“I’ve assumed they will come out of warp roughly where they did yesterday. For the smaller force I’m assuming their best option is to fire off a large salvo and warp out. Anything else and they won’t be around long.” Again Warner nodded.
“If they have an equal force then I’m assuming they will try to inflict as much damage on our ships as possible. Assuming they arrive close together in time and space then they’ll probably flank one way or the other. But that’s all based on them having the same type of weapon systems as we do. We know they have missiles but what else could they have?”
“Yes I was wondering that myself. However I take comfort in the fact that our missile systems took down theirs.”
“And theirs took down a couple of ours” Chase responded quickly.
“True. But that tends to indicate that they might not have such a lead in missile tech. Their scout mustn’t have had any long range pulse cannon or they would have used it. But that’s not surprising for a scout ship.”
“No they would have been designed for speed not firepower. However, whatever they send in now will be designed for offensive action. You can bet on that.”
“For an equal force we will have to play it by ear, dance the dance as it unfolds and hope to concentrate our hits on them, one at a time. I’m more worried about the encounter with a larger force.”
“I’m assuming that they will be here to destroy our ships but they may, just may be here to do that and either destroy our base or take it over.”
“That will depend on what support they have. If they don’t have much backup then they would probably bombard and bug out. However, if they have good backup or are a huge force themselves then, hey, they may just decide to take this base out now and start rolling up either the Alliance or the Federation from here. It is the central position and would give them a decisive edge.”
“Worst case then is they try to invade.”
“Yep.”
“Well if it was one of our Groups, the carrier would launch its fighters to attack the enemy capital ships while moving its capitals to within bombardment range. Then they’ll bombard until the enemy batteries are eliminated and they have forced the enemy ships to warp away or be destroyed. After that they’ll send in the shuttles. Once they realise that our ground based defences are pretty weak they’ll shuttle in close and storm the facility.”
Warner took over the narrative. “We on the other hand need to buy at least ten minutes for the base force and deep space shuttles to warp away and for the local shuttles to RTB. The question is how to do so without losing our ships.”
“I think our best strategy is to first ensure we get in between the enemy capitals and Klaster. I recommend an initial angled run in, launch a salvo from each frigate aimed at the enemy capitals to force them to take evasive action or to soak up their missiles and then to pull back fast. Thereafter we focus all our missiles on shooting down their runners.”
“Agreed” said Warner “and there will probably be dozens if not hundreds of them. Let the pulse guns take on the enemy fighters if they come in close. That’s probably the best we can do. Program in three different angled runs. If we start higher, then dive through and bank away. And if we start below climb through and bank away.”
“Do you want each ship synced in formation or conducting independent runs?”
“My preference is to stay in formation. But provide an option for both and I’ll call that as a parameter at the time.”
“Ok Sir. I’ll code these up and have them programmed into all three ships as soon as the Washington arrives. Just to recap then, you will make the call for automated engagement and specify either synchronous or asynchronous angled penetration runs with options to go left, right or centre. These manoeuvres will then cease once the ships have disengaged 100km. Thereafter you will have the option to automatically warp to Alpha Phi or conduct another similar manoeuvre. ”
“Correct. Have that ready to go by 1030. The Washington is due back at 1100. Thanks Chase. You’re doing an excellent job.”
“Thank you Sir and I’d like to say Sir that…” Chase hesitated for a second and Warner could read in his eyes the words he was not saying ‘just in case we don’t make it’. “…that it’s an honour serving with you.”
“Thank you Chase. I’m honoured to have you with me. You’ve made a real mark here.”
Warner left for the command centre where he found Ella and Aubrey. “Ella, Aubrey”
“Yes Sir” they both replied.
“If the enemy comes with superior force I will be activating automatic engagement straight away and ordering one of the manoeuvre options that Chase is coding up now. He should have these finished by 1030.”
“Right Sir” said Ella.
“I want you both to familiarise yourself with these options before 1100. If something should happen to me then it will be down to you Ella and if both of us are out of action then it will be your call Aubrey.”
Ella looked at Aubrey and she looked back to Ella. Both pondered the significance of the trigger event. “Will do, Sir” said Aubrey.
Chapter 16. Klaster 1130, 23 May.
Warner was in a conference room down from Rihan’s office. He had Chase with him. Herb Debeck was there too. They were waiting on Reina and the Commodore. The Washington had only landed ten minutes ago and Warner knew that Reina would need a few minutes to arrange for the replenishment to get underway.
“So Herb how did you go with the radar?” asked Warner.
“The Alliance techs were setting it up when we left. I received a signal a couple of hours ago to say it was now operational.”
“Good. How’s your new XO working out?”
“He’s good. I let him run with the arrangements on Alpha Phi. Having him there made it all plain sailing. The Alliance people were in effect dealing with one of their own. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. I was a little worried about the level of cooperation we would get. But there were no worries at all.”
“That’s good. How did he handle the ship on watch?”
“No problems, but it was pretty routine. No enemy scouts popped up in our way” smiled Herb.
“I think that situation will be rectified later today” said Warner as he rose to his feet to welcome the Commodore. “Welcome back Sir.”
“Good morning Captain. I understand you’ve had an eventful time?” queried Pious.
“Yes Sir. You could say that” and turning to Reina “welcome Commander. Your ship is being replenished?”
“Thank you Sir. Yes it is. We should be good to go in an hour” replied Reina.
“If you don’t mind Sir I’d like to get straight down to business.”
“By all means Captain, it’s your show.”
“As you know we encountered an enemy scout vessel yesterday just after 1600. It was hit with one of our missiles but warped away. Our sensor arrays were able to track its arrival and return vectors. We believe that it originated from the Chelora belt on the other side of the Dordallous Cloud.”
“So you’re saying they have the means to warp through the cloud?” asked Pious.
“Yes Sir.” Warner waited to see if the Commodore wanted to take this further but Pious didn’t. Herb was still taking it in and Reina was deep in thought. Warner continued “I also believe that they can warp at least twice as fast as we can. There’s no other explanation for how they could have gotten here in the time they did assuming that it was their sensor that triggered the scout.”
Again Warner paused to let this fact sink in. He saw the concern on their faces. “Yes it’s a bit of a worry. If they can do this, what else can they do that we can’t? But it’s not all doom and gloom. They didn’t seem to have any better missile tech than us. We took out each of their runners. They took out one of ours but they missed two and one struck before they warped away.”
This news brought a degree of consolation. “So you think that if they took one day to respond to their sensor then they’ll b
e back here in force this afternoon?” asked Pious.
“Yes, it’s what I would do Sir.”
“Agreed” confirmed the Commodore. “The question is with what.”
“Our thinking is that they won’t be coming with the kitchen sink. Not yet anyway. I reckon they have a surveillance flotilla using a temporary base on Chelora. We really have no idea of what types of ships they have or what capabilities they have. But whatever they do have they will have to replenish them and given that we swept Chelora six months ago it’s unlikely that they would have the capacity to build a large base in that time. What do you think Sir?”
“I agree with your logic but who knows what they can and cannot do. We need more intel. We need to conduct a recce in force to Chelora.” But then Pious paused and continued “You’ve already considered and ruled out an immediate recce because of the potential threat to Klaster?”
“Yes Sir. We’ve only three frigates and we have a vulnerable base force overhead. We can’t really afford to split our force.”
“Agreed. Maybe this is something the Alliance can undertake. The Wasp Group should arrive on Alpha Phi in two days. I will ask them to undertake the recce.”
“Thank you Sir and that’s good news about the Wasp Group. They must have pulled out all stops.”
“Yes I’ve been delighted by the whole-hearted support and cooperation we are receiving from the Alliance. It’s very encouraging. Any news of Enterprise and Arc Royal?”
“Yes Sir, the Enterprise Group should arrive on Alpha Phi in ten days and the Arc Royal in 13.”
“Mmm” said Pious “they are playing it safe, sending them to Alpha Phi. Fair enough. Let’s hope the extra delay doesn’t hurt us. So Captain, please continue with your briefing.”
“Thank you Sir. The focus now must be on dealing with whatever force the enemy warps in with. We’ve considered three basic scenarios - one where they send an inferior force; two where we have parity and three where they send in a full scale invasion or destruction force. I don’t consider the latter likely but we need to prepare for it because it’s the most dangerous enemy course of action.”
Everyone just nodded. So Warner continued. “The prime objective is to protect the Klaster base force. Secondary objectives are to protect the Klaster base facility and maintain a force in being capable of harassment. To achieve these objectives 17 Flotilla will patrol the Klaster belt in formation and engage any enemy entering the belt space. In the event of encountering a superior force, 17 Flotilla will delay the enemy long enough for the base force to warp away and then will itself warp away to Alpha Phi.”
“I want all ships launched by 1400. We’ll patrol the belt in arrowhead formation, Hermes front and centre, Sydney on the right and Washington on the left. We’ll endeavour to maintain formation and fight as a synced force with your two ships slaved to the Hermes battle system control. Chase will be uploading the code for the automated manoeuvres. In the event that enemy jamming prevents full synchronisation, you will activate partial sync adhering to the manoeuvre paths but doing your own targeting.”
“Chase, can you go through the automated manoeuvres now?” asked Warner.
“Yes Sir” and Chase ran through them using the display.
Once he’d finished Warner took over again. “In the event that the Hermes is destroyed, Reina you will take command.” Reina nodded confirmation. “If no enemy show up, we’ll finish the combined patrol at 2200 and Reina your ship will stay on CAP. We’ll rinse and repeat this each day from here on. Any questions?”
Reina responded “Will the upload include default fire zones?”
“Yes it does Commander” replied Chase. Reina nodded back to Chase.
“How much time do we need to buy for the base force” asked Herb.
“They’re on ten minutes standby. So I’d say we need to give them fifteen” replied Warner.
“That could be a long time Sir” said Herb.
“Yes it could but that base force is vital. We lose that and it will take months to get another one out here and that could very well cost us the war. We do what it takes in that regard. Is that understood?”
“Yes Sir” responded both Reina and Herb.
“And what about the base facility and staff Sir….in the event that we are forced to warp away?” asked Reina.
“They will have to defend themselves as best they can. Basically they will retreat underground to Level 1 with the bulk of the staff. A small rear guard will remain above at each of the two mine entrances for as long as the nearby batteries last. Once they go, they will also withdraw underground. There are enough provisions to last a month. But the cavalry should arrive well before then.”
Seeing there were no more questions Warner asked the Commodore “where do you want to be Sir?”
“Has provision been made for interstellar comms within the mine complex?” asked Pious.
“Yes Sir there has.”
“Then I will stay on Klaster and help marshal the resources.” Pious looked at each person around the table then continued “I know you will all do your duty but I do remind you that our very survival as a species may depend on your efforts and on your courage over the coming days. I wish you well and good luck.”
Chapter 17. Klaster 1230, 23 May.
Warner entered Rihan’s office with sandwiches and drinks in hand. She looked up and smiled. “Just a minute” she said. She made some more entries into her terminal and hit Send. Then she turned to Dave. “Last drinks hey?” She gave him a warm smile.
He loved her smile and made a note to himself to try and remember this one.
“Yeh but I’m afraid the last meal is a bit below what you’d expect” said Warner.
“Sorry, I told the mess steward to close up shop.”
They munched into their lunch with relish nonetheless. “Not bad!” said a surprised Warner between mouthfuls. Rihan nodded agreement.
“Have you got all your marines down yet?” asked Warner.
“No, not all of them. There’s still another platoon on board the base force. Once the Washington’s juiced up I’ll bring them down.”
Warner thought about saying she should make sure they hurried but then he didn’t want to spoil this moment with more worry. “Good. Have you got a new berth down below yet?”
“Yeh but I’m next to the wrong man” she teased.
“Just so long as he keeps the statutory one metre separation”
“I’m afraid we’ve had to throw a lot of regs out the door, given the circumstances” and she smiled.
“I see you’re packing again” and he nodded towards her sidearm.
“If I recall, you like a good woman with a gun.”
“I just like a good woman” and he grinned.
“A good woman and a good man, we’ve got it all. Don’t we?” and she looked earnestly at Dave.
“Yes we do” and he kissed her on the cheek.
“Don’t go and die on me Dave. Promise?”
“I promise. And no heroics from you, right?”
“No heroics. I’ve too much to live for now.”
“Ditto.” He wiped the tear forming below her eye and hugged her. She wondered would this be the last time they embraced. She could feel the tears welling but she was determined to be strong. Dave too was wondering the same thing. He took in a deep breath and smelled her scent. Like the smile earlier he wanted to capture this snapshot like a bear desperate to store way as much as it can before hibernation. Yet it wasn’t hibernation he was heading towards. Far from it.
After a long time they parted and Warner kissed her lips and she responded forcefully with her tongue. He kissed back but gently and she softened and they lingered. He kissed her again on the forehead and said “I love you”.
She held his face in her hands and kissed him on the forehead. “Ditto”.
He smiled, turned and left. The parting was over. Rihan took a deep breath in, wiped her eyes, looked to her terminal but before returning to it she whis
pered “God speed my love.”
Warner strode down the corridor towards the dock. He wiped his own tears away. Her smell and her smile were with him and he whispered to himself “Lord, please protect my love.”
Chapter 18. Klaster 1300, 23 May.
Above Klaster a heavy lift shuttle was departing the dock of the base force. In its hold was the first of four Trojan II battlewagons. This mounted a long range 80mm pulse cannon and two rapid firing 10mm quanto pulse guns protected by polymer armour and its own high-stress shielding. The Trojan II would add some real hitting power to the ground defences.
The shuttle banked sharply and entered into a steep descent - its thrusters burning a trail behind it. The pilot was heading to the pad outside the Pulton 1 main entrance. There waiting in the adjacent dock was Art Simons. He had just finished giving instructions to the new platoon commander, a tall strong looking young 2nd Lt called Jake Tomar. He reminded Art of himself twelve years earlier. He was tall and strong, all muscle and in command.
Art could hear him now barking out instructions to his troops. They had a shit load of gear to manhandle to the elevator as they were critically short of any ground transport and personal gear didn’t rate at the moment.
Art hailed Sue. “Sue, have you finished deploying 1st Pl at the facility entrance?”
“Yes I have. I’m just getting a bite to eat. Have you eaten?”
“No but I’ll get something when I get back. 3rd Pl are down and stowing their gear. I’ve given the Commander, a one-pipper named Jake Tomar, a quick rundown on the defence plan. He knows he’s the fire-brigade but I haven’t had time to tell him details of the contingency plans. The first of the Trojans should be here any minute and 2nd Pl is deployed at the entrance. They are literally digging in as I speak. I haven’t seen that done in years. Makes you think there might be a war on.”
“Very funny Art. Just make sure you have a hole to duck into. I’m sure you can get someone to dig one for you. You’re a very persuasive man when you want to be.”
The Awakening: Book 1 of Warner's World Page 26
