"One of those two spy ships turned around right as we transitioned," Nick said. "I'm guessing it's headed back to report."
Marny took in the information while searching the holo projection for ships that were just not there. According to Liam, the Kroerak had used a different wormhole within the system for their own transit.
"Set course for Picis," Marny said. "I want a catalog of every ship in this system." She knew her request was ludicrous. Between the three ships, they had significant sensor capabilities, but space was vast and as soon as they ramped up to hard-burn, they'd lose their scanning effectiveness.
"Captain, deploying sensor package one on your mark," Hawthorn announced from engineering.
"Go ahead, Adrian," she said. The Mars Protectorate engineer had proven his worth more times than not by coming up with innovative solutions to difficult problems. In this case, engineering had manufactured a sensor array that would gather data while Hornblower was in hard-burn and update them when the ship was free of interference from their engines. Their plan was to launch ten such arrays on their short, three-day burn to Picis.
"All hands, prepare for hard-burn in ten… nine…," Ada announced. The ship had spent the better part of thirty days in hard-burn at a class-A rate, burning an unimaginable amount of fuel. As a result, the announcement was expected.
Nick approached Marny's chair and swiped at the glass pad in his hand, tossing the data onto her holo. "I have preliminary data." Sensors had captured the position of the distant planet along with its two moons. A few indistinct shapes appeared between the moons' orbits and the planet, but little detail was available.
"Ada, I need all heads in the war-room in twenty. Would you set that up?" Marny asked after gathering the little information she could from the holo. It was time to inform the crew of what they were up against and share the plans she'd worked out with House Perasti.
"Aye, aye," Ada answered sharply.
Marny stood and walked from the bridge, nodding at the armed Marine who manned the door. The sound of Little Pete's cries could be heard once the doors to her quarters opened and a grateful Flaer met her as she entered.
"Being a bit of a pickle, is he?" Marny asked, glad to have the mental break and at the same time wondering if she'd doomed her child by bringing him along. The timing of the Kroerak's resurgence couldn't have been worse and she knew that either way, she'd feel the guilt of her and Nick's decision for years to come.
"I can see your conflict each time you hold him," Flaer said. "You must remember that it is life that we fight for."
"But we're going into a battle I’m not sure we can win," Marny said, settling onto a chair to feed Peter. "I was selfish to get pregnant."
"Perhaps," Flaer said. Marny looked up at the woman who had previously been nothing but supportive and awaited the judgement she knew she richly deserved. "But I know one thing for certain. Without Marny James-Bertrand, the Kroerak will murder many more than little Peter. If you are to fail, it is certain that little Peter will die a quick death. And while this is upsetting, it is nothing when compared to the death he would experience within the claws of the Kroerak that will flood this part of the galaxy after your defeat."
Marny shook her head grimly. It was a conversation they'd had numerous times. Flaer's words, while true, did little to assuage her feelings of guilt.
Marny stared hard at the last update delivered by Hawthorn's sensor packages. For two days, the Kroerak had seemed oblivious to their approach. In a perverse way it made sense. Ada had argued at their last meeting that three ships, even cruisers, were no match for the hundreds that surrounded the beautiful blue planet.
"We're seeing movement from this group." Walser stood and gestured to a small fleet of twenty Kroerak ships composed of eight lumpy cruisers and twelve smaller ships. The AI highlighted the ships sitting directly along Hornblower’s approach vector. "It's too early to know, but our tactical AI suggests the ships will attempt intercept here." He highlighted a section in space a few hundred kilometers past the point where they were to exit hard-burn.
"We should pull back," Hawthorn said. "We don’t stand a chance against that many cruisers."
"And what then?" Ada asked, rekindling an argument that'd been brewing at each of their updates. "Wait for enough Kroerak ships to arrive that they feel comfortable chasing us down? You of all people know we have no speed advantage over those frigates. How many do you think it would take to overwhelm our three ships? Kroerak lack imagination, they don't lack strength. We have to strike while the iron's hot."
"Nick, you've been running scenarios, how many lance waves can Hornblower survive and still make atmospheric entry?" Marny asked.
"Depends on range," Nick said. "On average, however, four. Adrian's not wrong. Simulations show that eight cruisers are lethal within ninety seconds of contact."
"Damn it!" Marny slammed her fist onto the table in frustration, startling all around her. It was a rare occasion when Marny raised her voice. "We need to think out of the box."
The table went quiet and Marny gritted her teeth, knowing her outburst had shut down much needed conversation. Her team was presenting problems instead of solutions.
"Baux-201," Liam's voice came over the comm unit sitting on the meeting table. "You have two advantages. You need to use them."
Ada's cheeks burned upon hearing the name of the tug where her mother had died. She flashed back to the moments when three Red Houzi pirates had surrounded her and her mother in the deep dark, too far from any civilization to receive help. "I … I don't understand," she said. "You want us to escape in lifepods? Is that our advantage?"
"Sorry, Ada," Liam answered, his tired voice conveying recognition of his mis-step. "No. The first advantage you have is a buffer where Kroerak ships can't go. It's only a cone that goes out about fifty thousand kilometers – and even that is pushing it – but it's an advantage. The second, and the reason I thought of Baux, is that you have speed from your hard-burn."
"Frak, why didn't I think of that?" Nick asked. "Roby, what's the fastest speed we can hit the atmosphere at?"
"Think of what?" Marny asked, turning on him like a wolf smelling blood. She'd been around Nick and Liam long enough to know how they formulated their strategies. She caught up quickly and a mental sketch of the new plan started to take shape.
"Let Roby give me some calcs," Nick said.
"If we allow for loss of some armor plating on the stern and maybe the loss of an engine, we could do this." Roby tossed a navigation plan onto the table: a ridiculously fast approach to the planet, a plunge into the atmosphere and Hornblower, just inside the cone of safety provided by the city of Dskirnss's weapon.
"We'll never survive that," Hawthorn snapped. "The inertial dampers will fail. We'll be pulling over 9gs. And that's if you don't blow our engines in the process, because then we'll just burn up in the atmosphere and end up as a blackened lump at the bottom of the ocean!"
"Roby, punch this plan up onto two electronic pads," Marny said. "Semper, I need you on the bridge."
"You can't be seriously considering this," Hawthorn said.
"Run the calculations again," Nick said. "What are the engine tolerances? Hawthorn, put your numbers into it too."
Marny watched as the simulation changed and Hornblower skipped off the atmosphere, ripping off the superstructure which held the bridge. The rest of the ship was thrown back into space and into the middle of a large Kroerak contingent.
"Frak, I hadn't even thought of that one," Hawthorn said, almost triumphantly.
A knock at the door alerted them. Ada, distracted by the unfolding simulations in front of her, opened the door.
"Ma'am?" Semper asked, pulling to attention as Marny turned to her. Marny smiled. The young Felio had been nothing but loyal.
"Roby has a plan on this electronic pad," she said. "I need you to take our shuttle over to Hunting Fog. Mr. Hawthorn, I'll have you take the other pad to Runs Before Wind."
"Which plan?"
Roby asked.
"You want me to leave?" Hawthorn asked.
"I don't want this information sent over radio signals," Marny said. "And Runs Before Wind is short on engineering staff. I think Roby has a handle on things here."
"We'll send all four plans," Nick said. "I'm labeling them numerically. We should let Moyo and Jamani's engineers take a shot at them."
"It has been a pleasure serving with you all," Hawthorn said as he stood. "I will discharge my duties and see you all on the other side."
"Godspeed, Adrian," Marny stood with him and shook his hand. Semper looked at Marny, clearly not understanding the exchange. Awkwardly, she offered her paw. "Semper, I need you to go show those Perasti just how House of the Bold does things over here on Hornblower."
"Captain, do you mind if I walk her out?" Roby asked, looking at Semper wistfully.
"You're dismissed, Roby," Marny answered.
"Are they still a thing?" Liam asked.
Marny chuckled at the pure banality of the question. "Yes. Roby's really turned the corner for me on this cruise. I see it and I'm sure Semper does too."
"You know Hawthorn's right," Liam said, his voice once again sober. "Jonathan says you have a thirty percent chance of making it through this maneuver."
"Ask Jonathan what our chances are if we take on a fleet of eight cruisers and a dozen frigates?" Marny responded, energized by the glimmer of hope.
Breaking up the meeting, Marny made her way back to the bridge and opened a pouch of juice. She didn't feel like eating but knew that between the stress of battle and Peter's demands, she had to push the calories or she'd pay the price.
"Captain, I have Hunting Fog on comms," Walser announced.
"I feel compelled to question the name of your house," Moyo said, uncharacteristically baring her teeth. The gesture was generally considered rude for a Felio in polite company, but Marny had seen Semper do it when she felt stress.
"Let's not talk over comms about the plans I sent over," Marny said.
"I understand," Moyo said.
"Did you have another name in mind?"
"There is a word that does not translate well to English," Moyo answered. "It has to do with yowling at the moon. It is said that a Felio who does this too much is unstable and dangerous. There is conflict as to whether this behavior is positive or negative, as many who have been labeled this have been mighty warriors."
"What's the negative?"
"Not many within their company survive and generally these warriors are not comfortable among gentle peoples," she answered.
Marny grinned. "Sounds like you have us pegged. So, what do you think?"
"My engineers say your first is of the highest quality. They also say our survival is unlikely," she answered.
"That's our read on it too," Marny said. "Quite an improvement over our other plan, don't you think?"
"No," Moyo answered. "I believe we are capable of surviving long enough with our previous plan. But I am not so blinded that I do not see the brilliance that lies within the madness."
"Will you follow us?" Marny asked.
"We will."
"Ada, coordinate execution of navigation plan-one," Marny ordered. "Moyo, we'll see you on the other side."
"Sharp claws and quick kills, Bold Second," Moyo answered, closing comms.
At a hundred thousand kilometers out, Marny was surprised to feel Hornblower rotate on its horizontal axis and fire engines, speeding up instead of slowing. It was part of the plan, but the very thought of utilizing a planet's atmosphere to help slow them went against everything she knew about sailing ships.
"Flaer, it's time to put Peter in his cradle." Marny wished she had time to place her infant into the armored crib herself. She just had to hope her baby would be safe in Nick’s device with its independent atmo, inertial and gravity systems.
"He is already resting within," Flaer answered. "I will provide him with a sleep patch now."
"Thank you, Flaer. Now get yourself strapped in, we're in for a bumpy ride."
"Captain, the Kroerak fleet is adjusting course," Walser announced. "They're going to try for an intercept."
"Copy that," Marny answered.
"They sure figured that out quickly," Nick said.
"All hands," Ada announced, cutting off their conversation. "Prepare for hard-burn."
Hornblower flipped once again and its engines fired hard, working to burn off the additional velocity gained. Marny studied the sensor data as her holo projector updated. Sensor functions would be spotty and relegated to near-space while under hard-burn. The score of Kroerak ships giving chase were headed to an intercept point on the edge of the Picis weapon's range.
Marny held her breath as she watched Hornblower speed toward the point where their path would intersect with those of the Kroerak ships. As was generally the case in space, their conflict would end almost before it started.
"It looks like they're all lining up on Hornblower," Nick said.
Marny didn’t answer. Of course the Kroerak were targeting them; it had been Loose Nuts that cost the Kroerak so much in the past. Hornblower would be quite a prize for whomever shot it down.
"If they all get a shot on us, we're done," Nick said, pushing to make Marny understand the issue at hand.
"Understood," she answered. "We just need one ship to make it through. If Hornblower has to take the hit, then that is our lot. The Kroerak must be stopped!"
"We stop the Kroerak!" Ada yelled, raising her gloved fist in defiance, her voice cracking as she did.
Without hesitation, the bridge crew responded, each raising a fist and echoing their agreement, "Stop the Kroerak!"
For a few minutes they sailed forward as Hornblower's powerful engines pushed against the inertia they'd built up, slowing their approach to the quickly growing planet. Marny watched the Kroerak close in on them. The two Abasi ships from House Perasti had closed ranks and sailed behind Hornblower with only a kilometer separating them.
"Fire control, limber those weapons. Fire at will!" Marny ordered. A fraction of a second later, Hornblower's weaponry loosed its first salvo and Marny wondered just how much damage the large 400mm slugs would cause against the hardened Kroerak armor. The speed differential between the ships was considerable, adding to the weapon's power.
"Brace, brace, brace. Kinetic weapon impact imminent," the ship's AI announced. Braking hard, Hornblower's sensors were slow to update Marny's holo projection. She watched in horror as first Hunting Fog and then its sister ship Runs Before Wind broke formation and moved forward. Just as a wave of Kroerak lances were to impact Hornblower, the Perasti ships slid along her flank, placing themselves in the line of fire and in grave danger.
"Runs Before Wind is down," Nick stated, his voice high with tension. "Hunting Fog has taken substantial damage to her aft. They might have gotten her engines."
"Roby, damage report," Marny queried.
"Still working on it," Roby answered. "We're holed in three sections. All critical systems are operational."
Hornblower bucked as its great weapons fired another salvo — this time at the Kroerak ships quickly disappearing behind them.
"We're not out of this yet," Nick said. "Contact with atmosphere in ten seconds."
"Dolynne, be ready to take helm if I black out," Ada warned.
"Copy, Ada," Dolynne answered. "I've enjoyed sailing with you, Ms. Chen."
"Aye," Ada answered.
The ship jolted backward as it met the atmosphere. It was as if they'd run into an invisible glass wall. Items that were ordinarily held in place even under hard-burn, were thrown forward as Hornblower was slowed in the most violent way possible. Marny fought for breath as she was shoved deep into her chair, her lungs collapsing and her vision narrowing under the g-forces.
A scream drew Marny’s attention. In her peripheral vision she watched as Lieutenant Walser was torn from his chair and sailed past her to the back of the bridge, slamming into the armor-glass. A sickening crack
cut off his scream. Marny desperately tried to turn to see what had happened to him, but was pinned in place.
Unwilling to lose consciousness, Marny struggled against the blackness that threatened to take her. She bit down on a med-patch stimulant and then onto her own cheek. The combination of blood, pain and stimulant was an effective countermeasure. Finally, almost as quickly as it had started, Hornblower's powerful engines overcame the inertia and quiet was restored to the bridge.
Marny coughed, wiped blood from her mouth and tenderly felt her side. Somewhere along the line, she'd broken a rib, but she was up.
"Ada, Dolynne, are you up?" Marny asked, stumbling forward, pushing through the pain.
Marny grabbed Ada's shoulder, receiving a moan in response. Turning to Dolynne, she found the woman unresponsive, her head hanging at an unnatural angle.
"Ship, show position relative to defensive weapon’s range," Marny said.
"Turn us over," Ada mumbled. "Need forward."
Marny pulled a combat stimulant patch from her waist pouch and slapped it onto Ada's temple.
"Frak! Holy shite, what was that?" Ada asked, her eyes fluttering wide open.
"Get us on the ground," Marny ordered.
Ada pushed Marny's hands away from the controls and took over.
Marny looked aft and found Walser's crumpled body on the deck. Panic gripped her and she turned to find Nick, slumped in his chair but starting to move. She then swiped at her HUD and poked at the display which showed little Pete, lying in his crib. His bio signs read normal for a sleeping infant.
"Roby, are you up?" Marny called.
"Almost," he answered. "Yeah, yeah, I know, you need a damage report."
Marny chuckled at his demeanor.
"Incoming comm from Hunting Fog," Ada announced.
"Moyo, what's your status?" Marny asked.
"We live," she answered.
"I am sorry for Jamani," Marny said.
"Do not be sorry. Her name will be known by all for her bravery. I am proud to have been her sister," Moyo answered stoically. "She has brought honor to House Perasti."
Fury of the Bold Page 20
