Casserine

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  “I don’t blame him,” Mercer added. “The chances are not good.”

  “If we have to, we can always drop the ET’s into the Colonies,” Dougherty remarked. “They already want to adopt them as pets.”

  “Oh, that’ll go over big,” Jake chuckled. “As to the rest, it’s out of our hands for now. We’ll get there as soon as we can, and I guess it will be tomorrow morning. I want everything double checked before we leave.”

  “Should we stick around too, Sir,” Stedman asked.

  “I’ve heard you have the destinations in hand for most of the Colonists,” Jake replied. “As much as I’d like to have my wife stick around, I know the Colonists are anxious to get their lives back.”

  “On that note, we have some bad news, Jake,” Mercer inserted. “You remember the woman we talked to, who came from Rigel, and her little girl?”

  Jake was silent for a moment, as he could see the news in his friend’s eyes. “Her husband is dead?”

  Mercer nodded. “I’m going to tell her personally.”

  “How many others in her situation?”

  “Almost a quarter of them lost someone, General,” Stedman answered. “The Conyers woman is the only one without anyone left. Her parents died during her captivity, and her husband was killed in a mining accident. They had no other living relatives.”

  Jake stayed silent for so long after Colonel Stedman finished talking, Adrian put a hand on his arm from across the table. “You, and your men did rescue them, Jake. They would not be alive to worry about relatives otherwise.”

  Jake looked straight into her eyes. “I’m glad she has her little girl. I was thinking about some way we could get her settled into a home somewhere.”

  “I’ve been thinking about getting a place on Omaha, Jake,” Mercer broke in. “If Adrian wouldn’t mind taking a look around for me, maybe

  Alice could stay there. Omaha, without the Bugs, will be a pretty nice place to.”

  “Wait a minute, Charlie,” Jake interrupted. “How does that.”

  Adrian kicked Jake under the table, which hurt her foot more than it did Jake’s leg, but she returned his attention to her. “I’d be glad to look around, Charlie, and you’ll be talking to Alice anyway to find out if it’s okay with her, right?”

  “Right after I finish my meal, thanks Adrian,” Mercer said. “My intentions are honorable, General. I took a liking to her, and I’d kind of like to get to know her in some other venue besides battle situations. Any woman who can endure captivity for nearly a decade, raise a little girl while captive, and want to vaporize her captors when she gets free finally, is my kind of woman.”

  Jake smiled. “I can’t argue with you there, Major. Say hello for me when you see her, and tell her I’m sorry things went so wrong while she was gone. At least she’ll hear the bad news from someone she knows.”

  “That’s the part I ain’t looking forward to,” Mercer said.

  “She’ll be glad to have a friend, Charlie,” Jake replied. He stood up, and Adrian joined him. “Thanks for all the quick action, Jan. I’ll release your medical officer before you leave dock.”

  “A few hours won’t slow us up one way or another, Sir,” Stedman replied with a smile. “Good luck with your mission. If you need anything, all you have to do is call. We’ll get it, and bring it to you.”

  “I know you will,” Jake nodded. “I’ve already filed a unit commendation for you, and all your crew, with Governor Risling. The Tennyson has been invaluable in these past months. I wish you well in your quest to get the captives all home.”

  “We’ll get it done,” Stedman promised.

  Jake waved his goodbye to the rest at the table, as did Adrian. They walked away, arm in arm, as the others took note of their leaving.

  “There goes the oddest couple of all time,” Corey remarked.

  “With all due respect, Major,” Mercer retorted. “You and Colonel Peters ain’t far behind.”

  “Why you.” Corey pointed a finger warningly at Mercer, as the others watched in amusement, and then looked over at Dougherty. “Tim, do you have any more of those T-shirts with Charlie on the front?”

  “Absolutely,” Dougherty replied, ducking the swat to the back of his head by Mercer.

  Chapter 39

  Close Encounters

  Jake stood on the Bridge of the Intrepid as they came through the Gate separating Byzantlan and Passallion space. Zaros and Mercer watched the huge forward viewing portal from either side of him, staying out of the way of the busy ship’s crew. Although the Passallion home world orbited around its sun from the fourth position in their spatial universe, the actual distance from their sun in comparison to Earth was nearly a hundred thousand miles closer. The Passallions called their sun Trytos, and in mass, it was slightly larger than any of the suns the humans had encountered. Fourteen planets, and their satellite moons, of varying sizes projected outwards from Trytos.

  The Yorktown followed the Intrepid through the Gate, and then Commander Wilcox put his ship at a precautionary distance from the Intrepid. At full speed, they reached orbit of the Passallion home world by the end of the day. Two space stations orbited the planet at directly opposing positions. The ships began scanning the planet and stations, gathering data on life forms, Tattalias Queen signatures, and the positions of any military forces, which could prove threatening until communication could be established.

  “Jake,” Colonel Peters called out from the communications panel. “We have an inquiry from one of the space stations. Shall we put Zaros on line now?”

  “Do they have any firepower we need to be concerned with?” Jake asked, as he and his two companions moved closer to the panel.

  “Not that our sensors can detect. There is an on going battle being waged by cruisers in the air over the planet’s surface,” Peters replied. “We’re plotting all epicenters of the battles, and inhabitant locations.”

  “Let’s keep silent until we finish scanning,” Jake said. “I’d rather know a whole lot more before we make contact. I want to confirm their information, rather than use it as a first hand guide.”

  Peters smiled back at his Commander, as Mercer chuckled. “Yes Sir, I see we’re still the same trusting conquerors of the universe we’ve been established as recently.”

  “You bet, Colonel,” Jake grinned. “Although I plan on us helping out our friend Zaros here, he understands it will be on our terms, and ultimately for Earth’s protection.”

  “At least the Bugs haven’t ravaged your planet yet,” Mercer commented to Zaros.

  “Yes, from what knowledge you have given me on these Tattalias creatures, I am pleased to find any life left on my planet,” Zaros replied. “I will be interested in knowing how my people managed to fight off the infestations so long.”

  Forty minutes later, Major Corey brought over a hand held panel from the Intrepid’s Command Center. “The Passallions are using force fields over large pockets of the population, where they seem to be conducting an all out war for survival. There may be as many as a couple million Bugs now, emanating from three distinct nests.”

  “Have the Queens coordinated their attacks?” Jake asked, indicating for Corey to keep the panel, and just report.

  “Nope,” Cory answered. “They reach certain boundaries, and then any Bugs wandering past become disengaged from their respective nests. It looks like the Queens have begun a campaign to extend their control outwards past the boundaries, they have now, by setting up streaming lines of drones in contact with each other, just like an Earth ant hill.”

  “Nick called it right then,” Mercer remarked.

  Corey nodded. “He’s the best. The Passallions are using battle cruisers to break up the Bugs trying to extend outwards towards their population centers, but the Bugs have progressively taken their lines far under the surface, and the Passallion defenses are becoming compromised. Bugs are breaking through at any weak spot on the surface inside the force fields.”

  “Sounds like livin
g hell,” Jake said. “Where are the cruisers being based, the space stations?”

  “Yes,” Corey answered. “In fact, the Passallions have recalled half of their ships out to confront us. They’re on their way now from the surface.”

  Jake turned to Zaros. “We better get you on line now then. I think we have enough background to proceed. Hook him up, Jas.”

  Peters beckoned the Passallion forward into a seat at the Communications Center. Moments later, Zaros had visual contact with the Passallion space station commander, communicating his identity, and the mission Jake’s ships were on. Zaros began an unusual shouting match with the space station commander, which ended with Zaros nodding his understanding, his frustration evident even to the humans around him. Zaros stood and turned to face Jake.

  “I am sorry, General,” Zaros apologized sadly. “This cretin we have commanding my peoples’ forces has ordered your ships out of our space, or he threatens to attack. He claims they are on the verge of victory over the Tattalias Horde.”

  “Well Jake, it’s nice to know we ain’t the only race with idiots who reach high places,” Mercer commented.

  “Yea, Charlie,” Jake agreed, “and they cover their butts even with the extinction of their own people staring them in the face. Jas, let’s cloak, and move our positions until I figure out how to make a change in the Passallion military command structure.”

  “I’ll tell Doug to cloak and move the Yorktown out of orbit too,” Peters acknowledged. “You aren’t thinking about another cloaked Drop Ship break in of the space station, are you?”

  Jake stayed silent, but Mercer took one look at him, and spoke. “He is indeed, Colonel. I told you he was a danger freak. At least we won’t have Tim driving.”

  “We would be able to take Zaros with us,” Jake said, ignoring Mercer. “There will be casualties, but not like on our last break in.”

  “Where would I be going?” Zaros asked in confusion.

  “Major Mercer and I have boarded a moving vessel before,” Jake explained. “If you are familiar with the construction of this space station, Zaros, we could pick a point where boarding would be the easiest, and closest to this military commander. If we take you and a few others on board with us, we could take control without having to cause a lot of casualties.”

  “But will they not fire on you?” Zaros asked. “How.”

  “We have a shielding breakthrough which allows us not to be seen. We could target your space station’s weapons systems and blow all your war cruisers apart, but I’d rather not start this relationship like that. In addition, the Bug problem would still be left. You would need to do some hard sell once we get you on board though, and you’d have to do it fast.”

  “There is an entry hatch and air lock near the Command Center. If you can really do what you say, we could enter there. The alarms will be going off as an air lock breach, but we normally do not walk around the space station armed.”

  “Good,” Jake said. “What about shields? Do you have any shielding on your station?”

  Zaros shook his head negatively. “No, we never had a reason to. Our shielding, even on our war ships, is very basic. Our civil war was the first time we ever fought air to air battles. One of our ships was shot down by one of your old fighter jets. It is very courageous of you to place yourselves in danger to prevent casualties. I will help you all I can.”

  “We don’t plan to be in any danger, little buddy,” Mercer stated. “When Jake and I board the station, we will kill anything with a weapon, and we are very good at what we do, so it would be to your advantage to get their attention quickly.”

  “I understand,” Zaros replied. “I will pick three of my people to go with me. When would you like to do this?”

  “Right now,” Jake answered. “There won’t be much left to save if we don’t get this Bug operation going. Charlie and I will go get a Drop Ship and crew together while our ships disappear from view. Jas, make sure you tell Doug not to take any chances with their cruisers. They may take shots at us just for the hell of it once we disappear from their sensors. Any cruiser that discharges a weapon gets dusted, okay?”

  “Yes, Sir,” Peters answered. “Take Sara with you to pilot your Drop Ship. You can use Tim at the turret in case there’s trouble.”

  “Thanks,” Jake agreed. “How about it, Sara? You want a piece ofthis?”

  “You bet,” Corey answered quickly. “I’ll prep a ship while you guys get ready.”

  “Okay then,” Jake motioned to the exit from the Bridge. “Let’s go make some friends.”

  “Let me know when you want the hanger bay hatch open, Jake,” Colonel Peters’ voice said in Jake’s headset.

  Jake looked around at Mercer, and his squad of Marines. They were in full battle armor, and Mercer was checking the last one’s breathing apparatus. Mercer heard Peters, and turned to give Jake a thumbs up. Zaros sat with three other Passallions. They had been issued modified uniforms, made to the specifications Zaros supplied, so they would look like the others on the station. Zaros wore a headset, and he also indicated his readiness.

  “Open her up, Jas, we’re ready to go,” Jake stated. “Take us out Sara, and remember, we want to get over there and clamp on as silently as possible.”

  “No problem, Jake,” Corey answered, as she flew the Drop Ship on battery power over to the opening, hanger deck hatch. “I’ll ease us on to their hull so quietly, you’ll be inside by the time they know we’re there. Are you going to try Tim’s gizmo for bypassing the air lock alarm?”

  “I’ll give it a try,” Jake replied. “Are you sure it will work, Tim?”

  “Just clamp it on the hull next to the hatch, Jake,” Dougherty answered from the turret. “You ain’t blasting in, so my patch should disable the alarm.”

  “Tim, you’re my eyes on this one. We don’t want any living company, if you know what I mean.”

  “Don’t you worry about that, Jake,” Dougherty assured him. “Woe to the Alien interfering on the outside.”

  “You know what Doug said about this, don’t you, Jake?” Colonel Peters asked.

  “Blow the stations, blow the cruisers, blow the Bugs, and let God sort them all out,” Jake laughed.

  “He keeps it simple, huh?” Corey joined in the laughter on their command frequency.

  “I’m glad he’s watching the other station for us,” Jake added. “Call it out as you go in, Sara.”

  “Aye, aye, Sir,” Corey acknowledged. “They don’t have a clue. None of the cruisers are moving as we near the station. Thirty seconds to contact.”

  Jake moved to the Drop Ship emergency hatch with Mercer, and his squad of Marines, right behind him. Zaros and the other Passallions stayed close to the last Marine. They watched the hatch on the station grow larger, through the portal over the emergency hatch.

  “Ten seconds,” Corey intoned. “Pulling tight in now, Jake. Okay, we’re locked, and they didn’t feel a thing.”

  “Man, that was sweet,” Jake complimented her. “We didn’t evenfeel it.”

  “Too bad she wasn’t there when we did the last one,” Mercer commented, “instead of you and that klutz, Dougherty.”

  “I heard that,” Dougherty said. “All clear, Jake. Nobody’s doing any space walks to investigate.”

  “We’re opening the hatch now,” Jake said as he pushed the panel, and the emergency hatch opened. Mercer attached Dougherty’s alarm patch to the side of the space station hatch, and switched it on.

  Zaros walked up then to the hatch, and studied the control panel on the outside bulkhead. After a moment he pushed three panels in sequence and the hatch opened. Jake and Mercer rushed into the empty loading bay compartment with the Marine squad behind them. After they secured the site, and left two Marines to guard their exit, Jake allowed Zaros, and his people, to lead the way into the structure.

  They were able to reach the Command Center before encountering any Passallions. Zaros hushed the space station crewmembers, rapidly explaining the s
ituation. Jake watched in amazement as the two Passallions hugged Zaros, and happily joined in the group, looking back at the huge Marines with excitement evident on their faces. Zaros pulled Jake aside.

  “Commander Sytannus is inside the Center at the main panel, which is located straight ahead as we go through the hatch. He is armed, General.”

  “Okay,” Jake sighed. “Will he be alone, or what? I don’t want to shoot the wrong guy.”

  “He will be the only one who will have an all white uniform on,” Zaros answered.

  Jake motioned Gunnery Sergeant Vic McClure forward to join him and Mercer. “Vic, tell your squad to spread out as soon as we’re through the hatch. Our little friend here says only the guy in white will be armed. He will be straight ahead through the hatch, and the only active target. Tell your boys to shoot anyone reaching for anything, whether it be buttons, or weapons. You will take out the one in white, and we ain’t asking for a dialogue, okay?”

  “Aye, aye, Sir,” McClure acknowledged. “I’ll be right back.”

  While McClure explained the situation to his squad, Jake put a hand on Zaros shoulder. “Wait until my man eliminates your chain of command, and then yell for your people in there to hit the deck, or they will be shot too.”

  Zaros nodded, and turned to the entry hatch. After McClure took up his position directly behind Zaros, flanked by the other Passallions, Mercer went to one side of the hatch, and Jake went to the other side. The Marines split up behind them.

  “Okay, let’s go say hi,” Jake said quietly.

  The hatch opened, and McClure blew the head off the Passallion in the white uniform fifty feet in front of him, as the Alien turned towards the hatch. His body collapsed, twitching, to the deck, and Zaros screamed out for everyone in the Command Center to get on the deck or be shot. The other Passallions dove to the floor at their feet. Jake and Mercer swept through the Command Center, calling out clear as they secured each section, leaving behind a Marine to keep it secured. In moments, all movement inside the Command Center ended, and silence reigned.