by John Walker
Their countermeasures might scramble the friend or foe circuitry. Our own people have been working on a similar technology. Probably best to stick to beams and guns until we know more.
Flight Lieutenant Dylan Ball acted as his second. He’d also received a field promotion and proved to be a reliable member of the team. The two men maintained a private channel and it flashed on the HUD when they had less than ninety seconds before they could attack. Dimitri clicked over, letting out a sigh.
“Now’s not really the time, is it? We’re practically on top of them.”
“I know,” Dylan replied, “but I want to take two of the others and break from formation. We’ll loop around and hit them from the flank. They don’t seem all that maneuverable. We just have to coordinate it so we don’t get caught up in friendly fire.”
“Okay,” Dimitri agreed. “Angle your attack. We’ll be going head on and then climb. Relate it to the team and let’s make it happen.” He switched back to the open channel and Dylan gave them the plan. A moment later, Raptor Two, four and six banked hard to the right and hit their afterburners, rocketing away.
We’re the distraction, Dimitri thought. Gotta love being in charge.
The bombers began firing their turrets, total blind shots as if they were merely hoping for a hit. Dimitri forced himself to remain calm and fly steady. The chances of being hit at that range were negligible. Even if a stray shot found a mark, shields would absorb it. Only a missile would be cause for actual concern.
Lieutenant Marge Kingston, Raptor Three, spoke up on the com. “That’s a lot of turret fire, sir. Recommend we dive and come at them from the bottom.”
The bombers might be able to angle to continue shooting at them but the suggestion was still sound. It would put their opponents in a tough spot, especially with the other three ships on the verge of flanking them. We just have to buy another few moments. Dimitri approved the course change and the three ships dipped, dropping below the turret coverage.
“Go ahead and use your beam weapons,” Dimitri said. “Let’s throw some fire back their way and see how they like it.” They had twenty seconds before they’d pass under the bombers. This changed the plan with the way they’d interact with their companions, only the fact they’d be diving instead of climbing.
Dimitri made the change clear to Dylan half a moment before pulling the trigger. Purple light cut through the darkness between them, splashing against the hardened defenses of the first bomber. I can’t believe I hit. I didn’t even use my targeting computer. The lucky shot had a positive effect as his opponent tried to climb, a reflexive twitch.
As the enemy altered course, he took himself away from his formation. His buddies must’ve had nerves of steel as they continued lumbering on as if they didn’t even notice Raptor’s presence.
Dimitri passed under the bombers in an instant, moving so swiftly the enemy was little more than a blur overhead. Dylan called their attack as he and his two fighters opened up, using beams and guns to lay into their targets.
If the enemy didn’t care about Raptor before, they certainly did after that. Two of the five ships spun, giving their little squad more turret coverage. The one that broke formation took the majority of the hits from Dylan’s attack run and Dimitri’s computer showed that they waylaid the ship’s shields, bringing it down below twenty percent.
As Dimitri’s trio came around, they focused their fire on the straggler, tearing into him. In the ten seconds it would take to pass him by, they pounded him with a near constant state of beam weapons with a few shots from their guns thrown in. The bomber tried to maneuver away, spinning slowly as it dove but he just didn’t have the maneuverability.
Sparks licked the hull and a moment later, it went up in a great plume of blue-gold light.
“Scratch one,” Dimitri said. He turned his attention briefly to the scanner to see if any of the other targets experienced a significant amount of damage. That tiny distraction, that short moment his attention was diverted, something shook his ship, jarring him so hard his teeth chattered and his jaw ached.
Spinning to the right, Dimitri dove to avoid another blast from whatever hit him. Scans indicated one of the turrets caught him. Shields held at fifty percent. Wow, those hit harder than I anticipated! It dawned on him that their defensive weapons would have to be tough if they hoped to get close enough to deploy their ordnance.
I bet these are stolen military vessels. Dimitri clicked over to Dylan. “How bad did your pass hurt them? With one down, we’ve only got three and a half minutes before they can lob a bomb at the Gnosis.”
“Two of them took a pretty nasty bump,” Dylan said. “Only one came away completely unscathed and he’s in the middle. Now that they’ve given themselves more coverage, he’ll be tough to nudge out of there.”
Marge butted in, “we can lob our missiles in and go for proximity charges. Detonate before they make contact.”
“Good call.” Dimitri looped around. “Fall in on me and we’ll see what we can pull off. Dylan, you stick to guns and beams the rest of us will try Marge’s plan.”
The ships formed up loosely, giving themselves some space to maneuver in the event that more turret fire came their way. As they rapidly approached their targets, they found they’d easily overrun them if they weren’t careful. Each ship launched two missiles, the heat coronas from the projectiles winking as they hurtled away.
Dylan performed a series of rapid shots, spraying the area in front of them with as wide a range as he could without altering course significantly. His attack was more about harassing their enemy, while giving the missiles a chance to arrive.
Two of the projectiles were taken down by turret fire but the other eight arrived unscathed. Dimitri gave the order to detonate and tiny explosions erupted around the bombers. The force of the blows caused the two on the ends to be shoved away from the center, dislodging them from their tight formation.
The unscathed ship dove, scans showing his shields took a bit of splash damage but he came away clean again. His companion didn’t fare so well as two of the missiles blew right beside him. Shields dropped, shattering visibly with a burst of red sparks. “Focus on him!” Dimitri called, letting his computer grab a lock before firing.
Concentrated shots tore the bomber to shreds, leaving behind chunks of debris.
Flying Officer Carson Bright, Raptor Six, called an SOS, drawing Dimitri’s attention. The young pilot took several blows from one of the turrets, knocking his shields out and bringing his engines offline. “I’m ejecting!” Carson shouted. “Ejecting!”
The life pod burst from his vessel and sailed off into space. Dylan broke formation and attacked the offending bomber. He took his target at the flank, banking just enough to avoid a series of shots from the defensive turret and hammering his opponent with guns.
Hull damage caused the bomber to spin to the left and the engines shut off. It might not have been destroyed but it seemed dead in space, drifting away from the action. That’s three down. Dimitri thought. Two to go, including one that isn’t even hurt.
The chronometer showed they had less than a minute to distract the bombers before they could attack the Gnosis. One was already on full defensive and trying to fend off the fighters so he wouldn’t be a problem but the lucky one, the guy who hadn’t even taken a direct hit, continued plodding along.
“Raptors three, four and five,” Dimitri said, “you’re on the harried one. Finish him off. Dylan and I are going to take the other guy before he gets any closer. We have to wrap this up, folks. Don’t dally. A mistake right now means a lot more than some hurt feelings, believe me.”
Dimitri directed his course, coming in behind his target. The ship’s turret spun and started firing at him, causing him to drop lower to avoid the thing. Dylan came alongside him, dropping a few feet. This gave them a good angle on their target’s engines and bottom, two sections which should have had the weakest shield presence.
“I want concentrated fire,” Di
mitri said. “It’s the only way we’re going to put this guy in the ground quickly enough to save the Gnosis.”
“I’m ready,” Dylan said. “Got lock. In three … two …”
Before they could get to one, the enemy bomber fired his payload, deploying six bombs in rapid succession. Dimitri pulled the trigger, unleashing hell on the ship and scored a direct hit. Dylan’s attack helped whittle the enemy’s defenses down and less than a few seconds later, they rendered him to burning embers.
“Shit!” Dimitri grunted. “Gnosis, this is Raptor One, we have a big problem. You have six bombs incoming. We are moving to intercept right now.” He checked his scans and noted his people finished off the last of their targets. “Raptor, form up and help me take care of those projectiles. We’ve got even less time now so hurry! We’re seriously at zero hour here.”
Chapter 10
Christina leaned against the wall of her cell near the door, peering through the bars. They left her there alone, having taken the ambassador and admiral away a long time before. It gave her a chance to think in private, to examine the situation and figure out what to do next. The situation, dire as it seemed, had not taken all hope from her yet.
The Tol’An didn’t bother with cameras, or if they did, they were well hidden. Their little prison was mostly crafted out of stone and concrete with metal bars and wooden planks for benches. There were no bathroom facilities in the area and they didn’t bother to bring food or water.
Why bother to take care of people if you’re just going to execute them. The thought made Christina scowl. Did the terrorists plan to kill them in some public way? Did they want to broadcast it back to the two governments as a way of establishing their credentials as complete psychopaths? She was pretty sure no one would’ve argued with them before this stunt.
Now we know for sure, I guess.
Christina wondered if they were trying to interrogate the other prisoners or merely torturing them. Either was a possibility but she didn’t know what they could possibly be asking for. The Tol’An weren’t about to invade anyone’s space. They weren’t going to Earth with an armada, at least not yet and the Pahxin seemed capable of repelling them on that front.
What was left? Did they want to find a way to infiltrate the society’s through intrigue? That made some sense. But even so, what did they hope to achieve from Reach? All they needed to get into Earth’s society was a safe place to land and a solid understanding of some language on the planet.
The Pahxin might even be easier to break into considering they used to be part of that society.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what they want. We just have to get out of here. Christina considered her options. Escape would require a weapon and a method of getting off the planet as soon as possible. When they broke atmosphere and descended to the surface, she saw there was nothing for miles around.
Running for it would practically be suicide. If they didn’t find a vehicle in the facility, leaving would be the same as waiting to be killed. No, she needed a ship and the only one she was certain of was the assault craft they were kidnapped on. I’m pretty sure I can fly it well enough to get off this rock but what then?
They saw defensive ships orbiting the planet. Getting away would entail weathering an assault by them, plotting a hyperspace course and initiating FTL all in short order. None of which she’d ever done before. Christina understood the theory but putting it in practice under stress was a very different situation.
We have to try. Maybe the Pahxin ambassador can help.
Christina considered her next move and came up with something. It might be a long shot, depending on why they grabbed the ambassadors, but she figured there was no harm in trying. Dropping to her knees, she started shouting for help, putting on a show of misery and despair.
“Please! Just let me talk to someone! I’ll tell them anything they want to know! I’m with the admiral all the time! Please … I can’t take the isolation anymore!”
Not the best performance, but it’ll have to do. Christina kept it up, even going so far as to fake weeping. At least the Tol’An don’t know what true human misery is or they might see through this in a hurry.
It took nearly five minutes of freaking out before one of the guards burst in and hurried over to her. He barked several strange words in her direction, speaking in his own language. Christina looked up at him through water eyes, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand you … I just … I can help your boss … I need to get out of this cell. I’ll do anything!”
The Tol’An grunted and crouched in front of her, leaning close. She felt her muscles tense, prepared for action but she maintained her cool. Come on, put your face right next to the bars, buddy. You’re so damn close!
“I’m ready to talk …” Christina tilted her head, holding his gaze with her eyes. He began to speak again and that’s when she struck, lashing out to wrap her fingers around the back of his neck and yanking his face against the cool metal of the cage.
His mouth opened in shock and she drove the fingers of her free hand into his solar plexus. A gasp took him instead of a scream and drew back, hammering him once in the throat. He choked and started to collapse but she kept him close, rifling his pockets until she found the key. Next, she relieved him of his rifle and unlocked the door.
Christina stepped out of the cell and crouched beside the guard. She took hold of his head and wrenched to the left, straining until his neck snapped. Pocketing his keys, she searched the body and found a tablet. Grabbing that and his weapon, she hurried to the door open door.
She leaned to look out when an alarm went off, driving her back.
Are you serious? They must have cameras after all! Damn it! Christina aimed the gun and waited for the soldiers to come in but they didn’t arrive. Instead, she heard people shouting and running away from her position. Maybe I’m wrong about what’s going on. Finally, a little luck for a change.
Glancing outside, she saw soldiers rounding a corner, running away from her. They headed up a flight of stairs and disappeared. Shouts continued long after she couldn’t see them. The muffled sounds of shuttle engines burst from outside followed by gunfire. A battle began and it was happening on the surface.
This might solve how we’re going to get out of here, depending on who arrived. Christina drew a deep breath and departed the holding area, moving to the right toward the first corridor. Time to find the admiral and get out of here. I only hope the attackers out there are on our side.
***
Admiral Reach strained at his bonds, testing to see if he might be able to escape. Gunfire burst from above, muffled by the depths of the base but it was still quite apparent. He figured it would be better to attempt to meet their people rather than simply wait for them to arrive. If at all possible, getting away would help the rescue effort.
“There’s no reason for that,” Raeka said. “Stay still and be glad that we are rescued.”
“I won’t count on that until our soldiers are in this room,” Reach said. Even then, he wasn’t quite ready to give in to total optimism. He’d been involved in enough military operations to understand the risks inherent in them. Anything could happen, good or bad. Despite the overwhelming numbers, stray bullets didn’t differentiate targets.
Gizan burst back into the room, eyes like a wild animal. He looked at the two of them, sneering. “I suppose it would be on you then,” he said, pointing at Raeka. “It would be just like our government to put something in your body. I should have thought of it. I could’ve prevented this. I am truly a fool.”
“This battle is over for you,” Raeka replied. “Please … surrender, Gizan. Help us put an end to Tol’An aggression. Be one with your people again. This is your only option.”
“I have many options left, filth.” Gizan advanced and punched Raeka in the gut, making the man wheeze. “But the first of them will be to get the admiral here to my ship. Pity about you though. I do not have time to cut you open and find where
the tracker is so you will simply have to die here and now.”
Gizan drew the knife he’d used on Raeka earlier and drew it back, prepared to plunge it into the man’s chest. Raeka cried out, shouting in his own language. Reach struggled so violently his wrists ached and began to bleed.
Just then the door burst open and Gizan stumbled back before he could land his blow. He spun, staring down the barrel of a Tol’An rifle held by Christina. “Sorry to interrupt,” she said. “That looked like a pretty intimate moment. Would you mind stepping aside before I blow your damn head off?”
“Kill him!” Reach shouted. “Shoot this sick bastard!”
“No problem,” Christina said. Her finger twitched as Gizan lashed out, knocking the weapon to the side. The weapon discharged, the beam splashing harmlessly into the wall.
Gizan followed up with another blow to the weapon and Christina lost her grip, blocking another blow meant for her face. He stabbed at her with the knife but she caught him by the wrist, slamming her knee into his gut. A grunt of pain racked his throat and he stumbled back, giving them both a chance to square off.
Christina lifted her hands defensively, stepping to the left until she stood between Gizan and the prisoners. He lowered his center of gravity, holding his hands out to either side. She threw a feint to the left and he bought it, lifting his arm to block. Before he could recover, she kicked him in the gut, driving him back against the wall.
Before Gizan could move, Christina hopped forward and pummeled his face and chest with a series of swift punches. He tried to slash her with the knife and cut her shirt just below the ribs.
Gizan overcommitted to the attack and half spun in the effort. Christina booted his elbow, disarming him of the knife, then followed up with another kick to the back. The blow knocked him to the floor and he scrambled away, climbing to his feet with a savage snarl.
