“And the other ship fled back beyond the frontier, likely to warn its… people… and analyze the information from the battle the same as we are.” Jackson said with a scowl. “I have a feeling the next Alpha we face will already have modifications to defend against what was observed over Xi’an.”
“Are you certain?” Celesta asked. “Our kinetic weapons were still largely effective.”
“Not entirely.” Jackson spun his monitor. “Watch.”
Celesta sat in one of the unoffered seats and watched the high-resolution thermal imagery of their auto-mag shells impacting the first Alpha they’d engaged. Some obviously punched through the tough organic hull, but just as many smashed against it, exploding against the surface and not penetrating. Jackson had filtered a lot of the flashes out so they were able to clearly see that had two of the shells not flown unimpeded into one of the missile ports, their first salvo wouldn’t have caused near the amount of damage it had.
“Maybe we’re looking at a coincidence?” she asked after watching the opening shots of the engagement multiple times. “We did inflict a lot of damage to that ship before handing it off to the Artemis and Atlas.”
“Besides the fact that I don’t believe in coincidences like this, we didn’t cause that much damage with those two lucky shots.” Jackson shook his head. “It’s certainly something to think about. This is just some preliminary looks at the battle… We’ll do a more comprehensive debrief once the backshops get done with their own analysis.”
“Of course, sir.” Celesta stood and smoothed out her utilities. “What should I tell Captain Forrest?”
“Tell the squadron that they are clear to withdraw,” Jackson said. “They are to follow all randomization protocols with Captain Forrest in overall command. I want them to fly to Neatlantia and wait for us there. Inform Captain Forrest she may replace the Icarus’s current CO at her discretion but that Levitt and his XO are to remain in custody.”
“Sir?”
“We’re going hunting, Commander.” Jackson’s eyes stayed locked on the video of the nuclear blasts ripping apart the other Alpha. “There’s a reason that other ship ran from two Terran destroyers and there’s a reason the Phage keep coming back to Xi’an. We’re going to find out what that is. Let Commander Singh know that we’ll be departing within the hour.”
****
The four remaining ships of the Ninth Squadron broke out of their orbit around the sixth planet, an impressive Class II gas giant, and began accelerating for their jump point. Jackson had declined Captain Forrest’s request to accompany him once she found out that he intended to track the escaped Alpha. Despite the fact that she had made it clear how much she disliked him since their first meeting nearly ten years prior, he had to grudgingly concede that she’d handled herself very well in her first foray into battle.
She quickly got over her initial shock and was willing to fly into potential combat with him again as well as having stood toe to toe with something as overwhelming as a Phage Alpha. He’d looked over the Artemis’s logs, and Forrest hadn’t backed down or retreated. In fact, she’d driven her ship forward to make sure her point defense overlapped with that of the Hyperion after they’d taken that first volley on the chin.
Conversely, Captain Levitt, one of his long time allies, had completely fallen apart. Jackson couldn’t have been more disappointed and disgusted with the man’s behavior. There would be no saving Levitt’s career, nor should any attempt be made. Had his actions resulted in the loss of the Atlas and her crew, Jackson would have been more than tempted to toss his ass out the nearest airlock and save CENTCOM the trouble of a general court martial.
“They’re on their way, sir,” Celesta said. “Chief Engineer has cleared the Ares. We can get underway at your discretion.”
“Thank you, Commander.” Jackson stood. “Helm! Prepare to break orbit. Nav, get me a destination to Jump Point X-ray. Use any gravity assists if they’re available, but don’t make a special trip around a planet just to save a few thousand pounds of propellant.”
“Aye, sir,” the helmsman said. “Main engines coming online now.”
“Course laid in and sent to the helm,” the specialist at nav reported.
“Very well.” Jackson sat. “Let’s not keep the Phage waiting… Helm, at your discretion, all engines ahead full.”
“All ahead full, aye!” The helmsman gave a small, tight-lipped smile.
Jackson let them all enjoy the moment. For many of them, this was the second Alpha they’d killed. Why should a third that’s already been wounded be any different? As the engines ran up, the mild surge pressed them back slightly until the gravimetric generators could catch up. The swirling clouds of the gas giant blurred as the destroyer accelerated hard to slingshot around and pull out of orbit.
“Jump Point X-ray?” Celesta asked. “I don’t recall seeing that on the latest star charts, sir.”
“It won’t be on the official one,” Jackson said. I have a set that Agent Pike gave me before we departed Jericho Station. once the Ares was cleared for duty.”
“Pike,” Celesta said as if the name caused her pain. “If I may, sir… what is beyond Jump Point X-ray?”
“The warp lane that leads to the system the AU had been colonizing in secret, the one we think tipped the Phage off to our existence,” he said. “If they pushed back into Xi’an and gathered enough raw material to create another slick big enough to spawn two Alphas, I have to believe this next planet will be their logistics hub for the operation.”
“I would expect it to be fairly well guarded then,” Celesta said.
“Maybe,” Jackson said. “There’s another world beyond that one that could be the real target. Either way, we’re going to transition out of warp well short of the system and begin gathering intel as we go. This is more of a fact-finding mission than anything else. If we can take out the wounded Alpha, so much the better, but what I really want is to know what’s happening just outside of Terran space.”
The Ares charged hard down into the system, altering course only slightly to swing around the primary star in as efficient an arc as they could before spiraling back up the other side of the well. They were only five hundred kilometers from their jump point when Jackson ordered the main engines killed and the warp drive deployed.
The Starwolf-class was sporting a seventh generation warp drive that utilized four fast-deploying nacelles, two fore and two aft that were always charged. The ship had no sooner locked the nacelles into place and turned them into position when the capacitor banks poured the power into them, and the Ares transitioned out of the system with barely a flash to mark her passing.
Chapter 5
The trip out to the next star system—simply called X-ray by the crew, as the Asianic Union was still trying to pretend they didn’t have any knowledge of the planet or its previous human colony—was shaping up to be as boring as Jackson had hoped it would be. Since the ship was more or less brand new, there was little in the way of maintenance to be done, so Singh tried to fill his crew’s days with near endless drills and training on the intricacies of the new ship. By the end of the first week, there were more than a few grumbles and hostile looks shot his way as he walked the corridors.
If Singh was getting dirty looks, Major Ortiz’s Marines looked at him with expressions that promised violence if he ever turned his back. The Marine officer was making sure his charges didn’t have the chance to get bored and start causing trouble on a ship that, oddly, was slightly more cramped inside than the Blue Jacket had been.
For his part, Jackson let Celesta train the bridge crews undisturbed. Instead of hovering and generally being a pain in her ass, he took the opportunity to walk around to all the different work centers, meet his new crewmembers, and reacquaint himself with those who had come with him from his last command. By his side, whenever he descended into the lower decks, was Master Chief John Green, an imposing man of early middle age whose physical presence was only eclipsed by a voice tha
t could be heard echoing ten compartments away. Jackson had met the man when he’d first taken command of the Ares and, remembering the last pile of shit he’d had as a senior enlisted advisor, had accepted his transfer with a certain amount of resignation.
But, joy of joys, Master Chief Green was a no excuses, no bullshit, real deal senior NCO that kept his finger on the pulse of the crew and was an invaluable conduit of information to and from the captain. The more Jackson got to know him, the more he began to have a genuine fondness for the foul-mouthed man from New America and looked forward to the Chief’s visits up to Officer Country, where he would inevitably blister the paint and cause more than a few officers to blanch with a string of obscenities so creative that it would leave Jackson mesmerized. Was he really that quick on his feet, or did he have them memorized and chambered, just waiting for a chance to unload?
“Things are looking good, Chief,” Jackson said, as they walked along the central access tube. “The ship is spotless, and it seems like the crew is really getting their proficiency dialed in on the new systems.”
“They’re marginally better than they were a fucking year ago,” the Chief growled. “But calling them proficient may be a tad too generous, sir.”
“Maybe,” Jackson said. “But please tell them that overall I’m pleased with what I’m seeing.”
“Will do, Captain,” Green said.
“I’d also like to make sure they’re getting some downtime,” Jackson continued. “I’ll speak about it in the next meeting with the department heads, but it’s something I think I’d like to see you take charge of.”
“Downtime,” Chief Green repeated, as if trying out how the word felt in his mouth for the first time. “Are you certain you want them having too much time with nothing to do? There’s always something that needs cleaning—”
“I’m sure, Chief.” Jackson tried not to laugh. “They’ve earned a bit of a break after the excitement of the last few weeks. I need them rested and sharp when we hit the X-ray System.”
“I’ll make sure it happens, Captain.” Green’s tone indicated he didn’t fully agree with his boss’s assessment. Like most NCOs, he seemed to feel the best way to keep a crew sharp and happy was to keep them too busy to worry about anything but doing their jobs.
“Thanks, Chief,” Jackson said. “I’m heading back to the bridge. Let me know if anything comes up.”
“Of course, Captain.”
“Captain’s Mess tonight at 1830, Chief,” Jackson said, watching the Chief closely. “I expect to see you there.”
The Chief tensed up, not turning around and not saying anything, before stalking off around the corridor. Jackson noticed that the man loved to skirt the edge of disrespect when dealing with officers on the Ares almost as much as he despised the forced social interaction in which he would have to get into his dress blacks and nod politely while some lieutenant junior grade prattled on about what they thought the keys to leadership were.
****
The conversation at the semi-formal evening meal was mostly compartmentalized, with people talking to those in their immediate vicinity while Jackson and Chief Green both held themselves apart from the individual groups. One conversation, however, was becoming decidedly more animated, even heated, and began to absorb those around it as more people entered the fray to voice their opinions.
“I simply can’t understand how you can be so enthusiastic about a war that’s already cost billions of human lives before it’s even really started,” Commander Owens, the Ares’s Chief Medical Officer, was saying, his tone full of righteous indignation.
“You’re twisting my words, Doctor,” Major Ortiz said calmly. “Enthusiastic would be a gross mischaracterization of what I said. My only point was that if we are to fight an inevitable war, I hope my men and I are able to participate as more than starship ballast. But let’s examine your premise… humans are mortal creatures. We all die. In the grand scheme of things, how is death by alien invasion different than death by influenza or exposure?” The last sentence silenced Owens but only because he was gaping in shock.
“Major Ortiz, are you seriously suggesting that a Phage invasion is simply nature running its course?” Lieutenant Davis asked.
“Of course,” Ortiz said. “It’s simply nature on a far larger scale than we’ve ever experienced. For millennia, humans have stood outside of the natural order of things, our tools allowing us to observe without truly being a part of the cycle of life as evolution intended it. Our tools are now nuclear fission missiles and starships, but the underlying principle is the same.”
“I can’t understand how you can be so cavalier about what could be the systematic annihilation of the human species,” Commander Juarez said.
“Accepting reality on reality’s terms and having a cavalier attitude are two different things.” Ortiz still didn’t break his calm, relaxed demeanor in the face of a multi-pronged assault.
The flight operations officer frowned at the answer, but remained silent.
“Are you really so enthusiastic about fighting the Phage, Major?” Celesta Wright asked. Jackson watched the conversation with interest, but sat silently. The Major’s words had struck a chord. Where did he stand on this war? It had been thrust upon him before, but did he agree with Ortiz that it was a chance for humanity to prove their worthiness?
“Again, enthusiastic would incorrectly label me as a warmonger or battle junkie,” Ortiz said. “I am a warrior and a soldier. If there’s to be a knock-down drag-out match for our right to exist, then yes… I want to be at the tip of the spear.
“Can none of you see it? Win or lose, we’re living in legendary times. Our actions will determine the fate of our entire species, and the choices we make, or don’t make, will ring through history for centuries. So no, I am not enthusiastic, but I am willing to accept the challenge that’s been given us. What is the point of being alive if only to exist and consume? The universe has asked if we are worthy. How will we answer that question? That’s all I’m saying.”
The short speech left the rest of the room stunned. Nobody offered a rebuttal, and there were a few uncomfortable throat clearings before Jackson raised his glass.
“To accepting the challenge.” He nodded to Major Ortiz.
“To the challenge!” came the ragged chorus from the rest of the Fleet officers in the room, some looking a little shamefaced after the Marine major’s impassioned words.
“I’m glad I came to mess tonight, Captain.” Chief Green smiled from his place on Jackson’s left.
“I’m thrilled you’re so entertained, Chief,” Jackson deadpanned, sipping his water as the conversation began to subside into its previous, smaller groupings.
He sat and contemplated Jeza Ortiz’s words, not entirely sure he was comfortable with their implication. So far, he’d been concentrating on the small, immediate targets in front of him. The single Alpha invading Terran space, the single challenge of getting the Starwolf-class ships tested, the single challenge of getting his new crew up to speed… Never did he sit and fully try to comprehend what implications his actions could have on his entire species.
After another thirty minutes, people began to excuse themselves and file out of the officer’s mess, Chief Green leading the charge, until Jackson was sitting alone with Daya Singh and Celesta Wright.
“That was a hell of a speech Ortiz gave,” Singh said as Jackson went to pour himself another coffee.
“I wasn’t aware our Marine commander was such a philosopher,” Celesta said. “I have a feeling Owens underestimated him before starting that little spirited discussion.”
“It was good for him.” Jackson checked to see that the hatch was fully closed before continuing. “Humility and Commander Owens aren’t always on speaking terms, and I’m sure he thought a Marine major to be well beneath him when he opened his mouth. I’m just glad Chief Green stayed out of it.”
“It’s certainly something to think about.” Celesta pushed back from the table.
“If you gentlemen will excuse me, I need to relieve Lieutenant Commander Barrett for the remainder of second watch.”
“I’m right behind you,” Singh said as he finished his tea. “I want to get some sleep before we transition into real-space tomorrow.”
Jackson filed out with them and headed to his quarters, even though he knew sleep would be elusive. He was destined to spend a fitful night as nearly every other ship’s captain did the night before an imminent battle. Even the act of flying to system X-ray was dangerous, as the warp lane hadn’t been officially cleared and vetted by CENTCOM, but the fear of running into something with enough mass to collapse their warp distortion fields was a distant second to flying in and meeting an entire fleet of Phage ships with his lone destroyer. The words of his Marine detachment commander came back to him as he closed and locked his hatch.
Legendary times indeed.
****
“Standby for warp transition!” the chief at Nav practically bellowed. After a sharp jolt, the main display came back up, and they were all staring out at unfamiliar stars and little else.
“Tactical and OPS, start a full passive sensor scan of the surrounding space,” Jackson ordered. “I want everything capable of receiving on this ship listening and recording with the computer sifting through for anomalies. Leave the warp drive deployed for now… We’re going to cold coast while we listen. XO, please tell Engineering that I want to run in low-power mode until otherwise ordered.”
“Yes, sir.” Celesta sent the direct message to Singh.
They’d transitioned in 35.27 astronomical units from the X-ray System’s primary star, placing them well outside the boundary of the debris which was all that remained of the accretion disc that formed X-ray’s planetary bodies. Jackson’s plan had been to pop in on the outer edges of the system, collect as much data as possible, and either move into the system or bug out as quickly as he could.
After six straight hours of listening and detecting nothing of note, it became obvious that the limitations of their passive sensors, coupled with an infuriating lack of understanding about their enemy, meant that no matter how long they sat outside of X-ray, they’d never learn a damn thing.
Call to Arms (Black Fleet Trilogy, Book 2) Page 7
