Solomon Family Warriors II

by Robert H. Cherny

  Rachel hated the underlying message that having her personnel suit up sent to the majority of her crew that had never been in battle before. Telling them to seal their suits meant that she expected the ship to take enough damage that the hull would be breached and the flight suits would be needed to protect the crew from exposure to the vacuum of space. Reducing the atmospheric pressure and changing the mix only aggravated the situation. If they were as badly out gunned as she thought they were, they would need all help they could get. The last thing she needed was for the newbies to be afraid. She would have preferred they be calm and confident in their abilities in the coming battle. The reality of the situation was that she expected to get hit and get hit hard. Space Force protocols recommended, but did not require, non-bridge crews to wear flight suits going into battle. Sealing the helmets was a hotly debated precaution. Rachel had thought through balancing the disadvantages of the reduction in mobility the suits caused against the potential of surviving a major hit.

  Part of Rachel’s current problem stemmed from the fact that the Albert Schweitzer was not designed to do battle with another battleship. None of the planetary defense systems had battleships. The largest ship they expected to have to deal with was the destroyer class. Even the biggest of the systems with destroyers could only field a half dozen at best. Some of the freight companies used cruisers to defend their convoys, but the likelihood of encountering one of those was slim. Facing another battleship like the one currently firing on them was never part of the plan. But then, as Rachel well knew, no plan survives contact with the enemy and here she was watching a broadside of Disruptor missiles slicing through space in her direction. She was not confident in their ability to survive this encounter, but they were committed and she felt strongly that the point right now was not to die for one’s country but rather to assist the other person in dying for theirs.

  Rachel text messaged Elizabeth. “Status report please.”

  “All systems nominal. All personnel at or near battle stations. Internal compartments sealed. Most personnel showing increased heart rate, respiration and blood pressure.”

  “Thank you, Elizabeth.”

  “Captain? Are you afraid?”

  “Yes.”

  “Peter said you are brilliant when you are afraid.”

  “We can only hope.”

  “We’re going to get hit pretty hard aren’t we?”

  “Yes, Elizabeth. I’m sorry.”

  “Rachel, it’s what battleships do. Carry on, my brave captain.”

  Rachel called her fire control officers. “Fire control, load countermeasures in the center forward tubes. Set all tubes to auto load Disruptor missiles and then radar seeking counter missiles. P I ships and destroyers load two tubes with Disruptor missiles. Load everything else with radar seeking counter missiles. On my mark, all ships prepare to engage incoming missiles with lasers only.”

  “Captain, lasers bounce off Disruptor missiles.” Lt. Chin commented.

  “I know that and the people that fired them know Captain Rachel Solomon knows that. Shall we let them think that their intelligence is bad and someone else is in command over here?”

  Faye Anne smiled from her post behind a sensor array as she sealed her helmet.

  “On my second mark, fire countermeasures. All personnel except bridge personnel will retreat back to the hospital ship.”

  “On my third mark. All ships except P I’s shut down all systems. P I’s roll to defensive posture. Like the submariners used to do, we will rig for silent running. All vital systems switch to manual backup. Engineers deploy to critical locations.”

  Rachel surveyed her bridge crew to be sure they were suited up. Aware that for her medical personnel, this was the first time they had ever been in battle and they were likely very tense right about now, Rachel decided to borrow a tactic from her mother’s play book. Avi had referred to what she did to calm the girls fears before they went into battle as “warrior school” and as the girls were growing up, before every confrontation she convened school with some lesson about what was likely to happen next. With the calm delivery of an Academy instructor light years away from any real battles, she broadcast a lesson to the entire crew over the flight suit comm units.

  “Ladies and Gentlemen, the ship we are facing has opened fire on us with a volley of missiles known as Disruptor missiles. These missiles were developed at Eretz. My parents assisted in the certification trials of the early production versions of this missile. For those of you who are not familiar with the Disruptor let me explain some of its characteristics. Disruptor missiles are programmed to destroy high level electronics without destroying the ship. Generally a single Disruptor can do enough damage to a ship like ours to put it out of action. However, a Disruptor only works if the electronics is operating at the time the missile detonates. They are also programmed to not detonate if they detect that one of their colleagues has accomplished its mission. We are about to play chicken with a bunch of Disruptor missiles. The good news is that we’re smarter than they are. The bad news is that there are so many of them. Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s that time. Engage with lasers NOW!”

  In spite of all the publicity claiming the Disruptor missiles’ immunity to lasers, some of the Disruptor missiles were detonated by the lasers, but the majority of them maintained their trajectory and headed straight for the armored shell of the battleship’s wall of armor.

  After what felt like forever, but was really only a few minutes, Rachel commanded, “Second mark! Fire countermeasures. All personnel retreat to the hospital ship. Engineers to critical stations and prepare for shut down.”

  “Prepare to transfer fire control to the P I ships!”

  Wendy laughed because she understood this move. “P I's are immune to Disruptor missiles!”

  She spoke out loud to no one in particular. Rachel had neglected to mention that in her “lesson” to her crew.

  The countermeasures exploded in front of the ship. Hundreds of small blinking lights, tiny radio transmitters, bits of shiny metal and thermal radiators burst in colorful explosions designed to distract incoming missiles. Some of the Disruptor missiles were fooled, but most continued on their path. Rachel smiled. The other commander apparently believed the Disruptor missiles would do their job and was holding his fire. There had not been a second volley. What she did next depended on when the second volley came.

  “Third mark! All systems shut down!”

  “Rachel, are you sure this is a good idea?”

  “Elizabeth! Shut down!”

  “But, Rachel!”

  “You will not survive unless you shut down!”

  “You need me.”

  “NOW! Elizabeth! The P I’s will take care of us!”

  “But, Rachel!”

  “Elizabeth! This is a direct order! Shut down. I will bring you back up as soon as I can.”

  “Yes, Rachel.” The ship’s computer shut down. Automatic and mechanical back up systems came on line to operate life support and propulsion.

  The bridge went dark. The destroyers disappeared into the blackness of space. Only the residual heat from their drives betrayed their existence. The P I ships rotated to present their hardened heat shields designed to withstand repeated descents through atmospheres to planetary surfaces to face the oncoming missiles. The P I ‘s were far enough away from the Albert Schweitzer that a Disruptor seeking them as a target could detonate and not harm the larger ship. There are times when the inverse square law can be used to one’s advantage. The pickets slid in behind the big ship’s now silent propulsion system and shut down. A few seconds later, last of all, the ships from Everest closed their radiator panels, shut down and disappeared into the darkness.

  Tense minutes passed as the Disruptor missiles passed harmlessly by the silent ships. One Disruptor hit one of the P I ships, but did not detonate and did only minor damage to one weapons pod. “They’re gone,” Wendy called.

  “They’ll be back,” Rachel said. “We ca
n’t wait for them to get out of range before starting up again. We have to out smart them. Pickets maintain silent running until the Disruptor missiles pass you again. Then attack them from behind. They are vulnerable to lasers from behind. Watch your sixes! Watch each other’s sixes. The Disruptor missiles will turn on you if they sense you behind them.”

  The two big ships drifted towards each other on their ballistic trajectories. Ports opened on the strange ship and two dozen fighter interceptors appeared.

  “Captain Darwin, you are free to engage on your command.”

  “Acknowledged. Engaging.” The four P I’s and two destroyers restarted their engines and raced toward the small ships headed in their direction. Captain Bozak and his four ships were not far behind.

  The second volley of missiles leaped from the strange ship. The Disruptor missiles had failed and the commander of the other ship apparently gave up hope of taking the Schweitzer and its crew alive. Heat seekers could not be used to find the targets since the ships were shut down, so the missiles were radar guided. One of the problems with a radar or laser guided missile is that it is easy to follow the radar or laser back to its source. With the Schweitzer still dark, Lt. Darwin remotely commanded it to fire the pre-loaded volley of radar seeking counter-missiles. The space between the ships lit up as the missiles and counter missiles detonated in a frenzy of mutual destruction.

  Sensing the sudden bursts of electrical energy, the Disruptor missiles that had harmlessly passed the formation reversed their course and headed back toward the Schweitzer and its cohorts. Passive sensors on the Schweitzer alerted the bridge that they were once again in danger.

  “Restart all systems!” Rachel commanded. “Rudder amidships come to course 0, 0, 15 relative!” The small rotation would allow her to fire her engines without toasting the picket ships behind her. There was an agonizing wait as the electronics systems restarted themselves and went through their initialization protocols.

  “Engage incoming missiles with lasers,” Rachel commanded.

  The laser batteries sprang to life under computer control as the ship fended off the approaching warheads, many of which were way too close for comfort.

  The helmsman responded the ship had come to the desired course.

  “Engineering, all ahead one quarter,” Rachel ordered.

  “All ahead one quarter, aye.”

  The opposing ship’s Disruptor missiles, having regained their target, were passing the line of the silent and dark pickets as they traveled back in the direction they had come.

  The bridge crew could see through the view port that the destroyers and P I ships were being devastatingly effective against the smaller fighter interceptors. Within the first ten minutes, a quarter of the interceptors were gone. The remainder became much more cautious. Saturn simply made better ships than Valiant. What was going on out there was proof of that fact. The Space Force veterans had a saying that suggested one should look to Valiant for leadership and innovation, but to look to Saturn for star ships. Rachel surmised that had the small ships been powered by fission reactors instead of chemicals, the battle would not have been so one sided. The battleship’s fire control crews reported that they had returned to their positions.

  Rachel pursed her lips in thought. “We want the big ship alive. Load Disruptor missiles in all tubes!” When the fire control officer reported that the command had been completed, Rachel commanded, “Captain Darwin, keep an eye on the pickets!”

  “Aye, Aye, Captain!”

  “Engineering! All ahead full,” Rachel ordered.

  “All ahead full, aye.”

  The two ships drew closer, the strange ship threw barrages of missiles, most of which the Schweitzer’s lasers and counter missiles intercepted and destroyed harmlessly. The Schweitzer had not previously fired offensively, but rather had devoted its energies to defending itself. The P I ships and destroyers were carrying the battle to the enemy’s wall of support ships while the big ship held its fire awaiting a better firing solution. The space between the two ships was littered with debris from the missiles and the multiple waves of countermeasures each ship used to deceive the other’s missiles. The two ships were roughly beam on to each other. In some ways the engagement was becoming reminiscent of a battle between sailing ships who stood off abeam of each other and tore into each other’s rigging.

  The Schweitzer’s side walls were not armored like its nose, but the beam-on attitude allowed more lasers to be brought to bear on the incoming missiles. A few of the missiles got through and inflicted minor damage to the forward fire control bays. There were some injuries, but due to the precaution of sealing the flight suits before entering the battle, there were no fatalities. Rachel watched the icons on her displays that showed her the locations of the ship’s personnel.

  “Elizabeth, please keep an eye on Isaac for me.” His icon showed him in one of the forward missile rooms where the hull had been breached.

  “His heart rate and respiration are elevated significantly consistent with his current level of physical activity. Captain, he is doing his job. Please, keep your mind on yours.”

  “Yes, mother!”

  The two ships drew closer. The barrage from the other ship came in waves. It rolled, spinning along its long axis, to present its missile tubes to the oncoming battleship, but did not change course.

  “Lt. Chin, what do you make of the enemy’s firing pattern?” Rachel asked.

  “They have more tubes than we do, but they can’t load them as quickly,” Lt. Chin answered.

  “Who has the advantage in a slug fest?” Rachel asked.

  “We do. We can fire faster and can get more missiles into action than they can.”

  “Engines! All Stop!” Rachel called.

  “Engines, All Stop Aye, Captain.”

  “Rudder amidships! Rotate to face the other ship!” She gave the coordinates.

  “Disruptor missiles in all tubes! Stand by to fire all tubes.”

  The majority of the missiles from the other ship were still being deflected or destroyed before they reached the Schweitzer, but the range at which they were being destroyed had narrowed.

  “Fire all tubes!” The volley of missiles rained down on the approaching ship. Real Disruptor missiles were more resistant to countermeasures than the knockoffs the enemy ship appeared to be using. Rashi had reprogrammed the Disruptor missiles to ignore the activities of their colleagues and detonate independently so they would not be fooled as they had fooled the Disruptor missiles fired at them. Fewer than a dozen of the hundred Disruptor missiles fired from the Schweitzer got through the defenses and embedded themselves in the strange ship’s exterior. As expected, the ship shut down. Their mission complete, the Disruptor missiles shut down. Mere seconds later, the ship’s backup systems came on line. The Disruptor missiles, still embedded in the strange ship’s hull, re-engaged and shut the ship down again. Rashi had learned the lesson from the Q ship Rachel had attacked during the Saturn Industries shipyard move project and had programmed the Disruptor missiles to be ready for backup systems.

  The strange ship lay silent, but not dead. Life support and reactor coolant systems functioned, but it was no longer navigable and drifted through space. The ships drifted closer on the trajectories established during the brief battle. Rachel stared out the view port at the quiet enemy before her.

  “Rotate to maintain the armored face to the enemy ship.” Rachel instructed the helmsman.

  “Rotating, Aye, Captain.”

  The design of the ship was certainly strange. It looked like an exercise hand weight with a hand grip in the middle and large hexagonal masses on either end. Nothing about the ship indicated whether it had a “forward” or an “aft”. The fact that its current direction of travel appeared to be along its axis looked as if it could be a coincidence. Whatever they used for a drive was unlike anything the crew of the Schweitzer had ever seen. The ship’s exterior resembled a commercial airliner more than it did a space craft. Reuben com
mented that the ship probably had an “exoskeleton” instead of central supporting trusses like the Schweitzer did. The crew on the bridge sat in silent awe of the strange ship that lay before them.

  Most of the bridge crew speculated on how the ship might work, but Rachel was already moving on to another problem. Her concern was she should do with the prisoners.

  Standard operating procedure in times like these was for the senior fire control officer to order one of the standard munitions patterns to be loaded into the tubes. Protocol required that firing tubes be fully loaded in the presence of a potential enemy at all times. Rashi had paid attention to his lessons. The munitions pattern that Rashi chose called for one quarter of the tubes to be loaded with radar seeking counter missiles, one quarter with countermeasures, and the remainder with offensive heat seekers. Rashi’s obsessive attention to his duty and Elizabeth’s attentiveness saved their lives.

  “Missile launch sequence started!” Elizabeth sang out startling everyone on the bridge out of their trance. “Missile ports active!” Missiles jumped out of the side of the enemy ship and the ship started to roll to present its other side.

  “Fire all tubes!” Rachel shouted. The P I ships and destroyers were still dealing with the few remaining fighter interceptors and were not available to help. The pickets were cleaning up the few missiles that threatened the Schweitzer’s aft propulsion unit.

  Every missile tube on the Schweitzer belched fire. The lasers rotated to bear on the incoming missiles. The sky lit up as the missile volleys intercepted each other.