Ep.#14 - The Weak and the Innocent (The Frontiers Saga)

by Ryk Brown

  * * *

  Ten Jung troop shuttles approached what was left of the Jung airbase just outside of Cetia. The first ship came in quickly—almost too quickly—touching down with a slight bounce not more than fifty meters from the formation of Jung troops on the tarmac. The rough landing drew a look of concern on one of the Jung officer’s face, however, when the troop shuttles that landed after them also made such imprecise approaches and landings, he attributed it to the urgency of their mission.

  Josh and Loki both bounced in their seats as the troop shuttle touched down rather abruptly.

  “Jesus, Josh,” Loki exclaimed, “you might want to wait until you get a gear contact light before you kill your landing thrusters.”

  “Which one is the damned contact light?” Josh wondered. “I can’t read any of this shit!”

  “I told you, those four lights over there, just above the range controls.”

  “Well why the hell aren’t they above the gear status lights, like every other fucking ship in the galaxy?” he exclaimed in frustration.

  “You want me to fly this thing?” Loki asked.

  “You just look out the window and look like an adult for the crowd of Jung out there, Lok. You’re the only one of us that can.”

  Loki looked out the starboard window, peering down at the group of Jung soldiers lined up in perfect formations on the battered tarmac. “Damn, there sure are a lot of them out there.”

  “Please, don’t talk about it,” Josh begged. “I just want to get this crappy fucking assignment over with, and get back to flying Deliza’s psychotic engineering experiments.”

  “That makes two of us,” Loki agreed. “Just be glad that our passengers won’t be able to speak to us.”

  Boarding hatches on both the forward and aft sections of the first massive troop shuttle to touch down, immediately lowered to their loading position. Gerard appeared in the hatch, dressed as a Jung commander. He started down the boarding ramp in a hurry, his sergeant, Tomas, close behind. Upon reaching the bottom, he marched smartly toward the assembled men waiting to board.

  “Lieutenant Commander,” Gerard began speaking in Jung, as he approached the young officer.

  “Sir!” the lieutenant commander replied smartly, snapping to attention and offering a crisp salute.

  “Is this it?” Gerard inquired. “I was under the impression that there were several thousand of you?”

  “Three thousand, four hundred, and twenty-eight, sir,” the lieutenant commander replied.

  “Then where are they?” Gerard asked impatiently.

  “We were told that only one thousand men could be evacuated at a time, sir. I thought it best to assemble only those about to be evacuated, so as not to expose all of our remaining forces to a concentrated attack.”

  “Attack?” Gerard wondered, almost laughing. “By whom? The Koharans are pacifists, are they not?”

  “Pacifists can grow teeth, if provoked, sir,” the lieutenant commander explained. “Word of our withdrawal will spread rapidly, and it will take time to conduct four rounds of evacuation, sir.”

  “Yes, yes,” Gerard nodded. “Good thinking, Lieutenant Commander. I take it you have arranged a method to cover the evacuations?”

  “Yes, sir,” the lieutenant commander replied. “The last group is maintaining the perimeter. They have wired it with mines and automated defenses. We have also shut down all public transit. Very few will be able to make it to this base, if so inclined.”

  “Excellent,” Gerard congratulated. “Well done.”

  “Sir, if I may?” the lieutenant commander asked, leaning closer to Gerard.

  “What is it, Lieutenant Commander?” Gerard wondered, turning his ear to the Jung officer.

  The lieutenant commander glanced right and left, as if verifying that no one other than the commander could hear his words. “Commander, we can hold this world. I know we are few, but as you said, the Koharans are mostly pacifists. Now that the Jar-Benakh has defeated the enemy ship that has so plagued us these past weeks, we can…”

  “Captain Tahn has given the order to sterilize all three of the Cetian worlds,” Gerard explained. He was careful to appear unaffected by the nature of such an action.

  “But, sir…”

  “Haven’t you been killing suspected collaborators in the streets?” Gerard asked. “Were you not telling the people of Kohara that the enemy who destroyed our ships could not have done so without help from those collaborators?”

  “Yes, sir, but…”

  “So, you can see how the sterilization protocol is warranted in this case?”

  “Yes, of course, Commander…but all three worlds?”

  “If we sterilize only the one, then we will be seeding even greater rebellions on the other two,” Gerard explained, becoming impatient. He cast a suspicious look on the lieutenant commander. “You are not questioning Captain Tahn’s orders, are you?”

  “Of course not, sir,” the lieutenant commander replied vehemently. “I…”

  “What is it?” Gerard wondered, appearing even more irritated.

  “It’s just that…some of the men…they have taken girlfriends, wives. Some of them even have children.”

  “So?” Gerard wondered, appearing indifferent.

  “Some of the men may not want to leave.”

  Gerard looked at the lieutenant commander, one eyebrow raised in discontent at his remarks. “Then let them remain. They can perish along with their garbage wives and their half-breed children,” Gerard declared with obvious disgust.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “On second thought,” Gerard said, “Assign anyone you believe does not wish to be evacuated to the last group, and have them provide security. Tell them… Tell them that Captain Tahn will allow them ample time to gather their families and seek shelter. Then, when the last group of loyal Jung soldiers are about to leave, have them shoot those who wanted to remain with their little rodents, rather than serve the empire.” Gerard pretended to look pleased with his impromptu decision. “It will send quite a strong message to the rest of your men, don’t you think?”

  The lieutenant commander said nothing, instead just stood there, staring at Gerard with his mouth open, in shock.

  “Lieutenant Commander, don’t tell me that you have a little Koharan whore yourself?” Gerard asked as he removed his gloves.

  “No, sir,” the lieutenant commander insisted without hesitation. “Of course not, Commander. I live to serve the empire!”

  “That’s what I thought,” Gerard replied indignantly. “Now, will you please get the first group of men aboard my ships so we can get on with this. I am so looking forward to finally getting out of this god-forsaken system.”

  “May I inquire as to our new destination, Commander?” the lieutenant commander asked.

  Gerard smiled. “We are going home, Lieutenant Commander. We have captured one of the enemy’s new propulsion systems, and we are going to deliver it, personally, to our caste leaders.”

  The lieutenant commander looked as if he would burst with excitement.

  “That’s right, we’re all going to be hugely rewarded for our contribution to the empire,” he said, tapping the lieutenant commander on the chest with his gloves as he strolled past on his way to watch the embarkation.

  * * *

  Captain Roselle and Commander Ellison stood on the catwalk overlooking the Jar-Benakh’s main hangar bay, as several hundred Ghatazhak soldiers escorted the unarmed Jung troops as they disembarked from their shuttles, to detainment areas that had been setup in several adjacent hangars. The looks on the faces of the Jung men were a mixture of confusion, frustration, and disappointment. In some cases, the captain thought he saw looks of embarrassment as well.

  The captain watched the activity below
, shaking his head in disbelief. “You know, I was sure that wasn’t going to work worth a damn. I guess that’s why I’m not an admiral…yet.”

  “We’ve still got three more loads to go,” the commander reminded him, “not to mention another couple hundred men still at the orbital shipyards.”

  “I suppose fear of getting nuked from orbit will make a man quick to do as he’s told,” the captain said with a wink as he turned to exit. “Make sure they don’t dally, Commander. I want to make sure we’re ready to bug out fast, in case the next part of this plan goes to shit. We could have a whole battle group dropping in outta FTL at any moment wondering what the hell we’re doing.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  * * *

  “Half light, sir,” Mister Chiles reported from the Aurora’s helm. “Killing the mains.”

  “Very well,” Nathan replied. “Open the doors and standby for deceleration burn.”

  “Opening decel doors,” the helmsman replied.

  “Lieutenant Tillardi, you may deploy the jump KKVs,” Nathan instructed.

  “Aye, sir,” the lieutenant replied.

  “Topside camera,” Nathan added.

  The Aurora’s spherical main view screen switched to the forward facing camera on the front of the main drive section.

  “Magnify,” Nathan instructed.

  The image on the view screen cross-faded, revealing a magnified image of the two JKKV deployment racks, each of them sitting in on one of the topside launch and recovery platforms. Nathan squinted, straining to see the clamps that held each weapon in place on the rack as they all opened at once, releasing their hold on the weapons.

  “Weapons are free-floating,” Lieutenant Tillardi reported.

  “Downward translation, Mister Chiles,” Nathan ordered.

  “Translating downward, aye,” the helmsman reported.

  All eyes on the bridge, except for those of her helmsman, were locked on the main view screen as the two pairs of Jump KKVs rose slowly upward out of their cradles. The weapons had to remain on their precise course and speed in order for them to successfully intercept their targets more than a light hour away.

  “Separation is ten meters and rising,” Mister Riley reported.

  “One percent on the deceleration engines, Mister Chiles,” Nathan ordered.

  “One percent decel burn, aye.”

  Nathan continued to watch the main view screen as the Aurora began to gradually decelerate, making it appear as if the four JKKVs were pulling ahead of them when, in fact, the Aurora was falling behind them. The devices continued to rise upward on the view screen, as the Aurora fell further behind them and continued to drift downward from them as well.

  “Safe maneuvering distance in ten seconds,” Mister Riley announced.

  “Stand by for full deceleration burn,” Nathan instructed.

  “Full decel burn, standing by,” the helmsman replied.

  “Celestia is approaching safe maneuvering distance as well, sir,” Mister Navashee reported.

  “On Mister Riley’s count, Mister Chiles,” Nathan added.

  “Decel burn in three……two……one……burn.”

  “Deceleration engines at full power,” Mister Chiles reported.

  “Speed is decreasing,” Mister Riley reported. “Estimate combat maneuvering speed in fifteen minutes, thirty seconds.”

  “Very well,” Nathan replied.

  “Celestia reports their JKKVs are away, and the Celestia is at full deceleration,” Ensign Waara reported from the comms station.

  “Mission clock shows eighteen minutes to first attack jump,” Jessica reported from the tactical station.

  Nathan turned to his left and rose from his chair. “Now let’s just hope that those antimatter mines do the trick,” he said as he headed toward his ready room, “or we’re going to be chasing down those jump KKVs for hours.”

  “Not to mention having to fight this battle in the Tau Ceti system,” Jessica added as the captain walked past her.

  Nathan looked at her as he passed, a look of uncertainty on his face. “Fingers crossed. You have the conn.”

  * * *

  Captain Poc walked through Scout One’s EVA bay, between the rows of spacesuits on either side, making his way forward. They had been following the Jung battle group on its way to the Tau Ceti system from the 82 Eridani system for several hours, ever since they left the Karuzara with ten antimatter mines on a makeshift deployment rack attached to their underside.

  “How are things looking, Mister Todson?” the captain asked as he stepped through the hatch into the operations compartment.

  “No change, sir. The target is still on the same course and speed.”

  “Then we’re good for deployment?”

  “Yes, sir, it looks that way,” the Ensign replied.

  “Excellent,” the captain said, glancing up at the mission clock to the right of the cockpit ladder. “Racks looking good as well, Lieutenant?” he asked his chief engineer monitoring the console just forward of the sensor officer.

  “I wouldn’t call them good looking,” the lieutenant replied. “More like a mess, really. They slapped that thing together in one hell of a hurry, if you ask me. To be honest, I’m just praying none of those mines snag on release. Last thing we need is an antimatter mine dangling from our belly when we jump away.”

  “Have a little faith, Lieutenant,” Captain Poc said as he ducked his head under the bulkhead up into the hatchway and started up the angled ladder that led up a meter and a half to the scout ship’s cockpit.

  The captain climbed up the ladder through the angled hatchway and stepped onto the deck of the cockpit just behind the flight seats. “Commander,” the captain greeted as he stepped over the center console and climbed into the pilot’s seat.

  “Coming up on the deployment jump,” Commander Jento reported.

  “Very well.”

  “Jump point in ten seconds,” the commander added.

  Captain Poc settled into his seat as his executive officer and copilot counted down to the jump point. Everything about the deployment of the antimatter mines had been calculated down to the millisecond, and the entire sequence was being handled by the scout ship’s flight control computers. All they had to do was keep the ship on the assigned heading and speed which, once established, required no effort at all.

  “Jumping,” the commander reported.

  Captain Poc glanced at the displays, which were the only way they had of knowing they had jumped. He hated the few second lag that always followed the jump, while the ship’s navigation system recalculated their location, course, and speed, after instantly transitioning between distant points in space.

  “Jump complete,” the commander reported.

  “Deploy the mines,” the captain ordered over his comm-set.

  On the underside of Scout One, ten ungainly looking devices were released and began floating away. Tiny maneuvering jets began to fire, first on the outermost mines, then inward, one pair at a time. The mines began to spread out evenly as they continued on the forward trajectory that their host ship had imparted onto them.

  “We have a good deployment,” the lieutenant reported over the comms. “Mines are spreading out, nice and even.”

  “Arm the mines,” the captain ordered.

  “Mines are armed.”

  “Begin deceleration burn,” Captain Poc ordered.

  “Beginning decel burn,” the commander replied. “Two minutes to detonation.”

  “Two minutes ten seconds until the battle group can detect them,” Ensign Todson added.

  Captain Poc studied the deployment display as the icons representing each mine continued to maneuver into position, spreading out evenly in both height and width to cross the flight
path of the approaching battle group.

  “Deployment pattern looks right on the money, Captain,” Ensign Todson reported.

  “That’s it,” Captain Poc said, “we’ve done our part, let’s clear the area. I don’t want to be anywhere near those mines when they detonate.”

  * * *

  “Captain on the bridge!” the guard announced as Nathan came out of his ready room

  “One minute to mine detonation, Captain,” Jessica reported from the tactical station.

  “Set general quarters,” Nathan ordered as he headed to his command chair. “How are the jump KKVs doing?”

  “Still running true and sending back good telemetry,” Lieutenant Tillardi reported. “They’re currently about three million kilometers ahead of us.”

  “Thirty seconds to detonation,” Jessica updated.

  “All hands report general quarters, Captain,” Ensign Waara reported from the comm station. “The XO is in combat, and the Chief of the Boat is in damage control.”

  “Very well.”

  “Twenty seconds to detonation.”

  Nathan sat in his command chair, reviewing their carefully orchestrated battle plan in his head as he waited for the last few seconds to pass until the mines detonated and started the ball rolling. Once that happened, the element of surprise, if they had it at all, would be lost. He looked over his shoulder at his old academy friend, Jonathon Tillardi, carefully studying the telemetry from the eight jump KKVs he had spent the last two months building. The lieutenant’s eyes were dancing back and forth, and he was biting his upper lip. The poor guy was nervous. Nathan remembered how nervous he had been the first few times he had taken the Aurora on the offensive. It was different than when you were attacked. You were taking an action, the result of which would be the deaths of hundreds if not thousands of human beings, quite possibly the ones on your very ship. He knew that his friend was feeling that kind of pressure at the moment, as lives were depending on his devices working properly.