by Ryk Brown
“How the hell did you know they had us to begin with?” Eckert wondered as he pulled the extra clips out of the pouch and stuffed them in his utility pockets.
“The pods should have ejected us right after they were activated,” Nash explained. “The only way they wouldn’t is if there was something in the way outside. Something big.”
“Like a ship.”
“Exactly.”
“But how did you know they had taken us to FTL?”
“I didn’t,” Nash admitted. “At least not until we came out of FTL. I felt the transition.”
“I was under the impression that the inertial dampening systems masked the sensation.”
“For the most part, but I’ve spent a lot of time on this ship. Most of it slipping in and out of FTL. You can tell.”
Eckert nodded. “And if we were still in the engagement area, we’d be in comms range with the Aurora.”
Captain Nash finished readying his own weapon. “Actually, if we were still in the engagement area, Scott would have nailed the bastards with a KKV, and we’d be dead already.” He rotated to face forward. “You head aft and find where the control line splits and see if you can get a signal from the detonators from there.”
“What are you going to do?” Commander Eckert wondered.
“We can’t defend both ends of the ship. I’m going forward to pull the control cards from all the consoles so they can’t take over the ship from ops. Then I’ll take up a defensive position just inside the aft hatch into the engineering section. If they do board, I can probably hold them back from there for awhile.”
“And if you can’t?”
“I’ll close the hatch and vent the cabin,” the captain replied without hesitation.
“If you do that, we won’t be able to go forward again,” the commander reminded his captain. “How will we get out?”
Captain Nash turned and looked at the commander. “We’re not getting out of this one, Skeech, but we’re not giving them the jump drive, either. Not without one hell of a fight.”
Commander Eckert took a deep breath. “Damn right, sir.”
* * *
Jessica ran out across the tarmac toward the flight of three combat jump shuttles that had just appeared overhead and were descending to land. Kata Mun and her porta-cam operator, Karahl, ran behind her, recording every moment. Flashes of light appeared low over the base every few seconds, casting brief, eerie shadows as jump ships continued to arrive from the Tau Ceti system. Ghatazhak soldiers climbed out of the combat jump shuttles as they touched down, immediately moving away from the ships in order to get clear of their lift thrusters that were already spinning up to return to Kohara.
Jessica ran toward one of the combat jumpers just as the disembarking soldiers were moving off, waving for the pilot to hold. The pilot noticed her, but appeared unsure of her intent. He noticed she had an energy weapon holstered on her hip, and appeared quite comfortable in the middle of an active airfield. However, she was also dressed in Koharan civilian attire and was being followed by a reporter and a porta-cam operator who were also dressed in Koharan clothing.
“I need a lift!” Jessica yelled to the sergeant in the side doorway, struggling to be heard over the sound of the shuttle’s idling lift turbines.
“Beg your pardon, ma’am, but who the hell are you?” the sergeant asked.
“Lieutenant Commander Nash, Chief of Security for the Aurora! I need to get back to my ship!”
The sergeant looked her up and down briefly, one eye raised in doubt. “Uh… We’re going back to Kohara, sir, not the Aurora!”
“I wasn’t asking, Sergeant!” Jessica shouted as she climbed into the shuttle. “Besides, you can spare five minutes to drop me on the Aurora!”
“What about us?” Kata yelled from outside the shuttle.
“You can’t go!” Jessica replied. “Not until you’ve been checked for Jung nanites! I’d hate to have to kill you if your eyes rolled back in your head and you went all catatonic on me!”
“What?” Kata yelled back, confused.
“We’ve gotta go, sir!” the sergeant insisted.
“Stay here!” Jessica instructed. “I’ll be back soon!”
“Where are you going?”
“Back to Tau Ceti!” Jessica yelled as she gestured for them to move clear of the shuttle.
Kata and her porta-cam operator moved back as the sergeant slid the side door closed. They both turned around and ran as the whine of the shuttle’s engines rose in both pitch and intensity. A wave of hot exhaust slammed into their backs as they fled, nearly knocking them over as the shuttle climbed up into the air. A few seconds later, the wave subsided, and Karahl spun back around and pointed his porta-cam upward just in time to see the climbing shuttle disappear in a flash of blue-white light.
Karahl stopped recording and lowered his porta-cam. “Where did she say she was going?”
“Back to Tau Ceti,” Kata replied, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Why aren’t we going with her?”
“I’m not sure,” Kata admitted. “Something about Jung nanites, and having to kill me.”
“What?”
Kata shook her head again. “This is going to take some getting used to.”
* * *
“Jumpers and Falcons are arriving in orbit now, Commander,” the communications officer announced. “They are requesting assignments.”
Commander Telles studied the tactical display of Kohara hovering above the planning table. At least a dozen red and orange icons decorated the semi-opaque globe before him, marking the locations of ongoing combat actions of his troops on the surface. “Start with Alliot, on the far side,” he instructed. “It has the least resistance at the moment. Have the Falcons pound the Jung positions prior to the extraction. Then move up to Paront and Marqvia. Contact the Aurora, and have them target the strongholds at Dodson, Monte Corel, and Askva, as they come around. After Marqvia, they will be next.”
“Combat jumpers only?” the communications officer inquired.
“Affirmative,” the commander replied. “Save the troop jumpers for everything on our side of Kohara. Troops only. Destroy all other equipment in place before leaving.”
“Yes, sir.”
Master Sergeant Jahal leaned in closer to the commander. “The admiral will not be happy.”
“The admiral has many replicators at his disposal,” Commander Telles said. “He can replicate replacements. These men are all we have left, and he knows it. That is why he ordered our withdrawal.”
“It will not take long for word of our retreat to reach the Jung forces in Cetia.”
Commander Telles sighed. “Precisely. That is why I am holding the troop jumpers and boxcars in reserve. When it is our turn to leave, I suspect the Jung will throw everything they have left at us.” He looked at the master sergeant. “We may only get one chance at our escape.”
“Could the Aurora not pound their headquarters into submission as well?” the master sergeant wondered.
“The facility is heavily fortified. In addition, I suspect it goes deep underground. There have been too many reports of Jung squads suddenly appearing as if from thin air.”
“The subway system is inoperable,” the master sergeant reminded the commander, “we made sure of that from the start. We even collapsed many of the main tunnels, just to be sure.”
“I know. That’s what worries me.” Commander Telles touched the semi-opaque image in front of him, causing it to zoom in on their present location. “As soon as we withdraw from Alliot, we shall move our forces from the waterfront and western hills districts in closer to cover our backs, in case any more of those surprise attacks should occur.”
* * *
“We’ll be in firing position over
Dodson in one minute,” Luis reported from the Aurora’s tactical station.
“You may fire when ready, Lieutenant,” Nathan confirmed.
“Aye, sir.”
“Message from the hangar deck,” Ensign Souza reported. “Lieutenant Commander Nash just arrived.”
Nathan spun around in his command chair in surprise, breathing a sigh of relief. “How?”
“Unknown, sir,” the ensign replied. “Master Chief Taggart reports a combat jumper just dropped her off. She’s headed up here now.”
“Range in thirty seconds,” Luis updated.
Nathan turned back forward and scanned the main view screen for a moment, wondering how Jessica would react once she learned about the plight of Scout Three, and her brother. “Any word from Scout Two?”
“No, sir,” Ensign Souza replied.
Nathan looked at the time display. It had only been ten minutes since learning that Captain Roselle had located the fleeing Jung battleship and Scout Three.
“Range in fifteen seconds,” Luis reported. “Charging up both quads.”
“New contact,” Mister Navashee reported, “it’s Scout One.”
“Incoming message from Scout One,” Ensign Souza announced. “They’ve received our update and are moving to retrieve the last KKV for repositioning. Transferring position and targeting information to them now.”
“Very well,” Nathan replied. “At least when we get the order, we’ll be ready to fire.”
“Target sierra two five now in range,” Luis reported. “Locking quads on target. Firing in ten seconds.”
“Any update from Telles on how long the withdrawal from Kohara will take?” Nathan wondered.
“No change, Captain,” Ensign Souza replied.
“Firing on sierra two five,” Luis reported.
“Switch the main view screen to one of our topside cameras,” Nathan ordered.
The image of the planet Kohara covering the upper portion of the main view screen from side-to-side disappeared, replaced by a view of the target from orbit. The image faded out and back in several times in succession as the camera zoomed in, finally settling on a magnification factor providing a view from only a thousand meters above the target. Streaks of red dove from either side of the screen toward the Jung installation below, superheated as they plunged through the Koharan atmosphere. The rail gun rounds slammed into the building from above, sending debris in all directions. Within seconds, a rising cloud of dust and smoke obscured the view of the target. Several secondary explosions, some of them quite large, pierced through the haze as munitions within the building were ignited by the incredible amount of kinetic energy being poured onto the target. The firing lasted only seconds, but for Nathan it felt as if he were seeing it in slow motion.
“Firing sequence complete,” Luis finally reported.
The glowing red rail gun fire streaming toward the surface ceased, leaving only a cloud of dust, with secondary explosions still flashing periodically from beneath the haze.
“Range on target sierra two six in three minutes,” Luis added solemnly.
“Damage assessment?” Nathan asked his sensor operator.
“Initial scans indicate massive damage,” Mister Navashee replied. “The structure is destroyed. I’m also picking up considerable collateral damage.”
“From our weapons fire?” Nathan wondered.
“Not directly,” Mister Navashee reported. “All our rounds were on target. The damage is from debris and shock waves. A lot of it is also from secondary explosions, many of which were quite large, Captain.”
“You’re firing on ground targets?” Jessica demanded as she walked onto the bridge.
Luis turned to look at the lieutenant commander as she stepped up alongside his tactical console and began studying his displays.
“Why?” she added.
“It’s good to see you, Lieutenant Commander,” Nathan replied, ignoring her question.
“I thought the Ghatazhak had things under control on the surface?”
“The situation has changed,” Nathan replied.
Jessica looked at the main view screen as the cloud of dust over the target began to clear. It was obvious the initial target had been destroyed, but so had nearly every building around it. “So much so that we’re blowing up entire city blocks?” she demanded. “How the hell do you expect to get the Koharans on our side if…”
“Stand down, Lieutenant Commander,” Nathan ordered, cutting her off mid sentence.
“What the…”
“We’ve been ordered to withdraw all ground forces from the surface of all Cetian worlds,” Nathan continued.
“We’re retreating?” Jessica couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She paused for a moment, trying to find the right words, but ended up with only, “Why?”
Nathan turned slowly in his chair to look Jessica in the eyes. “Tug is dead, Jess.” It was only the second time the words had crossed his lips, and it hurt even more this time than it had before.
Jessica looked as if all hope had been stolen from her. “What?” she replied, barely a whisper. “How?”
“I don’t know,” Nathan replied, his own voice barely audible. “We’re on our own, Jess. Those men on the surface… they’re all we’ve got left.”
Jessica’s eyes darted around the bridge, as if looking for answers to her millions of questions. “How do you know? I mean, maybe there…”
“I don’t know,” Nathan admitted. “But why else would Dumar order a withdrawal?”
“Fifteen seconds to sierra two six, Captain,” Luis reported.
Nathan noticed Jessica scanning the tactical display for herself, frantically trying to understand the current situation. “We’ve lost more than half our airborne assets,” he explained. “We have to cover the Ghatazhak retreat by pounding Jung assets, even if it means killing thousands of Koharans in the process, I’m afraid.”
Jessica looked even more confused as she glanced at the threat board. “Is the system clear?” she wondered.
“For the most part, yes.”
“Then why the hurry?”
“There’s no time…”
“Contact, jump flash,” Mister Navashee reported. “Comm-jumper.”
“Message from Scout Two,” Ensign Souza announced. “The Jung have launched a shuttle of some kind. Roselle reports that it has attached itself to the topside of Scout Three, directly over their boarding hatch, sir. He thinks they’re going to board her.”
Jessica’s eyes grew even wider as she looked at Nathan.
“Yes, I’m afraid there’s more, Jess.”
* * *
Josh scanned his displays one last time. “I’m good up here,” he reported over his helmet comms.
“Good back here,” Loki replied. He keyed comm to transmit. “Porto Santo Control, Falcon Four, ready for takeoff.”
“Falcon Four, Porto Santo Control. Cleared for takeoff. Fly heading one seven five to outer perimeter. Cleared to jump after fifteen hundred meters.”
“Falcon Four, cleared for takeoff. One seven five to perimeter. Jump past fifteen.” Loki activated the Falcon’s jump navigation computer, calling up a standard jump to high orbit plot.
“Time to get back in the fight,” Josh said. He pushed the throttle for the Falcon’s lift fans forward, just enough to take most of their interceptor’s weight off her landing gear. He turned to the master sergeant on the tarmac to his right, who gave him ‘thumbs up’ gestures with both hands, bouncing them toward the sky. Josh increased his thrust a bit more and the Falcon’s landing gear lifted off the ground.
“Off the deck,” Loki said. “Gear coming up.”
Josh glanced at the master sergeant outside again, as the man braced himself against the blast of ai
r from the Falcon’s four thrust fans.
“I’ve got four greens,” Loki announced, relief clear in his voice.
The master sergeant scanned the underside of the hovering interceptor, then looked at Josh and saluted. Josh returned the salute and advanced their throttle further, causing the Falcon to rise upward as the master sergeant turned away and retreated.
Josh watched the ground outside fall away from them. “Guess we didn’t take as bad a hit as we thought.”
“These ships may be antiques, but they’re tough ones,” Loki added.
Josh throttled up their main atmospheric engines, causing the Falcon to surge forward. Within seconds, they were rocketing away from Porto Santo and climbing into the twilight over the surrounding ocean.
“Passing fifteen hundred meters,” Josh reported.
“Jumping.”
The canopy turned opaque for a moment, quickly becoming transparent again a second later. The evening sky had been replaced by the blackness of space, the Earth now several thousand kilometers behind them and falling away rapidly.
“Jump complete,” Loki reported. “Come to one three eight, sixteen up relative. Accelerate to three five zero.”
“One three eight, sixteen up, three five zero.” Josh adjusted his flight harness. “Was that three or four reloads?” he wondered. “I lost count.”
“Five,” Loki replied as he programmed the jump series back to the Tau Ceti system.
“Really? Gotta be a record for us, right?”
“I believe it is.”
“On course and speed,” Josh reported.
“Jump series in five seconds.”
“Did you find out how many ships made it back from Sorenson and Stennis?” Josh asked.
“Jumping.” The canopy turned opaque again, as they started their series of twelve jumps. “I asked control on one of the alternate channels,” Loki explained. “All they could tell me was that we were down to eight ships now.”
“Damn. I don’t suppose they told you who bought it?”