by John Walker
“I thought I’d join the party,” Lorenz said. “Hope you don’t mind, sir.”
“The cover outside would’ve been pointless if we died,” Hoffner replied. “Come on, guys! There’re only four left!”
Somehow this translated to charging and three marines rushed the enemy position. Hoffner and the others provided support as they burst in and let bullets fly. A whole lot of screaming came out of the exchange and Hoffner watched as one of the marines hit the ground hard. However, the blips all changed. The enemy was down.
“Shore up the wounded!” Hoffner shouted. “And make sure the enemies are actually done! Tully, where’re we at with that reactor?”
“Um…I think I messed up. I’m trying to prevent a meltdown.”
“You have to be joking!”
“I wish I was…it’s…complicated.”
“Uncomplicate it! Now!”
“I’m trying, sir!” Tully hesitated. “Shit! Thirty seconds…”
“For what?”
“This whole place to go up.”
Hoffner groaned. “Then you’d better hurry, son. We didn’t just kill all those pricks so you could fail.”
“Warning,” a woman’s voice echoed through the hallway. “Core meltdown in progress. Please evacuate. You have…twenty seconds…to reach minimal safe distance of three miles. Warning.”
“Might work if we could microjump,” Lorenz muttered.
“Tully!” Hoffner shouted. “Come on!”
“Almost there!”
Hoffner rushed up to the control center and watched the young marine’s hands fly over the controls. He seemed to be entering codes at a wildly fast rate. The captain felt helpless as he observed, clenching his fists. He knew he had to be quiet or he’d just complicate matters but it was one of the hardest moments of his life to remain silent.
“Ten seconds remaining,” the woman’s voice again.
“Shouldn’t she have started complaining sooner?” Hoffner asked.
“It got set while I broke their first code,” Tully replied.
“Five…four…three…”
“Wait!” Tully tapped something and stood back. Everyone held their breath. Red lights pulsed overhead then went white. They looked around, wondering what specifically had delayed their death. Did Tully succeed? It seemed unlikely given the time left but she did shut up and that was a heartening bit of silence.
“Core meltdown averted,” the voice announced. “Safety protocols re-engaged.”
Marines cheered throughout the complex and Hoffner slapped Tully hard on the back. “Way to go!”
“Thanks, sir.” Tully slumped, clearly too relieved to be excited. Hoffner turned away and went back to the others.
“Okay, everyone. Great work but we’re not done yet. We need to get the wounded ready for extraction and get some extra people down here to take this region back. So far so good. At least the world won’t be annihilated by a radioactive bomb. Now, we just need to get these people their food and we’ll be good to go.
“I want sound off for departure in less than ten minutes. Move it!”
***
Gray watched the view screen as they moved in on the tail of the enemy vessel. They might only get a couple of salvos off on them due to the miscalculation but it may be enough. At least they couldn’t put the continuous pulse cannon on a turret. They had to turn in order to make it work and this ship was small enough that a microjump seemed unlikely.
Besides the fact we just took a tremendous risk in trying it ourselves considering how much traffic is out here.
Redding fired the weapons, the blasts slamming into the enemy’s shields at presumably the weakest point: directly covering the thrusters. As they flared up, Gray turned to Olly, waiting for the young man to give the damage report. Before he could offer it up, Redding was able to fire again.
These recharge rates have become a game changer.
The bridge doors opened and Durant entered the room, hurrying over to his new makeshift post against the wall. He logged in and began performing some action but Gray didn’t have time to question him. The eccentric scientist seemed intent on his screen, typing over the touch controls so quickly, it was hard to believe he wasn’t making a hundred mistakes.
“Damage report in,” Olly said. “Their shields dropped to thirty percent after our first strike…oh my!” The shields flared on the enemy vessel then a bulb of fire erupted from the top of the right thruster. They’d gotten through and done some damage. “Scanning now.”
“Captain,” Durant announced, “I came up here because of who we’re fighting now. I’ve done some analysis and I believe we’re going to want to be careful about taking this ship out completely. Their pulse drive is highly unstable and if I’m right, which I am, then the shockwave very well might take out our shields.”
“It would be temporary,” Adam said. “And they’d be dead. I’m not sure I see the problem overall.”
“There are certainly more of them out there,” Durant said. “And though I can get our shields back online quickly, I’m pretty sure we don’t want to find out how badly this will can go for us.”
Clea stood suddenly. “Durant, can you drum up secondary, internal shield units to key parts of the ship?”
Durant’s brows raised. “I…suppose. But why?”
“No time to explain. I’m going to send you the locations we need these raised. Just in case.”
Gray frowned at Clea but as he considered their mission, he appreciated her foresight. Considering what might be out there, a little insurance might be handy. “If they explode and take out our primary shields, won’t that impact the secondary ones you’re talking about?”
“No,” Durant said, “I’d right them to raise the second our primary generator went down. Very easy sensor work, honestly. No problem at all.”
` “Okay then…” Gray turned his attention back to the view screen. The enemy was nearly turned around, despite their damaged thruster. Redding continued to hammer them. “Pull us back to extreme range. Just in case.”
“Sir,” Marcus spoke up, “permission to set a microjump course.”
“Feel free but we can’t jump without shields,” Gray said. “We don’t want to hop into something that could cause some real damage.”
“I’ve got another ship on scans,” Olly announced. “Looks like a second Orion’s Light vessel. The rebels have fallen back to their own. They’re only engaged with the military now.”
“I’m still trying to reach Dubaris,” Clea said. “But we’ve got a lot of interference from the battle.”
“Keep trying.” Gray squinted at the screen. “How close is this guy?”
“Shields are…” Olly was interrupted by a massive flash that nearly blinded Gray he was staring at the screen so intently. “Gone. They’re open! Let them have it!”
“Thanks,” Redding muttered. “I’m on it.”
They launched another barrage, this one striking the side of the vessel totally uninterrupted by energy defenses. The armor gave way in seconds and the ship began to flare up from various entry points of the attack. As it caught on fire, the entire thing began to glow. Olly called out that they had less than ten seconds for an explosion.
But the moment he said the words, the ship went up. The shockwave slapped the Behemoth hard enough to make her list faster than anti-gravity could keep up. Marcus was tossed from his chair and Olly cried out. The lights went out temporarily and the ship hummed as the generators struggled to come back online.
“The secondary shields are raising!” Durant shouted. “That thing really did knock out our defenses! I never would’ve thought they could run engines so hot without melting them down. Learn something new…”
“Enough!” Gray barked. “What sections are currently protected?”
“Engineering, the bridge and the weapons deck…” Durant shrugged. “Those were the locations that Clea had me protect.”
“Where’s that other vessel?”
“Port bow!” Redding called. She fired the weapons but they didn’t respond. “Um…we have a problem!”
“Generators will take another moment to come back online,” Durant said. “Then we’ll have weapons…and shields again.”
“Might be a little late then!” Adam yelled, pointing at the screen. “What is that green light?”
Olly shook his head. “I have no idea…it’s got an energy signature I’ve never seen before. Something new.”
Clea spoke quietly, “they built a prototype.”
“And were able to get it installed,” Gray said. “Durant, do what you have to with those generators. Adam, get us some cover out there.”
A green blast struck the ship and Gray sucked air through his teeth, anticipating a massive impact but nothing happened. They were bathed in light and didn’t so much as rumble. He frowned, tilting his head and turning to Clea. She shrugged. “If that’s what we think it is, it’s supposed to knock the people out and leave the ship unscathed.”
“Olly, can you fool scans into thinking life signs are minimal?” Gray said. “Do it now if you can.”
“Um…okay…” Olly started tapping away but Clea hurried over to help him. The two of them did something, then looked at the screen. “We’ve shown our life signs have dropped below two thirds.”
“Good work.” Gray leaned forward in his seat and watched the screen. “Let’s hope they don’t bother to shoot us now that they believe we’re unable to fight back.”
“What’s going on?” Durant asked. “What was that weapon they hit us with?”
“Prototype that knocks out the people on board a ship,” Clea replied. “Providing their shields are down. The novalat people built it. We thought there was only a schematic but as you can see…we’re dealing with a working version.”
“Fascinating…” Durant rubbed his chin. “I can’t believe they didn’t share it with us sooner. We could’ve perfected it. Perhaps found a way to penetrate shields or better yet, work without emitting a beam. I wonder if it actually harms the people it hits or if it’s simply something that causes temporary paralysis. Oh my…I suppose we have people on board who will know.”
“Now’s not the time,” Gray said. “Let’s focus on staying alive so we can help those people who inadvertently became part of a field experiment for some insane weapon. How long before the generators come back online?”
“Two minutes,” Durant replied. “I’ve got them going as fast as possible.”
Gray turned to Adam. “Are we getting some help out there? Bombers?”
“Hangars weren’t protected,” Adam replied. “The people down there are unconscious. Giant control is also down. I’m reaching out to the pilots who were still out there. Panther and Tiger were due to dock but they can’t without the tower to clear them. The decks might be full. They can probably help but they’re running on fumes…both physically and fuel wise.”
“Crap.” Gray rubbed his eyes. “Redding, the second weapons are back online, I want to know about it. We’ve already lured them in with our little ploy…Providing they try to board us, we might still have a chance.”
“If they link up now, we have no marines to provide any protection,” Adam said. “Whoever’s in Engineering and Weapons will have to hold out.”
“Then let’s hope it takes them longer than two minutes to latch on to us,” Gray replied. “Hang tight, people. This last part’s about patience…and we definitely need them right now.”
***
Krilan Ar’Vax watched the action between the rebels and the novalat military with passing interest. Regardless of which side won, he succeeded in getting them out of the way of his attack on the kielan home world. The alliance high command would soon be unprotected and he could finish them off once and for all.
But he needed to ensure that these people were thoroughly busy regardless of who won. The destruction of the power facility would wipe out an entire region of the planet and with the space station going down, they’d not only deal a crippling blow to the population, but they’d erase all signs of their theft of the new weapon.
The operation was proving to be quite the success.
“My Lord!” A lieutenant saluted him, standing at attention. “I have a report.”
“Go ahead,” Krilan said without looking up. “And be quick.”
“We’ve lost the space station.”
Krilan looked up sharply. “Excuse me?”
“The space station. Someone’s taken it from our people. We lost contact but saw some security footage just before it was taken down.”
“The military?”
“Some kind of well trained force, yes.” The lieutenant cleared his throat. “I’m afraid the power facility has also fallen into enemy hands and we lost not only the troops stationed there but a shuttle as well. All hands were killed, including the soldiers we sent to reinforce the situation.”
“And the meltdown?” Krilan’s heart hammered in his chest.
“Prevented, I’m afraid.”
Krilan rubbed his eyes. “Do you have any more bad news?”
“I’m…afraid so.” It was clear the man was fighting through a great deal of fear to even tell him all this. Krilan glared at him as he continued. “We lost the Wailing Mark. It was destroyed by an alliance vessel…the Behemoth.”
Krilan’s rage made his hands clench into fists and he rose. “Did you just say…that Earth ship? Here? What happened?”
“They engaged and we lost…However, there is some good news.”
“I can’t wait.” Krilan tilted his head. “I hope for your sake you’re right.”
“Um…well…you see, the Behemoth’s shields have dropped. And the new prototype worked! Our scans indicate that there are less than two thirds of the population of the vessel even alive now. And we are moving to take it over.”
“Wait.” Krilan lifted his hand. “You’re telling me that the prototype weapon we just installed is about to attack the Behemoth?”
“Yes, sir. It will be a glorious test! Rather, we’ve proven it works!”
“Tell that ship to get back.” Krilan pushed past the lieutenant and hurried toward the bridge. “Now! Get them to retreat and rejoin us here. They are not to engage the Behemoth! Do you understand?”
“But, My Lord…we’ve got them where we want them. We can take the whole ship, add it to the fleet.”
“Fool!” Krilan wanted to strike him but he was in too much of a hurry. “The captain on that vessel defeated me the last time we met in battle. I promise you he’s got something up his sleeve and even if he does not, I don’t want to risk our prize on the chance we might turn this fight around! Get them out of there or I’ll have you executed.”
Krilan entered the bridge and sat in his chair. “Take us out. Get to the last known location of the Wailing Mark. Prepare for battle. We have no time to lose so plot a microjump.”
His people sprang into action and Krilan silently prayed they would not be too late. He knew those Earthlings could be crafty and in this case, they seemed to bring out equal creativity in the kielans in their midst. He never would’ve thought he’d find himself faced with his own people capable of outmatching him in combat.
But their last engagement was enough to treat him to a special view into human ingenuity. Now, he planned to snuff it out completely. Or at least drive them off. Undoubtedly, they were responsible for both the space station and the planet. Krilan did so much work to push the rebels to such extreme lengths.
To have his plans crumble at the eleventh hour made him wild with anger. This situation may have to be written off and the only good to have come from it involved the state of disrepair he’d be leaving novalat in. With help, they’d rebuild quickly and once again join the alliance. If Krilan had to pull out, he’d need to attack the alliance almost immediately.
And that’s if they managed to save the prototype weapon before those fools let it be destroyed. Without that, they’d only have the advantage of
their special cannons and while it might make short work of several alliance vessels, it wasn’t the type of thing to win an entire war. Combining it with this technology made it devastating.
Krilan understood the need to remain fluid during combat situations, especially when the theater remained so massive. The violence at novalat represented the most far reaching military actions he’d ever planned, let alone executed. It had been working perfectly too, which made it all the harder to justify the potential loss.
He began to rage internally. Those Earth people will suffer for their interference. Even if I have to travel to their home world and bomb it myself, they will pay.
***
Chapter 9
Meagan organized Tiger and Panther to form up and head back to the Behemoth. They’d been out there long enough to be feeling the effects of a prolonged engagement. The pulse drives needed to be recharged soon and they were completely out of missiles. As they raced back toward the ship, they saw a massive explosion followed by the Behemoth’s shields flare up.
“What the heck was that?” Mick asked in her com.
“I don’t know. Unstable drive core?” Meagan hummed. “I’m going to contact Giant control to see what they’ve got to say.” She tried to connect to them but had to fight with interference. After a moment, she heard a garbled voice that wasn’t quite breaking through the static. The computer couldn’t clean it up anymore.
Whatever hit the ship really did a number on coms.
Another ship moved in, firing a strange light which bathed the Behemoth. The com went dead, not even presenting static anymore. Meagan stared for a moment, unable to really fathom what she’d seen. A quick look at the scans indicated the Behemoth lost shields completely and their engines were offline.
What the hell did I just witness?
Meagan sent a message back to the space station, reaching out to the marines who had occupied the facility. She got right through and Sergeant Jenks took up the com to talk to her. She related what she’d just seen and what was happening with the ship. He hesitated for a moment before replying.
