by Doug Farren
Her tongue flashed out and touched his neck. “Yes—much better,” she said.
Dan’s eyes were bouncing between Lashpa and Tom so fast Tom was sure he was going to make himself dizzy. “Well I’ll be.” Dan said.
“What’s going on here?” Tom asked before Dan could say anything else.
“This is Professor Mike Adler,” Lashpa replied. “Dan said he’s come up with a possible way to defeat the Chroniech battleship.”
Tom took a good look at the professor while asking his ship to send him the man’s bio. He certainly didn’t look like the highly respected individual the bio described. He was short and slightly overweight with a three-day stubble covering his round face. His hair might have been combed at one time in the distant past but now it lay on top of his head in a tangled mess. The man’s bio, however, seemed to paint such a different picture that Tom wondered if his ship had sent him the wrong information.
Before becoming a permanent resident of Glish, Professor Adler had taught advanced continuum calculus at MIT and was a recognized expert in Terran shield technology. He was still listed as a military consultant and held a level one top secret clearance. Curious, Tom asked his ship to give him some additional information. According to the records available, the professor lost two brothers and a sister during the Chroniech war. He and his wife, who was a well-known writer, had traveled to Glish a few weeks after the war ended. His wife returned to their home and he remained behind. They filed for a mutual divorce soon afterward.
Tom extended his hand. “Tom Wilks,” he introduced himself. “I’m glad to meet you Professor.”
Mike grasped Tom’s hand in a firm grip as the two shook. “Glad to meet you,” he said, looking Tom in the eye. “I’m assuming you pulled my bio.”
“I did,” Tom replied, surprised.
“I’ve worked with a lot of peacekeepers,” Mike replied with a smile.
“My ship told me you were on the way back just as Mike and Dan arrived,” Lashpa explained. “They agreed to wait until you got here before sharing their idea.”
“Are you sure we’re the right people to be talking to?” Tom asked. “Shouldn’t you be talking to the military?”
“Peacekeepers can make things happen far faster than the military,” Dan replied. “Besides,” he added, laying a hand on Lashpa’s back, “I know Lashpa will listen to me. We’ve a bit of history together.”
“Indeed we do,” Lashpa replied.
“I’ve analyzed all the data that’s been gathered concerning the battleship,” Mike began. “Did you know they’ve enhanced their shield?”
Tom shook his head. “I’ve not been following the details that closely,” he admitted. “Chroniech shields are better than ours. Are you saying they’ve somehow managed to make it even stronger?”
“Based on the shield emissions during the battle at Parggrish, yes. I can’t say by how much, but there’s a distinct change in the phase relationships and harmonic field emissions. These and other clues point to an enhanced shield.”
“How can we stop them?” Lashpa asked.
“We either have to surround them with enough firepower to overwhelm their defenses or figure out a way for the Komodo Dragon to get close enough to shoot them before they can shoot back. They have a distinct advantage though in that they can choose when and where to engage us. We need to change that.”
“And how do you propose to do that?” Tom asked. “The battleship is faster, has better sensors, and has the tactical advantage. The Chroniech Captain is obviously aware of the Dragon’s capabilities and won’t hesitate to fire first. And I’m sure he won’t engage a large group of ships unless he knows he can win.”
“There is a way,” Adler replied. “There’s a large element of risk involved and we’ll need the Komodo Dragon and it’s FTL-enhanced Kyrra weapons. But we don’t have a lot of time to prepare. Based on the battleship’s current flightpath, it could strike Glish in as little as seven days. I’m hoping to convince the military to engage them at either Maktar or Kree’a-Thera.”
“Give us a quick overview,” Lashpa replied. “And if we think it has even a small chance of success, I’ll make sure you get all the help you need.”
Adler reached over and picked up a bottle of water. As he opened it, he asked, “Have you ever wondered what happens if you fire an FTL-based weapon while traveling at FTL speeds?”
Chapter 44
Commander Stiles didn’t hear the announcement that the Captain was on the bridge. He was bent over with his face close to a screen intently reading the text displayed there.
“Problems?” Scarboro asked, leaning against the chair.
Stiles sat back and pointed an accusing finger at the display. “This arrived a few minutes ago. I’m not sure what to make of it.”
Scarboro set his steaming cup of coffee in the holder and leaned over to read the message. Stiles patiently waited. Straightening up, Scarboro placed his right arm over his stomach then set his left elbow in his right hand. He grasped his upper lip between his left thumb and index finger. He remained that way for several seconds.
“I asked Petty Officer Uriasz to look at the maneuver we’ve been ordered to preload into the computer,” Stiles said. “I think someone’s lost their mind.”
“What about it Leonard?” Scarboro directed his question toward the helm. “Can we do it?”
“The computer says we can,” Uriasz replied.
“Dragon,” Scarboro said. “Is Chief Bucannon up and about?”
“He’s in the mess hall having breakfast,” the ship’s computer instantly replied.
“Have him report to the bridge immediately.”
“Acknowledged.”
Turning to the XO, Scarboro asked, “Other than the odd orders is there anything else I need to know?”
Stiles looked at the message then back at the Captain as if he didn’t understand the request. He had expected Scarboro to have a much different reaction. After a moment, he replied, “We’re still on course for Corthos, ETA 4 hours 19 minutes. Six thousand civilians have been evacuated. Another 15,000 are being transported to an old, barely operational colony ship that was left in orbit. They’re going to hide it behind one of the system’s gas giants. Hopefully, the Chroniech won’t pick it up. The rest of the population is being scattered across the surface as best as possible.”
“Any word of reinforcements?”
“Ships are beginning to gather around Glish. A large Shandarian fleet will be there in another day and a half. A Shiltan fleet will arrive a couple of days later. Looks like they’re going to make a stand at Glish. There’s something else as well—every peacekeeper ship in the area is being recalled to Glish. Nobody seems to know why.”
“Peacekeeper ships? They don’t have enough firepower to make a difference.”
Stiles got out of the chair. As he stepped aside, he pointed to the screen and said, “With orders like that being directed to us and peacekeeper ships being brought in to help with the fight, I’m beginning to wonder if an Admiral somewhere has lost his mind.”
“Let’s hope not,” Scarboro replied, sitting down in the command chair. “I relieve you.”
“I stand relieved. I’m going to get some chow. If I’m not back by the time the action starts let me know. I don’t think I can sleep knowing the Chroniech are about to devastate another planet.”
“I’ll let you know.”
Stiles passed Skip Bucannon in the passageway just outside the bridge.
“What’s going on?” Skip asked as they passed each other.
Stiles didn’t bother to slow down. “Insane orders,”he replied over his shoulder.
“You wanted to see me Captain?” Skip asked as soon as he was through the hatch.
Pointing to the screen, Scarboro said, “Take a look at this and tell me what you think they’re up to.”
Skip Bucannon had been the Dragon’s chief engineer for almost the entire life of the ship. He had turned down every promotion of
fered to him and had fought like a drunken brawler against every attempt to transfer him to another command. He considered the engineering section to be his personal domain, running the department as if he were the ship’s captain. He was a short, bald-headed man with a quiet voice whom everyone respected.
“Why on earth would they want me to bypass the interlocks?” Skip asked. “You can’t fire a weapon inside a stardrive field – especially our Kyrra guns. Someone’s clearly lost their mind!”
“The orders are valid,” Scarboro said. As he reached over to pick up his coffee he noticed Chief Novak making her way to the helm to relieve Petty Officer Uriasz. “Chief, tell Leonard to stick around for a moment, will you?”
“Yes Sir.”
Returning his attention to the chief engineer, Scarboro asked, “How long will it take?”
“Not long at all,” Skip replied, standing up and crossing his arms in front of his chest. “The interlocks are enforced by the computer. I can set up a command stack that will deactivate them any time you want.”
“Then do it. Petty Officer Uriasz, as soon as you’re done with turnover, tell us about this maneuver we’ve been told to upload.”
The helm turned his chair slightly so he could look at the Captain. “I’ll be right there Sir.”
Less than a minute later, Uriaz exchanged places with Novak and approached the captain’s chair. “It’s not something I would ever try on my own,” he admitted. “We position ourselves alongside another vessel while we are both traveling at FTL speed. Once we are in position, roughly 150,000 kilometers away, the computer will take over. It will slew the ship until we’re traveling backwards. That’s a really tricky maneuver because it involves sliding the reference frame of our FTL fields as the ship is reoriented. As soon as we’re in position, we’ll rapidly accelerate until we pass the other vessel. The computer will then swing us around until we are directly in front of the second ship at a distance of barely 2,000 kilometers.”
“Isn’t that cutting it kind of close?” Lieutenant Billings asked. He’d been standing behind the command chair and had heard most of the conversation.
“What are we supposed to do after that?” Skip asked. “Didn’t the orders tell you what the maneuver is for?”
“No,” Scarboro replied. “But it does put us facing the other ship.”
“Holy crap!” Skip said, his eyes opening wide. “They’re going to want us to fire on the battleship while we’re still under FTL drive!”
“You can’t be serious!” Scarboro exclaimed.
“Given everything we know right now, it’s my best guess,” Skip replied.
“What the hell is going to happen when we open fire?” Scarboro asked. He was beginning to see the connection between the seemingly unconnected orders. It also explained why the message said that it was incomplete and further details would be arriving soon.
“The least that will happen is that we’ll be knocked into normal space. It probably won’t be easy on the stardrive or us either.”
“What if our intrinsic velocity puts us on a collision course?” Uriasz asked. “We certainly wouldn’t have time to avoid a collision.”
“I’m more curious as to what will happen to the battleship if by some miracle we happen to hit them.”
Skip jammed his hands in his pockets and looked at the deck. “I’ll have to figure that one out,” he replied after a moment. “Our Kyrra weapons do generate an FTL field. These are only two possibilities; he’ll be knocked into normal space along with us or nothing at all.”
“I want those interlocks bypassed and the computer programmed to perform the complete maneuver and fire sequence as soon as possible,” Scarboro ordered. “Let me know when you’re done.”
“Can it wait until after I finish my breakfast?”
“Certainly.”
“I’ll have it done in less than two hours,” Skip replied, heading for the door.
Chapter 45
“I’m detecting no warships or defense systems,” Shagorath reported from the tactical station.
“This is not typical of the Alliance,” Varku said. “I’ve never known them to abandon a civilian population.”
“They abandoned the base we attacked yesterday,” Captain Albrath replied. “They know what will happen to them if they try to engage us. We nearly defeated the Komodo Dragon and now they follow us like a child following its parents. They’re afraid of us!”
“There’s more to it than that I think,” Varku said. “Our information concerning this planet might be out of date. It was listed as having a very small population during our initial invasion. Perhaps they abandoned this colony?”
“There are signs of energy production on the surface,” Shagorath reported. “Two locations appear to be inhabited.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Albrath said. “This is a habitable planet. We will take the time to make it uninhabitable. If there’s anyone left, they’ll be killed. If they’ve been evacuated, we’ll render them homeless. It seems a shame there are no planets close by with larger populations.”
Varku shot him an angry look. There had been a hint of a questioning attitude in Albrath’s voice. His anger quickly dissipated as he considered the alternatives the Captain might be thinking of.
“Do you think we should skip these lower population planets and proceed toward a more populous one?” he asked.
A direct question required a direct answer. Albrath carefully phrased his answer so as not to sound as if he was questioning Varku’s authority. “I believe it would be a better use of our time,” he replied. “It would also help to confuse the enemy. They’re most likely expecting us to attack the closest target possible after our last one. Proceeding directly to a new target will keep them guessing.”
Varku thought about that for a moment. He was not so arrogant to think that his plan was always the best. No Chroniech, especially those in a position of authority, liked to be questioned, but there were times when the opinions of others should be considered.
“I’m in favor of this idea,” he replied. “We’ll complete our work here and then move on to a more populated target. Do you have one in mind?”
The Captain felt incredibly proud that his suggestion had been accepted. Keeping the pride out of his voice, he said, “There are several possibilities. Thirty-eight light years from here is a planet with a population of over eight million. There’s also a large military base on the planet’s single satellite. A second possibility is a heavily populated planet 47 light years distant.”
Varku stood up and walked over to the tactical station. “Show me what we know about those two targets.”
Shagorath turned around and tapped out a series of commands. Two side-by-side screens displayed the tactical data they had available. The base (designated as target 1) was quite large and defended by a large number of automatic defense stations. The planet relied on the base to provide its sole defense. Target number 2 also possessed a fair number of defense stations and had a population of over 13 million. There was something else he had to consider as well—the Alliance was no doubt putting together a massive fleet in the hopes of being able to overwhelm his defenses. The deployment of that fleet would affect his plans and he needed to keep all his options open.
The planet with the larger population was a tempting target and he would not have to contend with the defense systems of a large military facility. Attacking the base, on the other hand, would be a satisfying experience. He could simultaneously deliver a blow to the Alliance military that could affect their morale and eliminate a large population of civilians at the same time. The double-blow would give his crew a significant boost in confidence as well.
“Show me the tactical of these two targets,” Varku ordered.
Both screens switched to a tactical view of the space surrounding the possible targets. Varku considered where he would go next. If he attacked the base, the next logical target was another civilian planet (now designated as target 3) with almost 200 mi
llion inhabitants. If he chose the civilian planet, the next target (number 4) would be one with a known population of 19 million. Choosing target 1 then 3 would also put him in range of target 4. The choice suddenly became clear.
“We will attack the base,” he announced. “After that, we’ll erase the lives of almost 200 million and then another 20 million after that.”
“We are in range of the planet,” Shagorath announced after glancing at his main screen.
“Captain,” Varku said, returning to his command chair. “Sterilize that planet so we can move on to a more challenging target!”
“I serve with honor!” the Captain intoned.
* * * * *
The crew of the Komodo Dragon watched, powerless to intervene, as the Chroniech battleship laid waste to Corthos. The ship orbited the planet 18 times, the matter converter operating continuously. Each time the ship’s sensors identified a power source or a structure, the immensely powerful energy cannons lashed out. Huge swaths of total destruction clearly visible from space covered the planet like a giant dirty string laying on the surface. At the end of the last orbit, the matter converter became silent and the ship headed out of the system. Scarboro desperately wanted to stick around to see if there were any survivors but his orders prevented him from doing so.
“I think they’re heading for Torth,” Billings reported from the tactical station.
“Torth?” Scarboro asked. “Everyone figured Smargrin would be their next target.”
Petty Officer Owens turned his chair around so he could join the conversation. “The Shandarians have a large base on Torth’s moon,” he said. “Are they so confident they think they can take on a base?”
“We haven’t been able to stop them so far,” Billings replied.
“There’s also over eight and a half million people there,” Scarboro replied, his hands balling themselves into tight fists. “This captain’s out for blood.”