by Terry Mixon
With the last enemy ship charging toward the Heart of Vengeance, they couldn’t count on them stopping the enemy torpedoes the had slipped by it. Jason was going to be focusing his full attention on the Cadre warship charging down his throat.
Brad opened a channel to Saburo. “I’ve got good news and bad news, Colonel. Which do you want first?”
“I’ll take the bad news,” his combat team leader said. “It’ll go well with the bad news I have on my end.”
Perfect.
“There were three Cadre ships waiting out here to ambush anybody that came wandering along,” Brad said, resisting the urge to ask what was going wrong for his combat teams. “One heavy corvette and two light corvettes. We took out the heavy completely and crippled one of the lights. Heart and the final ship are still duking it out, but I have every confidence who’s going to come out on top.
“The bad news is that you’ve got four torpedoes inbound. We’re going to do our very best to take them all out, but nothing in life is guaranteed. If the enemy thought the asteroid was worth shooting at, that probably means something really, really bad is going to happen if they hit what they were aiming for.”
“I suspect I know what they’re shooting at,” Saburo said with a grunt. “The power plant is located close to the surface. If they crack the asteroid’s shell, it’s probably going to go off and gut everything in here. Including us.”
“Can you shut it down?”
“Negative. We’ve got enemy holdouts in there, and we don’t dare use anything too heavy or we might set it off. Some of my boys have a bunch of them pinned down in there. That might be stopping them from blowing the place themselves. As you might imagine, we’re doing everything we can to keep them from getting near the controls.”
It was Brad’s turn to grunt. Either one of those situations could kill his entire ground force and one of his oldest friends.
“Try to take them out as quickly as possible,” Brad said. “What about the rest of the facility?”
“We’re making a lot better progress there. The plans that Agent Falcone got for us are incomplete or perhaps the Cadre has been expanding. It’s a lot bigger in here, with more labs and manufacturing areas, than we expected.
“Thus far, we’ve killed two or three dozen trained fighters and captured maybe a dozen noncombatants. Not sure what in Everdark they’re doing in here, but it probably has to do with manufacturing that VX-65.”
That was a safe bet. They wouldn’t be using commandos to manufacture the deadly nerve agent. There would be chemists or whatever the appropriate science was.
“Speaking of the nerve agent,” Brad said, “make certain that somebody doesn’t let any loose or you’ll lose every single prisoner.”
He wasn’t worried about his own people if that happened. Their armor would protect them. The captured noncombatants, on the other hand, were vulnerable. It would be just like the Cadre to let loose a nerve agent to kill their own people so they couldn’t talk.
“Do the best you can and let us know if your situation changes. If you have to, get our people out of there. Jump into space and we’ll find you.”
Each of his troops had a transponder built into their armor that would aid in recovery operations if that happened. It was far better to chase them all over this corner of space than to have anyone killed.
Brad refocused his attention on the incoming torpedoes. Konrad had already stopped the two targeting Oath and was focused on the closest two headed for the asteroid. In just twenty seconds, his tactical officer wiped one of those out of space and refocused his attention on the remaining one on their side of the asteroid.
The tactical officer also had gatlings firing at the more distant pair, but hitting those was much more chancy. It would also take longer to see the results of his fire.
With his man doing as much as he could, Brad turned to the scanner readings coming from the disabled Cadre corvette. It hadn’t fired any more torpedoes, but that didn’t mean that they were sitting idly by.
Michelle wasn’t going in a straight line as she headed for the asteroid. They wouldn’t want to be caught in someone else’s gatling fire because they thought they were safe.
That made Brad think and he felt his eyes narrow. If that power station was so close to the asteroid’s surface, it might be vulnerable to gatling fire, and asteroids couldn’t evade.
Taking temporary control of Oath’s torpedoes, Brad fired four at the disabled Cadre warship. If it was already dead in space, this wasn’t going to materially change things. Well, except for any survivors there, and he wasn’t too worried about people who had ambushed him. If they were working on doing something sly, this might just save his people’s lives.
His caution proved warranted when the torpedoes were almost halfway to the corvette. His scanners started picking up debris flying off the surface of the asteroid. He’d been right!
Brad had no idea if it was anywhere near the power station, but they had to take out that damned warship. It was a race against time now.
Chapter Seventeen
The angle the mass-driver rounds were impacting the asteroid at could be worse, Brad supposed. There was a lot of rock they’d have to chew through before they could get to the power room. The torpedoes, on the other hand, would directly strike the target unless he stopped them.
“Konrad, you really need to knock out those torpedoes,” he said softly but with a lot of emphasis.
The tactical officer waved one hand over his shoulder and kept his attention focused on his console. “I’m working on that, boss. Thirty-five seconds until impact.”
Brad’s mental timer slowly counted down as the torpedoes raced toward the asteroid. At about twenty seconds out, Konrad took out one of the torpedoes. At this range, the mass-driver slug that either would or wouldn’t stop the remaining torpedo had already been fired. All they could do was pray.
As time ran out, Brad realized they weren’t going to get lucky. And then, at the last moment, one of the mass-driver rounds clipped the torpedo. It wasn’t enough to destroy it, but it altered its trajectory and sent it slamming into the asteroid in a slightly different area.
They all stared at the screen, waiting to see if the asteroid blew up and took their friends with it. It didn’t, but that certainly didn’t mean everything was okay. The torpedo must’ve breached the base in a different area, because the asteroid began spewing atmosphere and debris.
Brad opened a channel to Saburo. “Talk to me.”
As he waited for a response with growing worry, he noted that the torpedoes he’d fired at the Cadre corvette that had been firing the mass-driver rounds were almost on top of it. The enemy had taken two of them out, but that wasn’t going to help him.
Both torpedoes slammed into the light corvette and it exploded. Two down and one to go.
“We’re a bit shook up, Commodore,” Saburo finally said. “The facility took a hit and we’ve lost atmosphere, but I stuffed the noncombatants into one of the compartments and sealed the hatch. Unless something is seriously wrong, we’ll probably still have someone to talk to.
“We took advantage of the distraction and rushed the power room. The fighting is over. We lost a few people and have some injured. How’s it going out there?”
Brad sat back, relieved. He never liked losing even a single person, but that was better than losing everyone. At least the boarding action was a success. With a little bit of luck, it would change the course of this investigation and lead them to the new Cadre base.
“I think we’ve about got it in hand,” Brad said. “Double-check everything and be certain you’ve secured any nerve agent. I’m going to be coming over to take a look for myself as soon as we take care of the last enemy ship.”
Saburo nodded in a small video display. “We’ll have everything secured by the time you get here, sir. Go finish kicking their asses.”
“We’ll do our best, Colonel. Oath out.”
Brad turned his attention to Konr
ad. “Fire a full spread of torpedoes at that last ship. Finish them.”
“Yes, sir. Firing now.”
Eight torpedoes flashed away from the destroyer and headed for the remaining enemy corvette. With Heart keeping it pinned down, his salvo should be more than enough to finish this fight once and for all.
Being cornered only made the remaining Cadre corvette fight harder. Any chance it had of fleeing was gone. At this point, they had to know they were going to die.
One of Heart’s torpedoes smashed into the enemy and crippled an engine. In exchange, the Vikings’ corvette took a glancing hit amidships. It looked as if her reactive armor might have mitigated the damage somewhat.
Being crippled at exactly that moment proved to be a very costly and fatal event for the final Cadre ship. They didn’t stop a single one of Konrad’s torpedoes. The ship’s destruction was abrupt and total.
Brad opened a channel to Heart of Vengeance. As soon as Jason’s face appeared, Brad knew the damage had been light. His former tactical officer had a relieved expression.
“We got clipped, but it isn’t too bad,” Jason said, confirming Brad’s guess. “We’re losing some air, but it’s not going to hamper our operations. We’re still fully combat-effective. No reported injuries.”
“That’s good,” Brad said as he rubbed his face. “It sounds as if Saburo lost some people and they have some injuries. They have the asteroid secured, so I’m going to recall a couple of the assault shuttles and head over to find out what’s going on. Get ready for some of the wounded to be coming your way.
“While I’m examining the facility, I want both ships searching the debris field and keeping watch for other ships. If there any survivors, pick them up. If we can identify who we’re dealing with, that will be worthwhile. These bastards were a little bit more competent than I’d have expected from the Cadre.”
The other man nodded. “Michelle and I can handle that. I look forward to hearing what you find over there, sir. I hope it really helps us screw the Cadre up.”
“Me, too. Oath out.”
Brad rose from his chair and stretched his back. Sitting there throughout the fight had his back in knots. He stepped over beside Michelle’s console.
“Have Saburo split the wounded and send some to Heart and some to us. The dead come back to Oath of Vengeance. Start a search pattern around where we took out those two ships. If we can pick up survivors, great. If not, too bad for them.”
He looked over at Konrad. “I want you to keep an eagle eye out for threats. If any section of one of these wrecks is large enough to have weapons, make certain that they don’t come to bear on our ships. Also, be wary of new ships. Full scans all the time.”
It took twenty minutes for the assault shuttles to detach from the asteroid and begin their journey back to their motherships. Brad left Michelle in charge of Oath and went down to oversee their arrival.
The medics took seven people with injuries ranging from minor to serious to the infirmary. Other troopers carried out bags containing the bodies of four of their comrades. Those also went to the infirmary to be stored until they could get back to Io.
Once that sad task was accomplished, Brad accompanied the troopers back to the asteroid facility. It was time to see what they were dealing with and ask some hard questions of the noncombatants.
The assault shuttle carrying Brad docked at a personnel lock. There was no need to sneak aboard now, since they had complete control.
Brad still wore a combat vac-suit because they hadn’t finished patching the damage caused by the torpedo yet. The section he was exiting into was still pressurized, but a single failure elsewhere in the facility could leave everyone in a vacuum with no warning. Best to be exceptionally careful.
The corridors around the airlock showed signs of heavy fighting: gouges on the floors, burns on the bulkheads, and divots blown out of ceilings. The fallen enemy fighters must’ve been gathered somewhere else, but the blood from where they’d died still covered enough places to make this place looked like a torture chamber.
Saburo met him a moment later. The Colonel’s armor was blackened in a couple of places and certainly looked as if it had taken a few glancing shots. The man had his helmet off and resting in the crook of his arm.
“I just finished a quick tour of the compartments we can access. Some are sealed off because of vacuum, and a couple of others are locked down because the people formerly running this place considered them dangerous, I think. There are biohazard warnings on those areas, so I’m betting that’s where the nerve agent is being concocted and stored.”
Brad nodded and took off his helmet so that he could speak more clearly with his friend. “You said you had about a dozen noncombatant prisoners. Scientists?”
“Looks like. They basically shat themselves when we showed up. The guards tried to kill them all. We found half a dozen of the science types with lots of bullet holes, so there must’ve been orders to take them down fast. We surprised them and the guards couldn’t finish the job.”
“Make certain to record good video of everything you see. Falcone is going to want to go over everything. She’s going to regret her bet that this place was empty.
“I know she needed to stay on Io so that she could try and track where those damned enemy ships might be hiding, but that’s not going to keep her from bitching now that we found something and she’s not here for it.”
Saburo laughed. “That woman could be a mercenary, with the amount of bitching she does when things don’t go her way. I’d thought spies were a bit more accepting about setbacks.”
“Agent Falcone is a woman of many depths,” Brad said piously. “Let’s go see these noncombatants. I have some unpleasant questions that I’d like to get answers to. When I make threats, keep a stern face.”
The Asian man escorted Brad through several corridors and to a compartment where two of the Vikings troopers stood outside, their weapons at the ready. The officer opened the hatch and gestured for Brad to precede him.
The noncombatants were all seated in rolling chairs on the far side of a conference room, under the watchful eyes of four additional troopers. The prisoners looked terrified.
With good reason.
Brad set his helmet down on the table and rested his hands on his hips as he stared coldly at each of the prisoners.
“My name is Commodore Brad Madrid of the Vikings Mercenary Company. As you are no doubt aware, you are my prisoners.
“I suspect this facility of manufacturing an outlawed nerve agent called VX-65. I’m going to ask each of you some very pointed questions, and if I’m not happy with the answers you give, I’m going to put you into an airlock and slowly release the atmosphere until I hear what I want.”
One of the men, and older fellow with shocks of white hair, scowled. “This is outrageous.”
Brad gave him an arctic smile. “I couldn’t agree more. Using your skills to create a banned weapon of mass destruction is outrageous. Do us all a favor and save your outrage. It will do you no good here.”
Ignoring the man’s bluster, Brad turned to Saburo. “Have two of our troopers escort that one to a different compartment for me. Make certain none of the others speak to one another. If they refuse to shut up, gag them.”
As tempting as it might be, Brad wasn’t going to be stuffing anyone into an airlock. He wasn’t going to give the rage inside of him that much hold over him ever again. But that wouldn’t stop him from threatening the hell out of them. These were no innocent civilians—and the Commonwealth could execute them for manufacturing chemical weapons. They probably wouldn’t, but they had to know that a firing squad was definitely a potential future for them all.
Brad watched the two troopers manhandle the selected prisoner out of the room and followed them down the corridor to what looked like someone’s office. After they’d dragged the man inside, Brad seated himself behind the desk and steepled his fingers on its surface.
“I’m not even going to pr
etend that I’d offer you a seat. My associates will hold you there while I ask questions, and should I be dissatisfied with the answers I receive, they will escort you to your final resting place.
“Now, who are you? Keep your answer short and sweet. Save your excuses for someone that cares.”
The man drew himself up as much as he could while the troopers held on to his arms and shot Brad a haughty look.
“My name is Dr. Nicolas Bradburn and I am in charge of this facility. You claim that you are a mercenary commander? Then I shall see you expelled from the Guild and executed for treason!”
“Really?” Brad asked, drawing out the word slowly. “That’s showing a lot of chutzpah in the face of reality, Doctor. What makes you think the Commonwealth is going to do anything to me when I captured you working in a Cadre facility?”
“Preposterous! This is the Raeburn Research Laboratory. The Commonwealth founded and funds this facility. You’ve killed a number of scientists working for the Commonwealth and executed Commonwealth Marines. It is you, sir, who are a pirate!”
Could the man really believe that? Had the Cadre fooled the people working here so completely that they believed that they were working for the Commonwealth?
“If this is a legitimate Commonwealth facility, how do you explain the fact that you are working on banned weapons of mass destruction?” Brad asked, leaning back in his seat to consider the scientist. “No one in the Commonwealth is supposed to be developing nerve agents.”
Bradburn sneered. “We have a Commonwealth charter for this work, and you are a murderer.”
The supposed scientist jerked himself forward, only to be stopped by the troopers holding his arms as he snarled at Brad.
“And I shall enjoy seeing you put out of an airlock for this atrocity,” the man said with smug satisfaction.
Chapter Eighteen
Falcone slapped a printout down on Brad’s desk. “As difficult as this is to believe, these idiots might have some reason to really believe they are working for the Commonwealth government.”
