by Jan Domagala
“Sir, the main drive is offline, that last salvo must’ve taken out the engines, we’re not jumping anywhere,” said ops once he’d regained his feet.
“The only option now is to give yourself up.” Sinclair said, “Surrender now and save any further bloodshed.”
Wilde got to his feet and said to the captain, “Get some sort of propulsion online, we need to get away. Prepare to receive borders, they’ll try to take the ship by force and I won’t allow that.” Grabbing a Sig from one of the clones he turned to Sinclair and Tanya, aimed at them and said, “You’re coming with me.”
He herded them towards the door once more then, to Rygar said, “Organise the troops Tanis, kill anyone who gets on board,” and before Rygar could respond the three of them had left.
Pretending to scratch his ear Sinclair keyed his ear bug then said, “Give it up Jonas, the main propulsion is offline, your shields are depleted and any minute now you’ll have troops coming aboard, what will you do then? Do you really think that holding me as your hostage will prevent them taking this ship or if they can’t take it, blowing it out of space?”
Wilde stared at his old commander and said, “They won’t do anything while you’re on board.”
“That’s where you’re wrong Jonas. I’ve already given orders that if this ship can’t be taken it’s to be destroyed with everyone on board, no matter who that may be.”
A voice came into Sinclair’s ear, “I hear you loud and clear General but it won’t come to that, we’re gathering to launch a counter strike as we speak. Just hold tight, sir, we’ll be there soon,” Colonel De Boer said.
“And did your men understand your order?” Wilde asked.
“Loud and clear, there was no misunderstanding of that, you can be sure,” Sinclair replied, then changing tack asked, “What about your own daughter Jonas, don’t you want her to be safe?”
Wilde glanced at her with no more affection than a shark shows for it’s next meal.
“She’ll get to see her father’s crowning achievement before she dies,” he said and then urged them forward with a wave of the pistol.
“I’m sorry my dear, I hoped at least to procure your safety,” Sinclair said as they moved forward.
“At least I know where I stand with him,” she replied, holding back her tears.
Leaning close to her he whispered, “Don’t give up hope just yet my dear, we’re not dead yet and I’ve great faith in the Colonel and Matt, neither of them will let us down, you mark my words.”
Tanya gave him a half smile in reply and she hoped that the general’s faith was well founded for at that moment she couldn’t see a way out of this.
COLONEL DE BOER HAD taken command of the troops that had arrived from Fort Bragg and had them organised back inside the troop carriers heading for the Nemesis in orbit around Earth.
The huge carrier was motionless, hanging in space with her engines offline and her shields down, leaving her vulnerable to attack.
De Boer watched as the three cruisers slowly circled her like a pack of wild dogs surrounding their prey, waiting for just the right moment to strike.
Small explosions erupted along the flanks of the great ship, the result of her battle with the smaller craft, and De Boer couldn’t help but feel sadness for her, to be reduced to this by such a dishonourable act rather that what she had been intended for, defending the Confederation. Putting those thoughts aside he looked for an available docking bay and once he had located one ordered both pilots to enter.
On approach he had contacted the captains of the attacking cruisers to inform them of the situation on board the Nemesis and of his intentions. He instructed them to destroy her after thirty minutes unless they heard from either himself, General Sinclair or Matt Hawk to the contrary. His mission would be a search and rescue one, to locate General Sinclair and Matt Hawk and bring them to safety. Their specialised knowledge of the workings and infrastructure of Col Sec was too important to be allowed to fall into enemy hands. Their secondary mission would be to capture the Nemesis, but if that proved to be impracticable or impossible, they were to destroy her.
Finally he contacted Captain Jefferson on the Valkyrie who had been watching the battle from a distance with mounting frustration at his inability to render assistance.
“We’ll be ready, Colonel,” Jefferson said once De Boer had relayed his plan to him.
Confident he had done everything he could at such short notice to secure the success of the mission, De Boer gave the command to enter the Nemesis’ docking bay.
24
Hawk followed the route he’d seen Sinclair and Tanya being taken on to the bridge, but once he reached the level where he lost sight of them he was at a loss to know where they could be. Sure, he had a knowledge of the ships of the fleet and roughly where main sections were, such as the bridge or engineering, but if, as he suspected, Jonas Wilde had left the bridge with his prisoners they could be en route to anywhere on the massive ship and he was running out of time.
Keying his ear bug he said, “General Sinclair, have you any idea where you and Tanya are?”
Sinclair and Tanya Wilde were being herded towards one of the elevators when Hawk made contact.
“Where are you taking us Jonas, I know this is a big ship but eventually the troops will find us. There is nowhere on board you can hide, you know that, don’t you?” Sinclair said in answer.
“Do you honestly think I haven’t planned for this General?” Wilde said with a sneer of derision.
“You’re taking us off the ship,” Sinclair said when it dawned on him what Wilde intended. “Well it’s true what sailors used to say about rats and sinking ships, it works in space too, eh Jonas?” he added.
“Thanks General, now if you can get him to divulge which docking bay he intends on using, I can head you all off,” Hawk said hopefully.
“I suppose you have a special shuttle already picked out for this, one that your troops know nothing about. I mean how would they feel about their illustrious leader if they knew he was leaving them to their fate at the mercy of Recon Delta marines whilst he escaped in luxury?” Sinclair said, hoping to draw the answer out of Wilde for Hawk.
“You are so right, General, if I had time to staff this ship with my Rover5s it wouldn’t be a problem, total obedience you see, but seeing as the crew are humans I had to take precautions. I secreted a transport with hyperdrive in a docking bay that wasn’t being used. It has a limited range but is sufficient to take us to where I want to go,” Wilde replied smugly.
“And your crew bought that, never questioned it?”
“No, I told them it was still under construction. Believe me General there are many systems on here that are not quite up to spec, such as backup generators for the shields. If we had time to outfit her fully there would’ve been no way your cruisers could inflict the damage they did.”
“Thank God your impatience got the better of you then,” Sinclair said more to himself than to anyone else.
“Thanks, General, I think I know where he’s taking you,” Hawk said. Using his NI he accessed the computer and asked for the ship’s schematics, specifically docking bays. There were four with only one not being used, and when he had the location of the fourth he logged out saying, “Got you now, Jonas,” and he set off for the nearest elevator.
TANIS RYGAR LEFT THE bridge along with the six Rover5s. He called the rest of the Rover5 contingent, numbering close to a hundred, on board and ordered them to defend the docking bay when the incoming troop carriers arrived. The other six Rover5s who had followed him from the bridge were ordered to rendezvous with their brothers.
Seeing the clones march off to do battle brought a wry smile to his face as he wondered if using clones like that would be the future of warfare.
Putting that thought away to concentrate on more important matters, he headed towards where he’d left Hawk. There were two things he had to do; first, take care of Hawk and second, get off the Nemesis. It was blatantly o
bvious that Wilde had deserted them the moment the Nemesis was crippled and Wilde was a fool if he didn’t realise he saw through his little subterfuge. So if the great man didn’t rate their chances of survival as being too high, then escaping had to be a priority. He would make it the first and only thing on his “to do” list if professional pride, need for revenge, whatever you wanted to call it hadn’t got in the way of logic. Hawk had eluded him in the chamber and once again in the shuttle in the skies of Cordoba, he was not going to let him escape a third time. Once he saw him lying at his feet, dead, then and only then could he even think about leaving.
The med patch he’d applied to his shoulder wound had worked well. The bleeding had stopped as the nanobots worked to regenerate new tissue. His shoulder would be as good as new with nothing to show for the wound other than another scar within a few days and, more importantly, the pain had ceased which meant he wouldn’t be hindered by it when he reached Hawk.
When he was half way to where he’d left Hawk he tried to contact the Rover5s guarding him. When he couldn’t get through to them he knew that Hawk had escaped yet again. The man was proving far more resourceful than he thought possible.
Rygar sprinted down the corridor towards the elevator. Frustrated at how slowly the elevator moved, he barely contained his rage. When the doors opened he saw the two dead clones and he released a bellow of pure animal rage.
Where was Hawk? Where was the illusive agent who persisted in frustrating him by surviving? It was a few seconds before he could bring himself back under control, so that his thought processes would function to figure out where the man had gone.
He was the hero, right? So he would attempt to rescue the heroine and in this case that meant Tanya Wilde. Having worked that out he knew what to do.
HAWK WAS IN THE ELEVATOR on his way to stop Wilde when his ear bug was activated.
“Matt, I’m in command of the reinforcements from Fort Bragg. We’re approaching Docking Bay Three in two C230s,” De Boer said, his voice crystal clear in Hawk’s ear.
“Tread carefully, Colonel, I’m sure Wilde knows you’re coming and he’ll send whatever troops he has left to try and prevent you getting aboard while he makes his escape,” Hawk replied.
“He’s going nowhere, the engines are offline,” De Boer said triumphantly, misunderstanding Hawk’s words.
“No, Colonel, that’s not what I meant. He’s got a shuttle prepped in Docking Bay Four, it’s fitted with a short-range hyperdrive and he’s taking his daughter and the General with him. I’m on my way to stop him as we speak,” Hawk explained.
“Docking Bay Four is on the other side of the ship, we may not get to you in time,” observed the Colonel with some trepidation.
“Don’t worry about me, you just see if you can gain control of the Nemesis and if not, just hold those damn clones off me for as long as you can. I’ll handle Wilde and get the General to safety, somehow,” Hawk said with determination.
“Make it fast then Matt, the captains of the cruisers are under orders to destroy the Nemesis in less than half an hour unless they hear from me, you or the General,” De Boer said. He went on to tell him the rest of his plan, finally finishing by wishing him luck and informing him he would try to get to him as quickly as he could.
“Half an hour doesn’t give any of us much time but I’ll do my best, sir,” Hawk replied, feeling the pressure to succeed as a burden on his shoulders.
“Hey, if this was easy, anyone could do it, right?” quipped De Boer, hoping to ease some of the tension without diluting the importance of the mission.
“Yes, Colonel, this isn’t just a job, it’s an adventure,” Hawk replied.
“True, very true. Listen, if we all get out of this alive then the first round of drinks is on me, okay?”
“That, Colonel, I’ll hold you to.”
“De Boer out.”
As the elevator doors opened in front of him he hoped he would have enough time to complete the task before him. One thing he knew for certain, he would not leave this ship without either the General or Tanya and he would do whatever was needed to ensure they got off safely, even if it meant his own life was forfeit. As his thoughts passed over the General and lingered on Tanya he hoped it would not come to that as he realised that he would very much like to spend some time getting to know her properly.
“THERE YOU ARE,” RYGAR said, as he saw the blips on his palm pad signifying the position of Tanya Wilde. He had reasoned that the computer would be able to track the particular NI that had the codes, which had allowed access through the ship’s shields. After asking the question as to the location of said NI the answer was relayed to his palm pad.
“So Jonas, if you have a way off this ship, I just may hitch a ride with you, or better yet, take it from you,” he said as he put away the palm pad. He knew where Wilde was heading, he also knew Hawk would go there too, so if he timed it right he could arrive in time to mop up and then escape. That is, if the ship held together long enough, he thought, as another explosion rocked the massive carrier sending a shudder through it that was felt throughout the entire craft.
AS THE TWO TROOP CARRIERS entered Docking Bay Three, Colonel De Boer instructed each pilot to disengage the automatic docking protocols and remain on manual entry. The tactic served them well for it meant they kept control of the craft and were not secured on a pad, making a stationary target for the defending troops who had appeared on the uppermost balcony.
The clones opened fire with Remm Mk III assault rifles sending down a storm of pulsed plasma at the two craft.
“Take them out,” ordered De Boer, and the pilots brought the two craft up level with the balcony and fired their forward pulse cannons at the clones.
Hovering back-to-back and firing forward as they rotated around in a full three hundred and sixty degree circle, the C230s sent out a hailstorm of pure death.
The clones continued to fire in a valiant yet vain attempt to protect the ship from invasion and, as he watched them being cut to pieces in the wholesale slaughter, De Boer couldn’t help but think what a waste of life it was and that they should give it for such an unworthy cause. On the other hand, was this loyalty, this ability to blindly follow orders, programmed into them at a genetic level? De Boer supposed that was a question that probably would never get answered.
Within five minutes of them entering the Docking Bay all resistance had been quelled and the two C230s were able to land.
As the troop carriers were preparing to release their cargo of Recon Delta marines, De Boer asked the pilot of his craft to scan for life signs within the Docking Bay.
The other C230 began to unload her cargo when the pilot replied, “Sir, I’m showing a large group approaching the Bay area, almost like they’re waiting for something.”
“Get those marines back inside the C230,” De Boer shouted to the pilot of the other troop carrier. His call was too late as the few marines who had already debarked were cut down where they stood by pulsed plasma fire from the balcony above.
The clones had sacrificed some of their number to make the marines believe the defences had been defeated. It was a trap and they had almost fallen right into it.
De Boer had the pilot take off once more and ascend towards the balcony. This time, both forward and aft, pulse cannons were fired along with a few Hammerhead missiles to reinforce the point.
Under this devastating covering fire, the other C230 let loose her cargo of marines who were able to work their way up to the upper balcony and complete the mopping up exercise.
This time they were positive all the defending troops were accounted for and, if they had time to count up all the body parts and collate the results, they would learn that ninety-eight clones died in the action with an added loss of eight Recon Delta marines with three wounded.
De Boer was satisfied that their foothold was secure and they could proceed with the second phase of their operation.
Total time elapsed, twelve minutes.
&nbs
p; 25
Wilde smiled as the entrance to Docking Bay Four loomed ahead of them for he knew escape was just a few short steps away.
“Not far now, General, and we’ll soon be safe. Well, I will, you, I’m afraid, well you’ll be safe too, as long as you co- operate,” Wilde said with a smug smile playing across his thin lips.
“We both know that’s not going to happen Jonas, so why fool ourselves?” Sinclair replied defiantly.
“I was so hoping you’d take that position, it will make the knowledge I take from you that much sweeter than if you just gave it up. In the end you will tell me everything I want to know, it’s inevitable. So please, resist all you want, all you can, I implore you; it will make the entire experience so much more enjoyable, for me at least. I’m sure you won’t enjoy it at all,” Wilde agreed with obvious pleasure.
Tanya looked at Sinclair, put a hand on his arm to make him pause and said, “Don’t bother saying anything, General, he’s not worth the trouble,” then gave her father a look of such contempt it actually stopped him in his tracks.
“Oh Tanya, my dear, I had no idea you felt that way. Well, no matter, this will soon be over and...” Wilde said.
Tanya cut him off by saying, “And what, I’ll be dead so you’ll make yourself a new daughter, one who approves of everything you do and questions nothing, is that it Dad?”
“What an interesting idea.”
“And what would this new Tanya call you, Dad or God?”
Wilde looked at her, studying her almost as if he was seeing her for the first time. Slowly a smile crossed his thin lips and he said, “Very good, I like that, it shows a depth I’ve not seen before. I must make sure I keep that in the new you, it’ll make for some interesting conversations over dinner.”
