“What do you want to do, Sir?” asked the XO.
“Prepare to deploy jammers,” snapped Kling, “two can play at this game.”
****************************************************
“Tell Beta to pull back and defend themselves,” ordered Commodore Serge as the first of the enemy task force’s reinforcement squadrons—the one with the missiles it had launched form ambush—arrived at the party. The newcomers were clearly intent on targeting his more heavily damaged beta squadron while it was distracted with finishing off the provincial Destroyers.
“Beta is starting to pull back but the enemy Corvettes just increased their speed, making a high speed pass to their rear and…missile separation!” cried Tactical. “They must have kept two missiles on each of the Corvettes in reserve because they’ve just fired them at the sterns of beta squadron.”
Serge’s eyes widened with surprise before once again resuming the implacable look of battle-tested, twenty year graduate if the Imperial academy.
“So they’ve got a little more fight left in them than we expected. As soon as Bruneswitch gets here we’ll quickly settle their hash,” the Commodore grunted before issuing another series of orders aimed at keeping the enemy in front of him pinned down until their last two Destroyers were done.
“Second enemy Corvette squadron reinforcements has just entered light laser range,” reported Sensors.
“They seem like they’re intent on a glancing attack run,” reported Tactical.
“Bruneswitch reports that he is lining up for an attack run on the stray squadrons,” said Coms.
“No, instruct him to hit their main force. We’ll shatter their core and then hunt down the remainder,” countermanded Serge.
Despite their best attempts at evasive maneuvers, the Destroyers of Beta squadron included some of his most heavily damaged ships and they just weren’t as fleet of foot as the rest of his Destroyers at present. So when the enemy missiles entered final attack range, there were a series of explosions that rocked three of his six warships.
“Beta reports two more ships are engines down and one is engines gone with serious structural damage,” reported Damage Control.
“Tell Bruneswitch to—” Serge started when suddenly the screen went fuzzy. They could still see the enemy but everything was distorted, “What in the name of Man are the provincials up to now?”
****************************************************
“Tell everyone to scatter and disengage now! I say again: disengage now!” barked Kling.
“Message sent, but I’m still waiting for confirmation from several of the ships still near the Imperials jamming field. It’ll just take a tick, Sir” the com-tech reported.
“Activate the jammers—don’t wait for confirmation from the other ships, Coms,” instructed Kling.
The com-tech opened his mouth, looked conflicted, and then immediately mashed his hand down on a button on his screen.
“Jammer-jammers activated, Commodore,” reported the tech.
“Evasive maneuvers now. Get us out of here, Helm,” ordered Kling. It felt like a saw was cutting into his rib bones to leave the battered remains of his Destroyers behind with little chance of breaking free on their own. But if he was going to salvage something from this debacle he had to do it. The remaining Destroyer commanders were just going to have to fight their ships and stake their lives on the fickle whims of fate. Maybe one of them would actually make it out.
“Going to full burn and heading for rendezvous point zeta as soon as we’ve broken contact,” said the Helmsman absently as he focused on his screens.
“How many do you think will make it out?” asked his XO.
“Not nearly enough,” Kling said bitterly. Losing an entire squadron—and his most powerful one, at that—was a body blow but he had to focus on the bigger picture. He was the man on the spot in the outer system and the direct commander of most of the lighter units. So his first ambush had failed and the enemy turned the tables on him. He would learn from it and move on. The important thing wasn’t to wallow in his failures, but to make the Imperials bleed for every kilometer they advanced further into Easy Haven. He couldn’t do that fighting on the wrong end of a losing battle to the death just now, “We have to fall back and regroup. After that, if we can get a few more reinforcements, maybe we can turn things around out here.”
“That’s a big ‘maybe,’ Sir,” said his XO.
“Until the Admiral and the heavy hitters decide to up the ante and get personally involved, that’s all we’ve got. Our job is to slow them down and make them bleed and that’s exactly what I intend to do,” Kling said grimly as his flagship continued to flee from the battle as fast as her engines could carry her.
****************************************************
“Sir, the last of the enemy Destroyers has been neutralized,” reported Tactical.
“Good work, team,” Serge nodded with satisfaction, “Tactical, switch targets to their jammers and take them out if you can.”
“On it, Commodore.”
“Listen up,” he informed the bridge, “we just took serious damage to three of our ships and minor damage to three more, but not one of ours was lost while we destroyed an entire squadron of provincial Destroyers. Not a bad trade and not a bad day’s work, if I do say so myself—though the day is not yet over. So no one had better be thinking of resting on their laurels; I’m planning to put a commendation in everyone’s files and kicking it up the chain of command to the Admiral himself as soon as I get the chance to write them.”
“Thank you, Sir,” said the XO.
“Sir, Commodore Bruneswitch has just entered com-range inside the new jammer field,” reported the Comm. Officer, “he reports that in all the confusion, that cowardly Corvette squadron must have lost their bearings because he ran into them going out just as he was coming in. He reports that he destroyed two of their Corvettes and damaged two more before they fled the field.”
Serge drummed his fingers along the side of his chair. “Good,” he grunted.
“Sir, do you still want us to break into panther teams and pursue the enemy?” his XO asked urgently.
Serge paused for a moment and then nodded. “Have our heavily-damaged ships take our engine-down Destroyer under tow and head for the hyper limit to effect what repairs they can and await new orders. The rest of our ships are to pursue and engage the enemy,” he instructed.
“Aye-aye, Sir!” said the other officer.
The Provincials were on the run falling back in retreat. Now was the time to keep the pressure up and keep them responding to the Reclamation Fleet’s tempo. It would make the task of whittling them down to size both faster and easier this way and, frankly, if this was the best the locals had to offer then taking this system was going to be easier than he had expected.
Chapter Twenty-nine: Falling Back
“Admiral, our light forces are doing their best but they’re being forced to fall back into the inner system,” Captain Hammer said frankly.
“I’m aware of the plot, Leonora,” I nodded, looking at the main screen where singletons, pairs, and even squadrons our Destroyers, Corvettes and Cutters proved that one on one they were no match for the enemy. Sure, the Reclamation Fleet was taking losses, but so were we—and it was a lot more one-sided than I’d hoped.
Kling was tied down in an increasingly sprawling dogfight along one of the main tendrils of the Reclamation advance. Although he was getting the worst of it, at least he was slowing them down and causing damage as he fell back, gathered up a small group of reinforcements and hitting them before falling back again.
Everywhere else, though, we were getting hammered, destroyed or were in full-blown retreat.
“Issue a general recall to the inner system,” I finally ordered, “we might as well acknowledge reality. Other than Kling, who’s actually performing a fighting retreat, the Imperials are advancing without too much trouble everywhere else. Not only do they
have the qualitative edge, they’ve got the numbers on us. It’s time to consolidate and fall back on the defenses.”
“Are you planning to sortie the heavies?” she asked worriedly.
“I’ll decide that when the time comes,” I said.
“If they get that Command Carrier within range of the star base nothing else will matter—not the fortifications, the defense turrets, or our hidden surprises. They can just stand back and reduce everything to rubble outside our range,” she warned.
“I’m well aware of the Command Carrier’s range advantage, Captain,” I severely.
“Sorry. I’m just a bit tense,” Leonora said releasing a puff of air as she sat back.
“And I’m sure the results of the last battle weigh heavily on your mind,” I said.
“Frankly, right now you’re one for two. I know you can win just as much as I know you can lose, not just from the record but from actual experience. We’ve been in combat together, so I know you’re not a complete moron when it comes to maneuvers but, yes, I am worried. It’s the fact that you haven’t ever even attended a military academy that’s more worrying right now than anything else,” she said with a level look. “All you have is on-the-job training and whatever you’ve picked up from books. I have no idea how deep your knowledge base is, and the idea that you might miss something that would be obvious to a first year Ensign is what gets me.”
“It’s a little late to change horses midstream right now though isn’t it. Although, of course, you’re always free to try,” I laughed, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms deceptively while one hand crept into the sleeve of my other arm where my holdout blaster pistol was located.
“After the number of mutinies and near mutinies you’ve survived? I’m concerned, not suicidal; if I wanted out I’d have gotten off this ship before now and accepted the offer to return to the rest of the Confederation. I wouldn’t try to take the flagship by force,” she said seriously.
“I’m glad you feel that way,” I said, releasing my hold on the pistol. Maybe I was getting paranoid and losing my edge. I should have been able to read the mood from the beginning instead of immediately jumping to self-protective conclusions. Not, that is to say, that I shouldn’t have done exactly as I’d done and prepared to defend myself, but that it should have been a fall-back plan not an open question.
“Well I’m not. It’s nerve-wracking. I’ve been in combat before and experienced fleet maneuvers, but this is the second time facing a fleet battle this large. The first time doesn’t count as it happened so suddenly and then never ended until we jumped. Right now, I’m trying to think of anything you might have missed that I failed to advise you about,” she said.
“Stop second-guessing me—and more importantly stop second-guessing yourself,” I said sternly. “It may not look like it but I’ve got everything under control still. Take a break, take a walk, and get a cup of tea or water. Come back here when you’re ready. We’ve still got a few more hours to go before the Flagship gets involved unless something changes suddenly.”
Leonora Hammer shook her head wryly.
“Giving me the same advice I’d give any nerve-wracked looking ensign,” she said, getting up. “I think I’ll take that walk now then.”
“Take your time. The Imperials aren’t going anywhere,” I said.
My Flag Captain barked a harsh laugh and then walked away. “I think I’ll tour my crew on the battle bridge before coming back up here,” she tossed over her shoulder.
“Good,” I nodded as she left and my orders to the light units were passed along.
I watched as everything not currently in the Imperials line of defense stopped moving to the front lines. Even our currently engaged warships started to fall back on Wolf-9 and the fortifications set up here.
Our Corvettes and Destroyers had been more of a tripwire than anything else. They’d also given us a chance to blood our forces early and delay for time while getting a sense for just how prevalent the Imperial tech was amongst the enemy’s lighter units. Well, they were clearly outfighting our local Spineward tech just like they had in our last stand-up fight. There was no hope of nullifying their lighter units and gaining an advantage there, quite the opposite.
That meant it was time to get creative.
Fortunately, when I had time to prepare, and the entire production facilities of Wolf-9—as well as with the gifts of a suspicious arms dealer available—creativity was my new middle name.
The only thing that remained was for the Imperials to get close enough that I could see just how badly I could rattle them.
With twenty Battleships against their twenty four—to say nothing of the Command Carrier—I was going to have to be inventive. We’d just have to see how it turned out in the wash.
Chapter Thirty: Moving the Main Force
“Pass the order. It’s time to move the main fleet into the inner system,” instructed Janeski. The Sector Defense Fleet’s lighter units were the sort of garbage he’d come to expect out in the hinterlands that were Spineward Sectors, and they only seemed to have one semi-competent officer in the outer system. There were no surprises there.
With the provincials now in full-blown retreat and his light units free to clear the way of any hidden surprises potentially stashed along the way, now was the time to press in and bring the heavy units to bear.
“Orders have been passed to all task force and squadron group level sub-commanders, Supreme Admiral,” said Commander at the coms.
“By Man, it’s good to be back on schedule,” Arnold Janeski Supreme Admiral of the Reclamation Fleet said with satisfaction.
“We did tear through their picket force near the eightieth percentile projections, Sir,” Flag Captain Goddard said respectfully.
“Sector 25 has proven to be a paper panther up to this point,” Janeski said, his lip curling. “Except for one lucky blow they’ve proven impotent. And that’s when they haven’t actively blown up their own warship in some kind of overblown appeasement strategy.”
“Peace at any price,” Goddard said with a straight face and then his expression cracked.
Janeski chuckled and the Flag Captain broke out into full-blown guffaws.
“We’ll pay any price except ‘gasp’ a male governor?!” Captain Goddard chortled with mock incredulity.
“Some people’s sacred cows are difficult to understand from the outside,” Janeski shook his head. “They were fine blowing up their own warships with people still onboard, the very men and women…well, I guess in this case it was only women who had sworn to defend them from invaders and pay ‘any price’ so long as that price didn’t include changes to their planetary and system governing structure. Apparently so long as the lives that were affected didn’t include the politicians, no price was too high. In the end, telling them we were taking away their political power and installing an interim military governor was too much for them.”
“So much for peace at any price,” Goddard sneered.
“It makes for a snappy tagline to trot out for the masses,” Janeski shrugged, “but what idiot would actually pay ‘any price’ if that price included, say slavery, cannibalism, or mass euthanasia of their own people? That doesn’t even touch on lesser restrictions like totally replacing the government with a new political system. Even if everyone is left alive as a precondition, ‘Any Pricers’ are morons if they actually believe their words—and grand liars if they don’t.”
“Completely useless as human beings,” Goddard agreed.
“I actually kind of admire them for being able to say it all with such a straight face,” Janeski disagreed. “That kind of ability at self-delusion has got to be a powerful force on a political level. People can pick up it when you don’t believe what you’re saying, but when you honestly and passionately believe in what you’re relaying they instinctively want to believe you too—even if you’re telling them the sky green or night is day or peace is worth ‘any’ price.”
“The ability
to lie or believe self-delusions is what makes them great politicians? Like I said: useless on a human level,” Goddard snorted.
“Someone’s got to lead, and it’s better for everyone if the people are happy while they’re doing it,” Janeski said while tapping his screen. “But enough about New Pacifica. This is Easy Haven and we’ve got an entirely new star system to conquer.”
“The enemy does have somewhat greater force than I was expecting,” remarked Goddard.
“Like I said: they’ve been a paper panther so far. I don’t see that changing anytime soon. We’re faster, our weapons out-range theirs, and in just about every way possible we hold both the numbers and tech advantage. The only classification of ships where they had more hulls than us was when they combined their Destroyer and smaller warships together and you’ve seen how well that worked out for them,” the Supreme Admiral said dismissively. “Oh, I’ve not doubt they’ve got a few tricks up their sleeves, but if what we’ve seen so far is any indication then it won’t be anything we can’t handle.”
“You yourself said in the past that the moment you let your guard down is the time that the enemy has the best chance at turning things around,” warned Captain Goddard.
“I have no intention of letting my guard down or getting sloppy,” Janeski assured the other man in a hard voice. “We’ll do this thing by the numbers and reduce this star system to a supple and compliant addition to our new order—just like we have the dozens we’ve already conquered in the past.”
“I believe in you, sir, just like I believe in this mission,” Goddard said.
“I know you’re both skilled and loyal, Goddard. That’s why I picked you for my flagship. It’s not just anyone who gets tapped for a Command Carrier. No…this is potentially our most critical battle to date. As Sector 25 goes, so goes the rest of the Spine. The other Sectors are weakened, battered, and their economies are wrecked just as planned. And as Easy Haven goes so goes Sector 25.”
Admiral's War Part Two (A Spineward Sectors Novel: Book 10) Page 16
