by Jay Toney
It will take the Alliance time to build their fleet and get here. We have time to do any repairs and necessary upgrades, but we will have to leave soon and begin evacuating our support people and families. We knew this day would come and are prepared. How many people can you take on?"
"We have room for about 2500 people, maybe a little more."
"That many? We won't need to evacuate, I think we can fit all of our people here."
"Bravo!" Ares said, clapping. I see all of your problems have been solved, for now."
It was a good thing the captains couldn't see or hear Ares. His popping in would have scared the hell out of them. It still scared me.
"Captains, if you don't mind, dock your ships with the Prometheus. As soon as you are all aboard the carrier, you will get a demonstration of the upcoming refit."
"Nugget, as soon as they are aboard the Prometheus, set our course, flank speed, to the third planet. Ignore any complaints about our speed."
The Chameleon's Tail
Our ships complement was full now. I was able to replace our security team and lost workers with volunteers from the Crimson Tide and station personnel. The Prometheus was fully manned and had five more patrol ships, filling its docking cradles.
I received a number of complaints from the crewmen and officers aboard the Falcon and the Griffon. They were upset with the constant drills and exercises Jazz was making them do. They were mercenaries and should be used to military exercises, they would learn or take a walk out an airlock. Jazz was there to make sure things got done and he would do it.
I made a list of all those who complained, so I knew who I would need to replace. As far as I could tell, Jazz was doing an excellent job of getting the ship in shape. No one had been put out an airlock, as an example, yet. But, it was bound to happen with the increasing number of complaints.
All complaining suddenly stopped. I didn't want to know the details. It was Jazz's responsibility. He didn't ask for any replacements, so I considered the morale situation handled.
"Jazz is quite efficient at solving problems. He reminds me of me." Ares said. "I believe it is time to get going."
"Jewel, get me Captain Jazz on comm."
Jazz's image filled our viewscreen. He looked happier than I ever saw him. "Jazz, have you got your morale problems straightened out?"
"I do indeed. I brought the troublemakers together and explained just what it meant to be retired in Kesh. They didn't seem to think I would retire them. After a couple of examples, the crew stopped resisting me. The Falcon and the Griffon have new captains now."
"What he means is that he fought them both, in a duel, and won," Nugget translated.
"We need to be moving on, set your course to Zeta Chamaeleontis. Notify the rest of the fleet. We depart in 15 minutes." The fleet was ready to leave in 10.
****
"Nathaniel, Jewel has raised some concerns. I need a fresh sample from you."
"A fresh sample of what?" I was pretty sure I knew where this conversation was going.
"I'll see you in sickbay in 10 minutes. You can give a sample voluntarily or Miranda can extract one."
In other circumstances, having someone as cute as Miranda extracting a sample might be fun. However, she was all business. I wouldn't get any enjoyment with her obtaining a sample. In fact, it would probably be painful. I went to my quarters to see if Jewel wouldn't mind helping. After all, she requested the test.
Amber, Jewel, Persephone and I headed to sickbay together. Amber was getting fat. She had a waddle to her step now when she walked. It wouldn't be long before she was ready to give birth again. None of the girls would tell me the gender of the baby, leaving it as a surprise for me.
Doc accepted my sample, and magnified my sperm with an imager. He studied it carefully before tuning to me. "I've got good news and bad news."
"Give the good news first."
"You are not as virile as the gods claim to be. You don't need to worry about making any other species pregnant."
"I wasn't concerned about that."
"The bad news is that you are likely to get any female humanoid pregnant that you sleep with. I cannot make any adjustments to Jewel's or Amber's implants that would prevent you from getting them pregnant again."
"You mean that I can only sleep with them when we are ready to have another child?"
"It's that or you will have to rely on the old ways. These are still used on most planets," Doc handed me a box. "Make sure you use them."
I opened the box and removed a small packet. "Doc, it isn't going to be big enough."
"Trust me, it is. Jewel or Amber can instruct you on its proper use."
****
Amber decided it was time to stay below with the children. Her back was hurting and she didn't want to be more than a few seconds away from the bathroom.
"I'm bringing us out of hyperspace now." Nugget touched the controls and the viewscreen changed to show another blue dwarf sun. The Prometheus was the last ship to come out of hyperspace and join our fleet. That wasn't surprising. What was, was how he managed to get here so fast. The Prometheus was easily three times as large as Red's battleship. It was also carrying two scout ships, three frigates, two destroyers and 13 patrol ships on its docking cradles.
It was the only ship to raise its shields and bring its weapons online after coming out of hyperspace. "57 seconds, that was cutting it close. Three more seconds and there would have been hell to pay. Jazz has certainly made his crew more efficient. Out of curiosity why didn't you consider me for command?"
"I did and immediately rejected the idea. I couldn't see you and Astrea moving into quarters no bigger than your closet."
"Are you implying that I wouldn't accept the command because of the size of my new quarters?"
"That and the loss of the other accommodations aboard this ship. Its premade frozen meals for his crew."
"Damn right! There is no way in hell I would have accepted. I may like to work, but I like to be comfortable too. Besides, how could we continue our games if I moved?"
That was a rhetorical question, that didn't need answering. Nugget turned away from me, his attention back on his duties.
"Nathaniel, our sensors have picked up a fleet of ships orbiting the third planet. There is no transponder information coming from them."
"Jewel, signal the fleet to go dark as a precaution."
"Nugget, change course two degrees starboard, declination one degree."
To make us harder to see we lined up behind the Prometheus. It was even larger than the Persephone, making it easy to hide in its sensor shadow.
It was a waiting game, to see if we could identify the ships before we were spotted. We ignored the complaints from the Navigation satellites we passed. Our fleet continued on its course maintaining its .2c speed.
"Captain, Captain Lockwood is requesting communications."
"Put him on screen."
Captain Lockwood's imaged filled the viewscreen, "Captain Roberts, planet Capernicus is hardly worth our efforts. It is a poor planet. The Alliance invaded it over a century ago and hasn't left. It has no real value other than it is close to another star system occupied by them."
"For the Alliance to maintain an occupation force, they must be getting something of value from the planet. I intend to find out what it is and take it from them."
Our approach to the inner planets would take hours, not days, at our speed. Persephone split the viewscreen, added the tactical information, and our course projection to our viewscreen. More details would be added later, when we got closer. Right now, the Alliance fleet was represented by a single icon.
Our ships managed to get within an orbit of the Alliance fleet. They didn't spot our approach until after we made our final course change and began decelerating towards them. Jewel had their transponder information and added the ships names and class to the icons on the viewscreen. We were facing two cruisers, four destroyers, and three frigates.
It was a f
ormidable fleet, but so were we now. We had both advantage of numbers and technology on our side. We would be facing them with a carrier, a battleship, a cruiser, two destroyers, three frigates, two scout ships and thirteen patrol ships.
After defeating the fleet, we would have to deal with the ground forces. Our sensors showed that the Alliance forces were not limited to occupying a single colony. Capernicus was colonized long before the exodus and had a large population spread out across the planet. We were able to identify twelve different bases.
The Alliance ships broke orbit and headed towards us. They didn't make any demands for us to surrender, or make any threats. Their intentions were clear. Like us, their ships had their shields up and weapons ready.
Jazz was still leading our formation. The Vengeance and the Valkyrie moved closer, taking dorsal and ventral positions. He hadn't launched any of his ships yet. I hoped that he wasn't going to try to take on the oncoming fleet with just Red and Beverly supporting him. Jazz was tough, I prayed he was smart too.
"Notice how the new captain of the Prometheus keeps our numbers hidden. If the other fleet had any idea about what is coming, they would flee. They should at least be able to tell what class of ship is leading the battle."
"Ares, make some noise or something when you pop in. Quit scaring me like that."
"I am sorry, I forgot how easily you are startled. Boo."
Jazz waited until we were within missile range before launching the ships. They all deployed from their docking cradles simultaneously, and moved into formation. He sprung his surprise after it was too late for the Alliance to evade. He must have had the captains of his ships practicing this maneuver in simulation.
Jazz wasn't done yet. He still another trick up his sleeve. That was hard to visualize. All of his shirts were sleeveless. He cut the Prometheus's drives and rotated his ship, so that the enemy would be facing his ship's broadside cannon. He still wasn't finished. He rolled the Prometheus so its belly was facing the oncoming fleet. The Alliance wasn't facing just his broadsides, they were facing his full might and the strongest part of his ship's shields. The shield projectors overlapped on the dorsal and ventral portions of his ship creating bands of overlapping shields. Jazz was definitely the right captain for the carrier. His maneuver surprised me. It was something even I wouldn't have thought of.
"Nugget, you have the con.
Jewel, scramble our fighters."
Our Marauders would be staying with the fleet, providing a defensive screen for any attacking fighters launched by the Alliance. The fighters from the Valkyrie and the Vengeance would be attacking the fleet. After the space battle, we would reform into attack groups and attack the ground targets.
It was past time I got over my fear of the Medusa fighters. Persephone, Astrea, and I were the only ones aboard who could fly them. Astrea was not a fighter. She preferred to sit in judgment on the rare souls that came her way. So far she had a following of six people that I knew of. That is more people than she had in thousands of years. It was what attracted her to us, and of course Nugget.
Persephone couldn't fly alone. We had to maintain line of sight and stay close to each other when we were off our ship. On board the Persephone, she could apparate and disapparate at will. She was growing stronger, regaining her powers. I didn't even use her holographic emitters any longer. Occasionally I would wear the cluster of emitters as a keepsake but most of the time it stayed safe in our cabin. We rarely separated from each other, even aboard the ship. She preferred to stay at my side and I liked it that way. Together we made a team that was nearly invincible.
"Our fighter has been serviced and is ready," Persephone said, leading the way to the waiting car in the transport tube. She made the menu selections and sat next to me. The car rose on its repulsorfield and sped down the tracks, passing the waiting passengers along the way.
Jewel was already in her Marauder, flying on Doc's wing. She couldn't fly on my wing. Her Marauder was extremely fast and maneuverable but not fast enough. It was upgraded using our stolen technology, but it was still only half as fast as my Medusa fighter.
We exited the tunnel car and made our way to the interceptor. Our ground crew had the ship ready and waiting for us. Its hatch opened at the touch of my palm, on the door plate. Even after experiencing pocket universes with Persephone, I still had a hard time visualizing how the fighter was larger on the inside than the outside. We quickly changed into flight suits that were waiting for us in its lockers. I even wore the helmet that came with it. My ejection reminded me that it had its uses.
The faceshield of my helmet provided visual information on targeting and navigation that was otherwise not visible on the heads up display, (HUD). Its face mask insured a steady flow of oxygen in the event of a hull rupture or ejection.
We took our seats in the pilot's and copilot's seats. I willed a connection with the fighters computers. This time instead of a direct connection, a connection was made through my neurochip. Before I realized what was happening, the engines started, the AI ran through a preflight check, and the ship taxied to the ready line in preparation for takeoff.
"Persephone take her out."
"Me?"
"Yes, most of the time I do the flying. It's about time you get to have some fun too."
"I have fun all of the time."
"Not like this. I'll take over when we engage in combat."
Persephone, eased the fighter out of the shuttle bay, turned, and headed towards the battle. "This is fun!" she smiled.
This isn't fun. I placed my hand over hers and eased the throttles forward. "Now enjoy yourself." Persephone took in a sharp breath and experimented with a few rolls. "That's better, now try a loop or two."
"I can't, I don't know how."
"It's just like turning but on a different axis. Pull back on your controls and hold them until you see the battle ahead of us again, then ease your stick forward to level out."
Persephone grasped the joystick on her console. Her hands turned white with the loss of circulation, and she pulled back on the control stick. The fighter responded pulling up into a loop. She held the control stick until the ship finished the loop and she could see our target again. Then Persephone eased the stick forward and leveled the ship. "I've never dreamed of doing that."
She did another loop and a couple of rolls enjoying the freedom of flight. I would have to take her and our daughter Demi on a joy ride when we had the time. I took over flying. Our ship was getting close to the fight.
The Alliance did two things I had never seen them do before. One of the destroyers broke off from formation, before a single shot was fired, and ran for deep space and escaped into hyperspace. The cruisers launched fighters of their own to intercept us. They were smaller than the gunships we occasionally fought, faster, and more maneuverable than our marauders were before they were upgraded with our new technology.
The fighters were not as fast as our fighters were but there were close to a hundred defending their fleet. They would have to be dealt with in addition to the capital ships. The fighters didn't need to be as fast as our own ships were. They didn't have the distance to cross that we did and we would have to slow down to attack the Alliance ships. Our speed would not be much of an advantage when we engaged their ships. We would have to slow down to match their speed.
The Vengeance and the Valkyrie each fired their first salvo of missiles and began firing their main guns. The rest of the ships held their fire, waiting to close the gap before firing. Our fighters engaged the Alliance fighters, filling the area with particle beams, missiles, and spent projectiles.
I advanced the throttles further increasing our speed, heading to the fight. After only seconds had passed I cut the throttles, flipped the ship and started decelerating hard. While we were slowing I cycled through the ship's MFD, (Multiple Function Display), searching through the menus for its weapons. The word, "Vlitmata," caught my attention. I made the selection. According to the sub menu, I had twelve missiles
aboard and ready to use. Two missile ports opened, that I was unaware the ship even had.
I cut the thrust and flipped the ship again. We were able to see flashes of light from weapons fire and explosions nearby. My targeting computer locked onto an Alliance fighter. I got a missile lock and fired my first missile. The missile, like the ship, traveled at hyper-velocity. The missile struck the Alliance fighter. At the speed it was going, it didn't need to explode. The kinetic energy that it built up was enough to disable the fighter. The explosion from its small warhead completely destroyed the ship, leaving an expanding ball of plasma and hot gasses in its place.
I banked hard to my right and my weapons computer selected the next closest target on my heading. The missile icon on my HUD indicated a missile lock and I fired again, rolled the ship, and turned to my left.
There were two other weapons selections on the MFD; δέσμες σωματιδίων, (désmes somatidíon), for the particle beam weapons, and 40 χιλιοστά κανόνι, (40 chiliostá kanóni), for the 40mm cannon. I touched the screen for the particle beam cannon. The missile ports closed, a small turret extended from below the cockpit, and a gun sight appeared on my HUD.
The Vengeance and the Valkyrie fired another missile salvo and began engaging the Alliance capital ships with their main guns. The Prometheus, now in optimal weapons range, opened fire. The destroyers and the scout ships added their weapons fire engaging the Alliance fleet. All fighters, from both fleets, were forced to move away from the capital ships to prevent being caught in the crossfire.
My Vorg friends left formation, accelerating towards the capital ships firing their plasma cannon and missiles. They moved closer and to the flanks, attacking from the sides and blocking avenues of retreat for the Alliance ships.
I targeted my next ship, and was about to fire. "Look out!" Persephone screamed, grabbing the control stick banking and turning hard to the right. The fighter shook violently and metal scraped on metal. One of the Alliance ships purposely collided with our ship in an attempt to destroy it. The rear view showed the Alliance fighter breaking apart and bursting into flames, before it exploded. Diagnostic checks revealed that our ship was still fully functional, but we were loosing air. The leak would have to be repaired and the hull inspected.
