by Taylor Smith
Cade’s shoulders and waist exploded in pain as his world shook around him and the straps dug in again. Claxons roared to life and sparks flew from several consoles. The lights flickered, went dark, then flared back on as the reactor struggled to feed power to its systems after taking such a violent salvo. He shook his head trying to wake himself back up from what seemed like a small nightmare.
“Damage report!” Andy slurred from his chair as he tried to shake himself back into focus.
Cade looked to Criss who was holding her head but seemed ok, then over at Haley who was staring into nothing, her mouth agape. “Haley!”
She blinked at him for a moment before seeming to realize where she was. “Um,” she said looking over her screens. “Damn. Major structural damage! Starboard decks nine through eleven are open to space. Power is out to four decks, and we’re down to five missile batteries, seven deck guns and two beam cannons,” she reported shaking her head. “Finn says he has to shut engine one down, or it’s going to overheat. He reports damage control crews are working on it, but he’s still shorthanded. No estimates yet.”
Cade stared at her in shock. They’d been raked badly but they were still able to fight. “What about Valiant?” he asked.
Haley shuffled through several screens and smiled, “We hit him pretty hard. The computer is estimating that he’s worse off than we are. He’s leaving a trail of debris, but those two Deshi warships are covering him now.”
Andy sat back and nodded. “Cade, start making your turn and line us up for a couple passes through the thick of it. If we can thin out more of the smaller attackers, maybe we can start shifting our full attention to the bigger ships.”
“Bringing us about, aye,” Cade replied and started his maneuvers.
“We just lost the Nomad!” Criss’s voice wavered as she announced the loss.
“Get us back in there!” Andy shouted to Cade.
“Engines at full,” he replied. “What’s left of them. I’m running at seventy five percent.”
“Damn! We’re losing too many ships,” Andy said worriedly as he stared at his screen. “Start targeting the smaller missile boats. We’re not out of this yet –“.
“New Contacts!” Haley shouted. “We’ve got another twenty five hostiles entering range!”
Cade looked to Andy and Criss, then Haley and each of them returned his gaze. Clew ships were losing ground to the Deshi attackers, and now the enemy had brought in reinforcements. His fears heightened as he accepted that this would be it. At least he would go out with friends.
Chapter 22
Haley held Cade’s gaze. That moment seemed to convey acceptance and forgiveness to each other. She finally looked back to her console and the multiple angry red icons that had just revealed themselves. “New hostiles will be within maximum weapons range in three minutes.”
As more information came in, she was surprised to see such strength. The Deshi military ability was very even with Clew. Most of their war machine was comprised of frigates and light cruisers. This battle even saw small haulers and maintenance ships hastily armed in attempt to make them combat viable. But the fleet of ships bearing down on them now was much, much more. “I don’t think this is a Deshi fleet,” she mumbled to herself as she strained the sensors to gather more data.
Andy looked back to her. “What?”
Haley suddenly jumped up in excitement. “It’s the Alliance!”
Andy smiled and said, “You’re sure?”
Haley shuffled through her screens and sent several scan captures to the main screen. In front of everyone, several small white ships appeared in space surrounding a very large vessel. “Twelve destroyers, eight light cruisers, four heavy cruisers and a very nasty battleship. That,” she shouted and pointed to the image, “is the Prometheus battle group! They’re here to help, if I know Admiral Jonas.”
All four on the bridge cheered and shared wide smiles of relief. The oddity of it wasn’t lost on Haley, however. The fact that the situation had become so desperate that these pirates were actually happy to see the Alliance turn up anywhere was an absurdity of their very nature.
“Ok. This might be great news, but we still have work to do,” Andy said trying to get them refocused.
Cade turned and reported, “Still on course. We’ll be back in the thick of it in thirty seconds.”
“We’ve achieved maximum weapons range and will be in brawling range in ten seconds,” Haley said as she checked distances and enemy positions. “The Deshi are still concentrating on the ventral portions of the station but there are more dogfights than before.”
“Hail the station,” Andy ordered and waited for Criss to bring the channel up. Upon seeing his father on the screen again he said, “The Alliance fleet is here.”
“Aye, boy we see em’,” Mallian said with a wide grin. “They’ve already contacted us and are offerin’ assistance. All ships are going on the offensive to try and keep the Deshi here. We don’t want any runners,” he said then leaned into the pickup. “This ends here, ma’ boys.”
“You heard the man,” Andy announced as the channel cleared. “No one escapes! Let’s finish it!”
The Reaper, streaming air and debris, railed its way back onto the battlefield with the Alliance fleet just behind it. The swarm of ships that hugged the station were slowly spreading out into the Deshi formations and engaging nearby targets. Clew ships still rocked and reeled from the enemy fleet that outgunned them.
“Alliance heavy cruisers Ranger and Ares have moved onto our flanks and matched velocity,” Haley said excitedly. “They’re signaling that they’ve got our wing.”
“Outstanding,” Andy said. “Give em’ hell, Ms. Marks.”
“Aye sir!”
The three cruisers made their way through the chaos, firing in all directions as more Allied Fleet cruisers paired up with other Clew ships. Traffic parted as the unstoppable hulking mass of the Prometheus slid through the congestion and took position beneath Clew Station.
The bridge shook again as they made another firing pass closer to the Valiant. “He’s concentrating on the Reaper!” she exclaimed picking out his firing patterns.
“Let’s introduce our friends,” Andy ordered with a wicked grin. “Cade, bring us up and around the station to top it just in range of that bastard.”
“Aye, sir,” Cade responded as his hands flew across the helm.
The Reaper and its escorts came about and arched upward. Several Deshi frigates seemed bold and attacked the trio, but were easily snuffed from existence and the three ships flew past their drifting ruins. Beam weapons lashed out, slicing through Deshi armor followed closely by missiles that would gorge on the already wounded assailants.
They rounded the top of the station, flying dangerously close to Leviathan’s hulking form and came face to face with the Valiant.
“Kill that son of a bitch,” Cade growled out.
“Fire!” Andy ordered.
“All weapons firing,” Haley reported as the ship vibrated with the multitude of sounds and shrieks that her weapons unleashed.
Lances of concentrated energy dug into the Valiant along untouched armor and the ragged holes of previous wounds. Missiles screeched by and either created new holes, or tore jagged rents in already weakened armor plate. The traitorous Allied cruiser shuddered under the rain of fire from the three warships and belched air and debris from multiple areas.
One of the Valiant’s cruiser escorts veered sharply away under the heavy fire and the other seemed to lurch and drifted lifelessly as explosions rippled through its hull.
The Reaper bucked suddenly, pushing everyone forward against the straps that held them in place. An ear shattering boom and the cry of twisting metal rang through the ship.
“What the hell was that?” Andy shouted wide-eyed.
“My fault,” Cade responded with a dark grin.
Haley couldn’t believe what her station was reporting. “What did you just do?” she asked as her hands fl
ew across her screens. “Massive damage to the Valiant, and we’ve just lost our aft grapple.”
Andy turned to Cade and shook his head. “You grappled him at high speed?”
Cade shrugged without looking up from his console. “Just sayin’ hi.”
“He’s turning,” Haley reported and watched the information as it came in. “He’s slowing though, still coming around for another –“, she stopped. “Secondary explosions!”
Andy leaned toward the screen and Cade couldn’t help but turn and look.
On the main screen the battered visage of their nemesis staggered as several internal explosions rose through the outer hull and into space. Armor plates tore away like paper. Then suddenly the heavy cruiser broke into three sections, each drifted and spun lazily away from each other.
The bridge of the Reaper was silent except for the soft pinging of computer systems demanding attention. Smoke drifted lazily about as they all stared quietly at the scene before them.
“Yeah!” shouted Criss, making everyone else jump in their seats.
“Ha!” Cade shouted and took a deep breath as if he’d been afraid to breathe for hours.
Haley laughed and sighed. Emotion threatened to overcome her but she looked back to her console to find more enemies still lived and queries arrived from the Alliance ships that flew beside them. “Ranger and Ares are requesting to break off,” she reported.
“Granted,” Andy said. He shook his head as he tore his gaze from the main screen. “Our thanks go with them.”
“They both acknowledge,” Haley relayed.
With the Valiant destroyed, and the Alliance now in the thick of it, the battle suddenly seemed one-sided. The remaining Deshi ships were uncoordinated and making senseless mistakes. Several even wandered into the hungry firing solution of the Leviathan, forever embedded in the station, which greedily obliterated them with its capital class guns. A mirrored story went for the Prometheus, guarding the lower hemisphere of Clew. One misstep, one wayward calculation and a ship would stray too close. When that happened it would vanish from existence.
During those final moments, several more ships of Clew entered the fray, finally answering the recall. It took another thirty minutes to mop up the remaining Deshi forces. To Haley’s surprise, none tried to flee.
“The Jackknife reports that they’ve destroyed the last Deshi cruiser,” Criss reported from her station. “Clew command is signaling launch of rescue ships.”
Haley activated her filters and brought up data on escape pods. “There are approximately two hundred escape pods in the vicinity of Clew Station. Rescue teams are in route.”
“It’s over,” Andy said from the command chair and leaned back.
Haley smiled. It was over. They’d beaten Andrelli and now she was free to discover the true Alliance. Her face darkened at that thought. She glanced to Cade whose hands still skillfully worked the helm, and she couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to live on Clew.
“We’re receiving a broadcast transmission from the big Alliance ship,” Criss suddenly announced.
Haley snapped back from her daydream and looked curiously toward Andy and Cade.
Andy shrugged and said, “put it on speakers.”
“This is Admiral Jonas aboard the Allied Fleet warship Prometheus,” came the strong voice of the Admiral that Haley had come to admire. “All Deshi combatants have been eliminated.”
An angry chirp from her console pulled Haley’s eyes downward to find an unnerving report. “Um, guys,” she started in an unbelieving tone. Her spirits dropped and her stomach almost turned in on itself as she read the tactical screen. “We’re being targeted.”
Cade immediately stood from his chair and Andy quickly turned to her. “By who?” they both asked in unison.
She looked up from her console in disbelief. “By half the Allied Fleet.”
“All Clew ships,” Admiral Jonas continued over the speakers in the bridge, “are ordered to immediately deactivate their weapons and shut down their drives. Come to a complete stop relative to the Prometheus and prepare to be boarded.”
“He’s got to be kidding,” Criss exclaimed from her station. “Who the hell does he think he is?”
“He’s the guy with the gun pointed at our home,” Andy replied, his gaze like ice on the view screen that showed the image of Clew Station.
Haley cringed, knowing he was right. The powerful battleship sat directly beneath Clew Station. At point blank range and zero transversal speed, its capital class guns would tear completely through the habitat. All those people. Haley couldn’t believe they would do it. “He’s bluffing,” she blurted out.
“I say again,” Jonas’ voice echoed again. “All Clew vessels are to power down immediately or you will be destroyed.”
More irritated chirps from her console made Haley’s heart skip a beat. “And they’re all targeting us now, including the Prometheus.”
Long seconds passed as Haley watched Andy’s face. His eyes darted back and forth as if trying to find the answer to an unanswerable question. Finally, his shoulders dropped and he whispered, “shut our weapons down, Ms. Marks.”
Haley stared at him for a moment in silence before she quietly replied, “weapons coming offline.” She entered the sequence and heard the resounding metallic echoes of the ship’s armaments retracting.
“Cade,” Andy said quietly. “Take us –“.
“Belay that, ya dogs!” came the angry voice of Malian Neese over the open channel. “All Clew vessels are ta target that whale under my station!”
Everyone was silent for a moment before Andy turned back to Haley and shouted, “Run the guns back out!”
Haley shook her head in shock. With the amount of firepower that was bearing down on them now, reactivating the ships weapons was suicide. “But we’re being –“.
“Do it!” Andy shouted then turned to Cade. “Cade, take us in for a firing pass on the Prometheus!”
Haley blinked and reactivated the ships weapons. “I won’t fire on an Alliance ship,” she muttered.
Admiral Jonas spoke back up, outwardly irritated. “If you don’t surrender now, this fleet will open fire on all Clew vessels and the station itself. Don’t be stupid. You’re outclassed and outgunned.”
“Are we now?” came Malian’s reply.
The tactical station chirped again and drew Haley’s attention back. Her eyes widened. “What the hell? All target locks are dropping.” She double checked her readings and found even more shocking reports. “Alliance ships are losing power,” she said and looked back up in disbelief. “They’re all just shutting down.”
“What have you done?” came the shouted question over the speakers.
“Mr. Jonas,” Malian began again. “We appreciate yer help with the cretins, but ya threatened my people. If ya don’t stand down right now, I’ll blow every one of yer powerless ships out of the stars, and make ya watch as I do it.”
Tense seconds passed and Haley couldn’t believe what was happening. Somehow the pirates had shut all the Allied Fleet ships down except for the flagship. She watched the main screen that showed them nearing the Prometheus under the station and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe. She’d underestimated them as had Admiral Jonas.
“All Alliance ships, stand down,” came the defeated voice of Admiral Jonas. “Send us your terms.”
Cheers erupted from the pirates around Haley, though she couldn’t find it in her to rejoice with them. The Alliance had saved Clew, just to turn on them once the Deshi were defeated. When the fleet had surprisingly arrived, she knew in the back of her mind that this wouldn’t end well.
It certainly did not end well for the Alliance.
***
The air was crisp in the Clew docking bay as she gazed up at the cruiser that had been such a part of her life over the past few weeks. Repair crews rushed this way and that in attempts to gain a handle on the monstrous task that lay before them, but there was also a triump
hant expression to every face.
Haley looked from the Reaper’s cradle, where she sat mauled and scarred from battle, to several other Clew ships that sported the same damage.
“She looks terrible,” Cade said from beside her, gazing up at the dark cruiser. “I wonder how long it will take to repair.”
Haley turned to him and sighed, knowing what was coming. As she looked at him now, she could tell a sort of darkness had been lifted from his stature. He stood beside her, gazing up at the Reaper with his black coat flowing about him and the red skull on his chest watching protectively outward. He seemed more confident. She wondered if the kind young boy had finally merged with the pirate.
She wasn’t looking forward to the ride home. All that had happened in the recent weeks made her feel like she’d be leaving a piece of herself behind. It would be a dull existence now. Especially without Saundi.
Word had come in as they returned to the docking bay that the No Quarter had been lost with all hands. Haley was a trained tactical officer and had watched the ship being batted about on her console but it was in the heat of battle, and there was nothing she could do at the time. She did know, however, as she watched the damage to the cruiser, that there was little hope that her friend would survive. Haley did her duty though. She remained focused on the task at hand during the fight and didn’t let her captain down. Her pirate Captain. How odd it was.
A gentle touch on her arm shook her from her thoughts. She looked up to find Cade’s eyes on her. “What?” she asked in mild alarm.
Cade just stared at her for a moment and then he wiped a tear from her cheek.
“Oh,” she said and wiped her eyes. She didn’t realize she’d been crying. “I guess it’s all just hitting me.”
Cade didn’t say anything and looked back up to the Reaper. He didn’t try and console her or pamper her, but he stepped a little closer, his arm barely touching hers to let her know he was there. That act brought more tears as it was just what Saundi would have done.
