Scorched Earth: (The Human Chronicles Saga Book #16)

by T. R. Harris

  Commander Paulson recovered before anyone else and fired his starboard lasers point-blank at the Juirean Class-4 warship. This time there was an explosion. Unfortunately it was right next to the hull of the Vengeance.

  With his ship already moving away from the C-4, this new round of smaller explosions—followed a few seconds later by a much larger one—only helped to shove the Vengeance farther away, but not far enough to avoid showers of hull strikes from flying debris.

  “Three breaches, Captain,” Travis reported. “Nothing serious with the atmosphere dumped.”

  “Where are they?”

  “Two in the service bay and one in the engine room.”

  “Pogo, are you all right?”

  The tiny orb appeared on the pilot’s console. “I’m fine. No vital equipment was hit,” Pogo’s voice announced from the speakers

  Light filled the bridge again, as Tom targeted another nearby warship.

  “All this jumping and laser firing is draining my resources,” Pogo said. “One or the other is going to have to be sacrificed.”

  “Wrong choice of words, my friend,” said Riyad. “To do away with either would mean we sacrifice our lives.”

  “Then I’m fortunate I’m not alive.”

  “A battery with a dry sense of humor,” Adam said with a nervous grin. He jumped the ship again. “Tom, we may have to lay off firing for a while and rely on quick hops and fancy piloting.”

  “I suppose that means you want me to take over the first chair?” said Riyad, smiling.

  “Excuse me, sirs,” said Sergeant Morgan. “But when did we suddenly turn into Comedy Central? You know we’re all about to die?”

  “That’s the best time to develop a sense of humor, Travis,” Adam replied. “And what happened to your belief in my super-human abilities?”

  “Reality happened, sir.”

  Adam shrugged. “Give me a readout on the torpedo blasts. We have a moment to get our bearings.”

  “A hole’s definitely opened up in the swarm of Juirean ships, but that’s because of the two small stars we created. The hull’s measuring max contamination. If we try to run it again, the radiation will kill us before the Juireans do.”

  The bridge fell quiet after the sergeant’s sober assessment, all witty repartee and ribbing drowned out by the reality of their situation.

  “I suppose surrender is out of the question?” Paulson said, breaking the silence.

  He knew the answer. The Mark VII was a unique ship, if only powered by Pogo’s magic. She was still too valuable to let fall into enemy hands. Even if there was chance the Juireans wouldn’t kill them immediately, they couldn’t leave the Vengeance, at least not in one piece.

  “The sphere of ships around us is deforming, thinning out, Captain,” said Travis. Looks like they’re giving us a chance to surrender.”

  “Pogo, can you set the laser weapons to overload, like I do when I make a bomb out of an MK flash weapon?”

  “Yes I can. But if I did, you’d not have the pleasure of seeing the Juireans destroyed by the new fleet of warships that just arrived behind us.”

  Riyad copied the nav screen to all the others so the crew could see what Pogo was talking about. It was a massive gravity signature, creeping into range at the bottom of their screens.

  “Are we sure they’re friends and just not another mass of foes?” Adam asked.

  “Checking sigs now,” Travis said. “They’re…a mixture. Not all Human, but I don’t see any with specific Juirean markings.”

  “Regardless of their loyalties, the Juireans sure are reacting to them. I hate to say it, but the mane-heads still have them outnumbered,” Paulson said.

  “If they’ve intervened to free us, let’s not disappoint them,” Adam said. “Pogo, give me all the power you can to the jump-drive. The dampeners are still active, so I’m going for the shortest route out of here. Jumping!”

  It was still a hike to make it out of the influence of the field dampeners, with a heluva lot of Juireans still in the area. A number of them took pot shots at the Vengeance as she popped in and out. Fourteen minutes later they were outside the field and able to make longer jumps, up to three light-years at a time.

  By now there was a full-scale battle raging and Adam was able to better make out the players. The Juireans had over two thousand ships matched up against eight hundred allied vessels. Most were Human ships, with a few from the more advanced worlds of the Union. Only a few of the sixty-worlds that made up the Human stellar empire had bothered to produce their own line of warships. Most simply bought them from Earth or deferred defensive responsibility to the Humans.

  Adam felt sick. The allies were taking a beating and it was now time to test his theory as to why they had attacked a much larger force. He opened a link, broadcast on Union military frequencies.

  “This is TS-17, USS Monitor. Identify,” a voice asked.

  “Captain Adam Cain aboard the experimental Mark VII starship, designated the Vengeance. Please connect me with your theater commander.”

  “One moment, sir. Switch to Channel Alpha Orange…now.”

  Adam made the frequency change, but still had to wait over a minute for someone to come on the line.

  “Captain David Morris…is this Captain Cain?”

  “Yes it is. Captain, we’re clear and bugging out of the area. Are your intentions to continue the engagement or to break off?”

  “We’re breaking off, Mister Cain. We’ve been shadowing you from the Kidis Frontier. When forward scouts reported you were in trouble we engaged.”

  “Your help is appreciated. You really saved our skin, but now it’s time to save your own asses. The Juireans have over two thousand ships aligned against you.”

  “Yeah, I noticed. Where the hell did all those ships come from?”

  “They’ve been hoarding them here. Not sure if it was to catch me or you…maybe both. But get the hell out of here. There’ll be plenty of time for fighting later. Don’t spend any more blood on our account.”

  “Understood. Do your thing, Captain. We’ll be right behind you if needed. Morris out.”

  “Where to now, Adam?” Riyad asked.

  Adam looked at his threat screen. There were still plenty of Juireans in the area. “Charge the lasers, gentleman—and orb. Let’s make a few quick runs on our way out of the area. That’s the last thing the mane-heads will expect. At least now we know part of their strategy. It looks like they’re trying to lure us in for one big-ass battle.”

  “One-and-out, is that it, Captain?” asked Paulson.

  “It may not be the norm, but it is efficient.”

  Chapter 22

  Kradis answered the Elder’s link on the first indicator.

  “What are you doing, Kradis?” Synnoc’s normally light green skin was now bordering on dark brown, and his yellow eyes were full of fire and hate.

  “My Lord?”

  “You attacked Adam Cain!”

  “Yes, my Lord, he responded to a decoy fleet we’d placed near The Hand. You mentioned the region as the preferred attack stage.”

  “Not for Cain! I want him to come to Juir. Do you know his status?”

  Kradis fought back the anger. Even though Synnoc was his friend, he was also the Council Elder. It would not do to alienate him at this time.

  “He survived, by all indications, and even managed to destroy more our my ships on his way out of the enclosure sphere.”

  “Call back your ships. You cannot kill him…that is reserved for me.”

  “The fleet has retreated, as have the Humans. It was a skirmish, not the major battle you have envisioned.”

  “And my battle will not take place if Adam Cain is killed prematurely, or you defeat the Human fleet to such a degree that they withdraw.”

  “My Lord, I just lost over two hundred ships. That is a lot of Juirean lives lost. Need I remind you our numbers are vastly diminished from what they were during past wars?”

  Synnoc stared at his fr
iend for a long, dangerous moment before speaking. “If there are others listening, have them leave the area.”

  “I am in my office, alone.”

  “Good. Then I shall say this: If you will not follow my orders, then I will find another Overlord who will. My plan for Adam Cain takes precedence over all other matters. Is that clear?”

  “My Lord, he is but one creature. How many Juirean lives is he worth?”

  “Do not play games with me, Kradis. This is your only warning. The Expansion and the future of the Juirean race is more important than our friendship. It must be this way. It is what makes us Juireans.”

  “I fully support the Juirean people, my Lord. That is not in question.”

  “Agreed, however it is our differing opinions in how best to support our people that is. I know best…I am the Council Elder. You will follow my orders without variation and without question.” He held up his hand to stop Kradis’ reply. “There is no need to affirm such. Your actions will say more than your words.”

  The screen went blank.

  ********

  “We lost sixteen ships, Admiral, and another six heavily damaged, but Cain got away.” Captain Morris was reporting over a secure CW comm link to Admiral Hollingsworth.

  “They had two thousand ships?”

  “More like twenty-one, sir. Captain Cain took out about two hundred with his torpedoes, we took out another eighteen.”

  Hollingsworth grimaced. “That sounds great, captain, but now he’s depleted his inventory of torpedoes. All he has left are his enhanced laser weapons.”

  “Any chance we can get some of those, too, sir?”

  “They wouldn’t do you any good, David. They take an incredible amount of energy.”

  Morris didn’t pursue the topic. Instead: “We’re heading for an area outside the Belsonian star system. There’s a lot of asteroids and rogue planets there, good places to hide. Even though the main Juirean fleet isn’t following, I’m sure they’re keeping an eye on us now that they know we’re here. The bulk of their fleet has faded back into the nebula. Any reinforcements coming our way?”

  “Plenty. They just won’t reach you for another three weeks.”

  “So what do we do in the interim? I told Cain we’d have his back. We can’t do that and stay anchored around Belson.”

  “You may have to wait until Cain distracts them again before you make your breakout. If that happens, do your best to shake the pursuit.”

  “Sir, I have almost nine hundred starships. We don’t exactly tip-toe through space.”

  “Well, Captain Morris, maybe you should.”

  Morris frowned; the head of the Union military forces was smiling at him.

  “Captain, break your force up into squadrons of fifteen to twenty ships each and then send them out on difference courses, yet to a central rendezvous point. The Juireans don’t seem too anxious to divide their forces, especially to chase dozens of small units that by themselves can’t affect anything. When you have everyone assembled, do it again, but always be moving farther into the Expansion. Just don’t hang around any one spot for too long.”

  “Sounds like a strategy, sir. For the rendezvous points, I’ll follow Cain’s lead. He seems to know what he’s doing.”

  “I wouldn’t count on that, Captain, but he does have an uncanny amount of luck surrounding him. Send me flash updates of your locations. I’ll do my best to supplement your force as much as possible. The Juireans have done us a favor by withdrawing their forces. Now we can move right up to the front row without being seen. It’s after we rush the stage that we have to be careful. There’s still a lot more of them then there are of us.”

  Chapter 23

  “I’ve got those, I ain’t got no more torpedoes blues,” Adam cut loose in a horribly flat singing voice.

  “Sounds like the next big country-western hit,” Riyad said. They were in the service bay of the Vengeance repairing the hull breaches, with oxygen masks over their faces. Unlike hull leaks on seafaring vessels, if a breach wasn’t too big on a starship, there were special sealing pads, panels and foam that could be used. The outflowing air pressure helped hold the sealers in place with very little effort. Adam had spent his time in damage-control training in the Navy. This was a lot different than a firehose-like stream of ice cold water blasting through a breach, confounding all your efforts to plug it.

  Once the holes were sealed, the men removed their masks.

  “As you were saying, Mister Cain?”

  “We’re down to only our lasers and ballistics.”

  “Which means we still pack quite a punch.”

  “Yeah, but we’re going to have to avoid the larger ship concentrations, especially in space. Might start looking for some juicy ground-based targets.”

  Riyad flashed his trademark smile. “I have an idea. What about MK or Xan-fi? Sure, the mane-heads probably have enough weapons in reserve to last out the war, but think what a psychological impact that would have?”

  “Not sure about Xan-fi, but MK has manufacturing facilities all over the Expansion. Hitting one or two of them won’t make much of a dent.”

  “Again, my friend, it’s a mind-game we’re be playing. Bloodying their noses a little will make them blink. And with facilities all over the Expansion, they’re everywhere you want to be.”

  ********

  “It’s named after a planet? I thought Marix-Kliss were a couple of guys who started a weapons company way back when,” said Tom Paulson.

  “Nah, it’s all right here,” Travis Morgan replied, reading from a Library entry on a data screen. “Founded two-thousand, eight hundred years ago, originally on the planet Marix, MK Weapons Systems is now the largest weapons manufacturer in the galaxy, supplying over ninety-percent of the handheld flash weapons in use. It says they also used to make a large rifle-like version, but they got into a pretty vicious business war with their rival Xan-fi about a thousand years ago. The two companies came to an ‘accommodation’—” Travis used finger-quotes around accommodation—“where Xan-fi was free to make the longer-barrel flash weapons, while MK specialized in hand-helds. Since then, MK has moved into shipbuilding, land-ownership, electronic devices and even finance. It’s the largest business entity in the galaxy and solidly in the Juirean camp. They see the Union as their most aggressive competitor, in a number of fields.”

  “So giving them a bloody nose should send a very strong message across the Expansion,” Adam said, confirming Riyad’s belief.

  Tom Paulson let out a laugh. “You know, Captain, we should only use our conventional weapons—the ballistics—to hit their facilities. Be a pretty stark contrast between the two approaches to weapons development.”

  “Great idea, Tom. Energy bolts versus hot lead. Never has been much of a contest, in my humble opinion. So where’s the closest MK facility?”

  “You’re not going to believe this,” said Travis, “but Marix itself is only four hundred light years from here. There’s about a dozen other facilities between here and there, but if we’re out to make an impression, might as well go for the whole enchilada.”

  “I concur,” said Adam. “Plot a course, Mister Tarazi. We have a whole cargo hold full of idle bullets—let’s burn through a few.”

  ********

  Every race in the Expansion and the Union used MK flash weapons. By virtue of this fact, the management of Marix-Kliss Weapons Systems felt they were immune to any of the wars or political intrigue taking place. In fact, the more turmoil in the Milky Way, the more they profited.

  It was for this reason that the largest manufacturer of armaments in the galaxy had very little security protecting their own facilities, including the headquarters building in the city of Jendis on the planet Marix. This lack of concern extended into the star system as well, even with a war currently being fought between galactic empires.

  As a result, Adam was able to jump the Vengeance nearly to the inner ring of rocky planets before receiving the first challenge. Riyad re
layed to ground control that they were a small merchant vessel seeking permission to orbit, before landing to restock crucial supplies.

  Noticing the lack of security in the area, Adam figured that wasn’t such a bad idea. Restock…and then ravage the planet. A man had to have his priorities, and recently the food stock aboard the Vengeance was down the crap that no one wanted to eat when they had better choices. Cain the Carnivore was craving a big, juicy steak—no matter what kind of beast it came from.

  “The weapons company has had their share of Human visitors over the years, so it’s a pretty good bet the natives know what we look like,” Adam said, briefing his crew. “The atmosphere doesn’t require any special masks, but we’ll wear full-face covers to throw them off. And let’s wear those long tech robes we found in the service bay this time. They look like trench coats. A lot of firepower can be hidden underneath.”

  “We’ll look like the Earp brothers and Doc Holiday on the way to the OK Corral,” Travis offered with a wide grin.

  “I want to be Wyatt,” said Riyad. He stroked his full beard. “I may have more than necessary, but I do have a mustache, where the rest of you clean-shaven military types look too pretty to pass yourselves off as deadly gunfighters.”

  “There’ll no shooting on the surface,” Adam ordered. “We’re just going down to get supplies. After that, we’ll launch and light up the facilities from air and space. The four of us can’t do much damage in a street shootout.”

  “Not even one little demonstration of Human quick-draw prowess?” asked Riyad. He’d been in enough shootouts in his lifetime to know that very few aliens could stand against a Human in a contest of speed and accuracy. To the Humans, most such engagements were simply target practice.

  Adam didn’t answer; instead, he just pursed his lips and shook his head.