces to intercept them. It seemed that without their ships and stations in orbit, their ability to track any new movements was severely restricted. Of course, the lack of opposition could also have had something to do with the streaks of fire that had appeared overhead not long after his COM message went out. From when the first one had made contact with Holstein’s surface until Johnston’s forces arrived at their coordinates the ground hadn’t stopped shaking. Orbital strikes, Johnston had thought as soon as the first one had struck home. The fact they weren’t falling on his men told him all he needed to know. An invasion force had come, and the Karacknids were finding out what it was like to be the ones on the receiving end of such attacks.
“All right get dug in,” Johnston ordered when the jog finally came to an end. He pointed towards the edge of the forest that they had stopped just in front of. “Our relief force will be landing right over there. That’s our ticket home. We need to hold here and cut off any kind of counter-attack. This is it ladies and gentlemen, one last battle and then we are going home. Let’s give a good account of ourselves, for all those who are not here with us now.”
As his soldiers got to work, Johnston sought out Captain Sancho. “You take the right flank and I’ll take the left. If there are any Karacknids left out there, they’ll probably try and get into position to shoot down the shuttles before they land. They’ll get a nasty surprise when they find us already here. Whatever happens, we can’t fall back. We need to prevent them getting to the clearing.”
“I understand General, we’ve all come this far. They won’t let you down,” she responded.
Johnston saluted his subordinate. “I know Captain. I know.” He turned and marched over to the left flank of the defensive line his forces were setting up. After walking back and forth to check the positions his marines and soldiers had taken, Johnston found a suitable spot for himself and hunkered down to wait. Silence descended around them as no one dared speak. The only noises were the chirping of the local wildlife and the distant rumblings from the orbital strikes as they continued. The sudden ending of the strikes twenty minutes later told Johnston the landings were about to begin. The sun had just risen and the forest around him was becoming more and more visible.
Movement to his right made Johnston turn his head. A marine about fifty meters away had a hand in the air and was signaling. ‘Enemy ahead.’ That was quick, Johnston thought. They must have a hidden bunker nearby. It also told him that whoever was commanding the invasion force had received his COM message. They were sending landing shuttles to the clearing in the forest behind his defensive line. There was only one reason for the Karacknids to come this way. They had already detected the shuttles making their descent. As more movement caught his attention, Johnston lowered himself behind the fallen tree trunk he was using for cover. This time it was ahead of him. A Karacknid soldier was advancing quickly towards him. The soldier had some kind of large rocket launcher
in its hands.
Ever so slowly he eased his plasma rifle against his shoulder and sighted it on the Karacknid. Pausing for a moment, he glanced left and right. Other Karacknids were coming into sight as well. He sensed rather than saw the marines and soldiers around him prepare themselves. Counting to three, he gave his forces enough time to line up their shots, then he pulled the trigger. Three plasma bolts shot out of his rifle in quick succession, killing the Karacknid. Up-and-down the line, hundreds more bolts zipped out, mowing down the Karacknids who had shown themselves.
As Johnston had come to expect, the Karacknid response was immediate. Those who were still in sight ducked and crawled behind cover. Return fire peppered his positions and grenades whistled through the air. The men and women under his command knew exactly what that meant and dove for cover. After the explosions, Johnston unbuckled the one grenade he had left and hurled it towards the Karacknids’ position. Then he popped his head up to find the expected Karacknid follow-up charge. In a flash he had his rifle zeroed in on the nearest Karacknid and quickly killed it. Two more fell to his rifle before the Karacknid charge faltered and fell back.
