“We won?” said Corporal Owens in disbelief. “What has changed to allow us to attack the aliens as we are now?”
“Better weapons,” Tucker said as he climbed out of the firing pit. “I don’t know how but look at these pulse rifles. Who knows what else we’ve managed to come up with? We must have one hell of a research and manufacturing base hidden somewhere.”
Corporal Owens exited the firing pit to stand next to Tucker. There was still a lot of smoke and even a few small fires burning in the trees. “Do you think we have a shot at winning this war now?”
Tucker looked at Owens. “I don’t know. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” Tucker was anxious to get back to Lacy and Matt. He knew they had to be scared to death from the noises of the battle. He wanted to reassure both of them he was all right and so were they for the foreseeable future.
-
In the UK just outside of Manchester the Trellixians had a large base. From this strategic location, they routinely launched attack craft and sent shuttles with troops across the country to attack pockets of resistance and the remaining Human population.
A sudden noise in the air attracted the Trellixian commander in the process of loading soldiers into a number of shuttles to send to the north. Looking up he saw aircraft he couldn’t identify. With sudden concern he realized these were Human aircraft and they were coming toward his base. He instantly sent out orders to the hover tanks to fire and destroy the incoming aircraft. The Humans had made a mistake thinking they could attack his base.
-
From over the horizon a squadron of F-35s and Apache attack helicopters appeared. The F-35s promptly shot down the four Trellixian attack craft in the process of taking off. They then circled the Trellixian base as the Apaches came in lower and fired their energy cannons and launched dozens of Hellfire 4 missiles. The RAF pilots were jubilant as a series of massive explosions tore through the aliens’ parked shuttles and attack craft, ripping them apart.
Energy beam fire from nearly forty hover tanks lanced upward only to be stopped by the new energy shields of the F-35s and Apaches. For nearly twenty minutes the helicopters made pass after pass before they pulled up and headed back south followed by the F-35s. Behind them they left a scene of devastation. At the Trellixian base every shuttle and attack craft had been destroyed. Hundreds of alien troops were dead and a number of others were seriously injured. Fires raged out of control as plumes of smoke rose high into the air, hiding the sun.
The Trellixian commander stood up from where he had been thrown by a nearby explosion. His left arm hung limply at his side. His battle armor had a big crack in it across his chest as well as multiple dents. Looking around he couldn’t understand what had just happened. The Humans were not supposed to have anything which could harm a Trellixian shuttle or attack craft. Not only that, Trellixian battle armor was supposed to be nearly impervious to weapons fire. Looking at his destroyed base the Trellixian commander realized something was seriously wrong.
-
Squadron Leader Will Edmonton smiled in satisfaction as his squadron headed toward its next target. The new energy cannons had worked as predicted and the energy screen had as well. Not a single F-35 or Apache had been shot down or even damaged in the battle. A smaller Trellixian base was sixty kilometers to the south and he planned on leveling it too before returning to base. After what the Trellixians had done to the UK it felt good to get some payback.
With any kind of luck by morning most of the Trellixians in the UK would be dead. He knew Special Forces units were sweeping through the smaller towns and villages, eliminating the enemy wherever they were found. They would show no mercy.
-
General Mitchell listened as the reports came in from across the world. Military units in the UK, Australia, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, China, and Russia were inflicting heavy casualties on the Trellixian forces. Every country had put up at least a few air assets, deployed limited numbers of pulse rifles, and even a few pulse cannons. The Trellixians had been taken by complete surprise. Most of their sorties into the mountains had incurred nearly 100 percent losses because of defending troops in entrenched positions.
“We’ve got them beat,” said General Briggs ecstatically. “We’ve taken out tens of thousands of their troops and large numbers of their hover tanks and attack craft. Hell, in the UK there may not be a single Trellixian living by morning.”
“What are the battlecruisers doing?” This was Mitchell’s biggest concern. No way to predict how Battle Commander Balforr would react to this defeat. There was a slight possibility he would simply nuke Earth and leave.
“Just sitting there in orbit,” Colonel Fields answered. “I’m not sure if they know what to do. Our response to their attack has to be totally unexpected. If they descend lower they can hit us with their heavy energy weapons. The weapons we’re using now can’t hurt one of those battlecruisers. We have a few Jelnoid secondary energy cannons deployed but they won’t be able to penetrate a battlecruiser’s energy screen.”
“I think its time we pulled back our air assets,” General Mitchell said. “Perhaps we’ve bought enough time to get the Jelnoid primary beams into operation. Our troops should be able to hold their ground with the new pulse rifles and cannons we’ve provided.”
General Briggs nodded in agreement. “We need to get more air assets flyable anyway. We’re only using about 20 percent of the fighters we have available and 60 percent of the Apaches. The same is true of our allies.”
“Send the order. Once we have all air assets equipped with Jelnoid technology and we’ve deployed sufficient secondary and primary energy weapons we’ll resume this battle. For now we’ve accomplished what we set out to do. Inform our allies of what we’re doing and recommend they do the same.”
-
Second Officer Jaltor feared to approach Battle Commander Balforr with the latest news from the battlefields. Defeat after defeat was being reported. In many areas of the planet Trellixian troops were in full retreat. Thousands had been killed and the loss of equipment steadily mounted. Looking at Balforr Jaltor saw the battle commander’s fists were clenched tight and blood even dripped from one hand where his nails had cut into the flesh.
-
“Report!” demanded Balforr, his voice filled with rage. “Tell me I won’t have to inform the High Command our offensive against the Humans has failed.”
Jaltor stood a short distance from Balforr, too scared to come any closer. “The Humans have deployed more Jelnoid technology. They have an energy weapon which can penetrate our soldiers’ armor. They also have a heavy energy weapon that can destroy our hover tanks and shoot down our attack craft. Even more worrisome they have deployed some of their own aircraft which are equipped with energy beams as well as energy shields. Reports indicate we have not been able to shoot down any of them. We all know Jelnoid technology is superior to our own, particularly their energy weapons and shields.”
Battle Commander Balforr remained silent. He stood there, his eyes glowing red and his breathing fast and heavy. “Order our battlecruisers to descend and destroy the bases of these Human aircraft. We can trace them back to their launch points. We will find them and use the energy weapons on our battlecruisers to destroy them.”
“As you command,” Second Officer Jaltor replied.
-
Trellixian battlecruisers dropped from orbit toward locations where sensors had indicated Human aircraft had landed. All across the planet the battlecruisers positioned themselves above the hidden bases. From the bows of the ships incandescent beams of energy flashed down to strike, only they didn’t reach the surface. Between them and the bases an energy field appeared in the form of a bubble which deflected the energy fire. For many long minutes the battlecruisers attempted to penetrate the energy screens but failed to do so. Finally, one by one, they sent reports of their failures to Battle Commander Balforr.
-
“Now they have energy shields around their bas
es, only these are much stronger than the one that protected their primary base!” roared Balforr, seeing his victory over this world slipping from his grasp. “Order the battlecruisers back into orbit.”
“The Humans must have some large hidden installations we haven’t yet detected,” surmised Jaltor. “It’s the only way they could have built the weapons being used against us.”
Balforr whirled around to face Second Officer Jaltor. “And what will we do when they deploy primary Jelnoid energy beams? Those beams can destroy our battlecruisers. How do I explain this to the High Command?”
-
Jaltor remained silent. He merely stood there, waiting other orders. When none were forthcoming he went to the communications console and ordered the battlecruisers to resume their former orbits.
-
Battle Commander Balforr stood, glaring at the viewscreens showing the planet. If he couldn’t destroy the Human forces and their civilian population, it could well mean the end of his service to the Trellixian Empire. Failure was not an option for a battle commander. He would defeat the Humans even if he had to devastate most of the planet to do so. Now he just needed to come up with a plan.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Two weeks had passed since the disastrous attack on the Humans planned by Battle Commander Traven. The High Command had recalled Traven, placing Battle Commander Jabale in charge of Traven’s ships. The colony fleet had also been recalled and sent to a different world. There had been considerable concern about the development of Jelnoid weapons on Earth.
The High Command had even gone so far as to ask Balforr if he thought it would be best to use nuclear weapons to make the planet uninhabitable to permanently erase the threat. Battle Commander Balforr had informed the High Command the Humans no longer had the population or the industrial base to ever produce a spaceship. They were stranded on their planet for the foreseeable future.
Balforr requested a ship be sent to Earth with additional Malken missiles. He was contemplating using just enough to induce a very short nuclear winter, one that would eliminate most of the surviving Humans.
After that the planet should be relatively easy to conquer. He didn’t relish the thought of spending another year or two in orbit about Earth, but in the end he could deliver to the Empire a world with considerable living space, one that someday would become an important part of the Trellixian Empire.
It would still be another week yet before the battlecruiser transporting the missiles arrived. It was one of the reasons he was having the entire planet scanned with the fleet’s sensors to see where the missiles should be detonated to cause the maximum harm to the planet’s surviving military forces.
For two weeks Balforr’s battlecruisers had circled Earth, scanning every section of its landmasses, trying to locate all the Humans’ bases. Balforr now studied a large holographic display showing no less than eighty-seven Human military bases protected by energy screens and what appeared to be Jelnoid secondary energy weapons.
All Trellixian troops had been pulled back to their remaining bases and heavy energy weapons installed for protection. So far the Humans hadn’t attempted any attacks against the fortified positions.
“The Humans possess far more surviving military bases than we believed possible,” said Jaltor, examining the hologram. “How could so many of them have survived?”
Balforr looked at Jaltor. “The Humans knew we were coming to attack their world from what they learned from the Jelnoid scout craft that crashed here. Doubtlessly they had sufficient time to prepare and hide large numbers of troops as well as set up these smaller military bases we’re detecting. They knew from the very beginning who we were and why we were here.”
“Should we begin removing our troops?” asked Second Officer Jaltor. “We will need to if we drop additional Malken missiles. Battle Commander Jabale has sufficient room on the troop ships.”
“No,” replied Balforr as he studied the scans of several bases located in mountainous regions. “I don’t want to tip off the Humans as to what we’re doing. Evacuating our troops would be an indication we’re preparing to take catastrophic steps to bring the planet under our control. We’ll leave troops in place to attack the Human military bases once the nuclear winter sets in.” He was counting on the horrible weather conditions caused by the nuclear winter to wipe out most of the civilian population. The Trellixian troops encased in their battle armor would not be affected by the adverse conditions and could deal with the Humans’ remaining military.
Second Officer Jaltor looked toward the main viewscreen, which was always focused on the planet. “This world has turned out to be much more dangerous than what the High Command believed. What would have happened if we had waited a few more years to attack? They could have developed their technology to the point our fleet could have been defeated.”
Balforr knew Jaltor was correct. This had always been one of the greatest fears of the High Command, that someday they would discover a race more advanced who could be a major threat to the Empire. That had nearly happened with the Jelnoids. The Humans could have been even more of a threat if they had been given sufficient time to develop advanced spaceships based on Jelnoid technology.
Fortunately the Humans were tied to their one planet and once the Malken missiles were dropped they would cease being a threat completely. It would delay colonization for a few years but at this point Balforr believed the use of the Malken missiles was the right strategic choice.
-
Lisa was inside one of the human spaceships along with Professor Wilkens. “This ship is the Vengeance,” Wilkens said. “She will be the first of our fleet to be completed.”
“How soon?” asked Lisa. To her the ship appeared complete already. The outer hull was in place and the interior, including the crew cabins, were finished as well. The ship was a marvel of technology and innovation.
“Six months,” Wilkens replied as they walked down a brilliantly lit corridor. “All we lack is installing her fusion power plants and the Vengeance will be done.”
They stopped in Engineering, stepping through a double hatch with two Marines standing in the outside corridor making sure there was no unauthorized access. Lisa had noticed a number of Marines on guard duty as they walked through the ship.
“Why so many Marines?” She didn’t think there was any threat to the ships.
“There will be some assigned to each spaceship,” explained Wilkens. “We are still determining what areas on the ships need to have security available. Most of the time only six guards are on duty: two at the main hatch, two in the Command Center and the two here at Engineering. I believe from what I heard last General Mitchell wants a full platoon assigned to each vessel.”
“How many crew per ship?” asked Lisa. She knew it had to be in the hundreds if not more.
“A little over five hundred,” Professor Wilkens replied.
Lisa’s eyes widened. “That will be five thousand people just for the ships here. Where will we get the people?”
Wilkens smiled. “Many will come from our military and others will be technicians from this complex as well as some people from the civilian one. Don’t worry, Lisa; we have plenty of people for the crews.”
Lisa watched as a number of technicians worked on one of the two main fusion power plants for the ship. These reactors were much larger than the smaller ones the military bases and Complex One used. “These were designed before we even had the new alloys we discovered in the Trellixians’ energy rifles. What if we hadn’t found those alloys?”
“We were confident we would develop what we needed,” Wilkens replied. “We were already close on several possible alloys we thought held promise. As for the reactors, they had to be this large to furnish the power we will need for the engines as well as the weapons.”
“Will this ship travel faster than light?”
“It’s doesn’t really go faster than light. The ship’s drive works by folding space behind and in front of the ship, mak
ing the distance between two points less.”
“An Alcubierre Drive,” said Lisa in understanding. “It will allow a ship to appear to go faster than light without breaking any of the physical laws.”
Professor Wilkens nodded. “We won’t get to try it until we’re out in space. It’s what the Jelnoids used and we believe it’s faster than what the Trellixians are using.”
A lot of noise was coming from Engineering. Technicians were trying to get everything in position as well as attach power conduits and power couplings. Cables were strung across the deck and pieces of equipment had yet to be assembled. Control systems were being installed as well as small viewscreens which would monitor every aspect of the reactors. Lisa could see they still had a lot of work to do.
“Let’s go to the Command Center,” suggested the professor. “I think you will find it more interesting since your station is located there.”
They had to take several intra-ship elevators to get to the Command Center, which was buried deep in the heart of the ship to provide maximum protection. Reaching it, Lisa and Professor Wilkens stepped inside.
Lisa came to a stop as she gazed about in amazement. She felt as if she had stepped into a scene out of a science fiction movie. The room was circular with consoles and viewscreens lining it. In the center was the commander’s chair and on both sides were two other chairs with small consoles in front of them. The room was spotless and brightly lit.
“This way,” the professor said as he walked to a large console just to the left and in front of the command chair. “This is your science station. From here you can access all the ship’s sensors as well as interior readings on the ship and its systems. It’s tied into the ship’s main computer which has a massive database.”
Earth Fall: Invasion : (Book One) Page 31
