Shrugging, Plon figured it would save them a little time in their opening part of the plan—that and the use of their new weapon in taking them out, too. Well, not really new, but hopefully effective. Supreme had tasks her battle designers to come with a more efficient way to remove the explosive devices the species on the planet had developed in a weak attempt to protect themselves. Using a variation of a weapon the Curanians had obtained from another species sometime in the past, they adapted it for this use.
Looking out from his transparent control deck, he could see the ships firing their volley of the weapon. The missile-like bombs were nothing more than explosive packed cylinders intermixed with crude iron pellets. The theory was that when the bomb exploded, the pellets would shoot far and wide to trigger the alien devices in a sizable disbursement.
Flashes appeared as the bombs exploded at a predetermined range. Large, secondary explosions went off as the devices in the protective field began to detonate. When everything settled down a huge expanse of open space now appeared where a defensive field once existed. He watched the screeners moving left and right to repeat the process to widen the opening even further.
A quick glance at the strategic viewer failed to show any alien activity within range of his fleet’s rebounders. The planet ahead was not his real target, nor was it all that important to remove the protective field. The goal here was to give the appearance of attack to draw the second fleet to him. So far, though, they hadn’t shown up. Plon wasn’t worried since he had no idea how far away the other fleet resided.
Plon’s eyes dropped to look over the tactical map. The map was a permanent resident within his memory now. He studied it many a time until he had memorized every minute detail of his plan. Unfortunately, he didn’t know exactly where to expect the other fleet to make its appearance. All he could glean from the prior battle was they came into it from behind, but the interference of the protective field made it impossible to know how they came into the system, nor how long they were there before forming up to make the attack.
His thoughts turned to the two scout ships, now lost. Muni and Nock never reappeared, and that meant that they were gone for good. Shaking his head at the thought, it only solidified his believe that the fleet they were waiting for was good. When he had discussed the loss of the two ships with Supreme Kold, it was surmised that both ships were taken out so fast that they were never able to send a warning message.
He then let his mind replay what little he gleaned from the scout ship holding rear guard for Nage that day. One of the rebounder views showed it just outside of the protective field. Then it suddenly moved away and was lost when it veered left and behind the opening in the field. What happened to it after that was a mystery. Shaking his head, Plon still had a hard time understanding why the ship was moved in the first place, and how it was so quickly illuminated.
Turning his thoughts back onto the opponent’s fleet, he mumbled, “Just my luck that alien fleet will decide to hold their staging area in the exact same location as my ambush fleet. Wouldn’t that make my day? I would probably get my own dedicated pole outside Kold’s windows, so she could admire my dead body, too.” The thought soured Plon’s mood. While the risk of the alien fleet discovering his ambush fleet was minimal, the risk still existed.
Plon pushed the thought from his mind. His job was to execute the plan as designed. As the battle progressed, he would make minor changes to address anything unforeseeable. He would have his opponent outgunned by at least two to one, so he could adjust to the changing course of the battle much easily than his foe.
Now, if only these new shields are worth what he was promised. Their shielding had been modified specifically to counter the energy balls the alien fleet fired. Even though they couldn’t render the weapon’s impact useless, they should allow each ship to last longer than they did for Nage. Unfortunately, it was all theory since they couldn’t produce the actual energy weapon to test them. If the shielding worked, however, they would give the alien fleet a lesson they would not soon forget.
“The screeners have completed clearing out the protective field, Plon,” Jime said.
Looking down at her, he could see Jime standing in front of the communication controls looking up at him. Scanning the viewer, he confirmed that the screeners had indeed cleared out all the devices within the area they had been assigned. Those little pellets really did the job.
Pressing on the communication control, he responded, “Yes, I can see that. Prepare to move the Ciat upon my command.”
Releasing the control, he watched Jime move off to perform other tasks. Her efficiency once again reminded him of how Nage had done everything right. If only he could have kept himself from disappointing Kold. Supreme Kold was not one to disappoint.
“For someone so lovely, Kold, you are one mean offspring of a klidspit,” Plon said aloud. He then opened a channel to all ships. “Control to all ships, execute phase two of the plan.”
His fleet went into action again. The screeners moved ahead while keeping in their widespread formation. The assaulters moved forward behind them, as would the Ciat and the pounders when their time came.
Nage had been unable to use the pounders in his battle. Plon wasn’t making that mistake. Where the pounders had only been meant to bombard the planet in support of ground forces, he had them converted so half of their armament now carried the laser weapons for ship-to-ship targeting. That modification greatly increased the number of guns he could bring against his opponent’s fleet, while still giving him bombardment capability should he need it.
Flashing caught his attention and brought him back to the attack already underway. The screeners fired upon the nearest alien floating platforms to take them out. They were using the same bombs they had fired at the protective field. Plon thought it was a creative use of the new weapon as he witnessed them crashing through the crudely made platforms to ravage the internal sections that had to be decimating the crews.
Even though the Ciat remained well back from the platforms, he could still visibly see them being blown wide open. The sight raised caution within him. Why had they not fired back? Why had they let themselves be destroyed without raising any kind of protective fire? Something didn’t seem right.
“Prat to Control, the platforms appear to be abandoned.”
The report from the screener ship’s commander only added to Plon’s worries. Why would these creatures not have their secondary defensive layer crewed? Had their sudden arrival caught these creatures completely off guard? A quick look at the strategic viewer showed that none of his opponent’s ships had gone into action either. In fact, he was not showing any energy readings coming for any of them. Even the floating station that housed them failed to show any readings of any kind.
“Could I have really caught you this unprepared?” Plon said aloud. “No, I’m not buying it. You’re up to something, but what?”
Plon stared at strategic while trying to make sense out of what the various ships’ rebounders were feeding back into the sweep computer. Something was going on here, but he couldn’t figure out what. Was he falling into a well-devised trap of his own?
“Maybe you’re over thinking this, Plon. Perhaps these creatures simply abandon this planet and moved under the protection of wherever that other fleet resides.” Speaking aloud, Plon had tried to come up with a rational reason for what he was seeing. If these creatures had fled, then his entire plan was doomed to failure. He couldn’t spring his trap if no one was here to witness what was happening and send out the alarm.
Realizing his fleet has stalled awaiting further orders, he opened communication to all ships, and ordered, “Control to all Screeners. Move forward to engage the enemy ships and docking station. Assault ships to move up in support.”
If they had fled, Plon struggled to understand why the left their ships. It seemed that they would have needed those very ships to ferry their inhabitants from one planet to another. The more he tried to rationalize what he w
as seeing the more confused he became. Until he had a better feel for what was going on here, Plon was going to hold the Ciat and the Pounders well back. If it was a trap, he would be ready to respond to whatever his opponent was trying to spring on him.
The inner most floating platforms exploded in separate blasts as the screeners fired on them in passing. All that remained between his fleet and the planet now was the ships docked at the station.
Plon stared in disbelief as the screeners close in on the docked ships. As the red streaks of light shot out from his screeners to land on the helpless ships, he thought over the idea of a trap. Explosions followed as ship after ship took devastating fire. Even as he watched the destruction, his mind tried to make logical sense out of a strategy that would include letting an entire fleet be destroyed. Plon shook his head while trying to comprehend how anyone could justify such stupidity.
Still sensing a trap, Plon constantly shifted his eyes between what was happening before him and the screen showing strategic. At any moment, he expected to see ships appearing to seek revenge upon him. Smiling at the thought, he knew his opponents had no way of knowing he had another entire fleet at his disposal. Let them spring a trap. He had one of his own to counter it.
A bright flash lit up the entire control deck. Looking out, he could see the floating station was now nothing more than scattered debris. Just like the platforms, it offered no resistance of any kind. His assertion that the place may really be abandoned started to dominate his thoughts. If that was the case, his control over the planet would be a quick affair. I might as well get that over with.
Opening a channel to all ships, Plon ordered, “Screeners to take flanking position left and right of the planet. Assaulters to move into guard position inside the screeners. All pounders to move up to begin ground assault.”
With everything well ahead of schedule, Plon began to relax. He felt that any planned trap would surely have been sprung on him by now. He watched and waited as his ships moved into their assigned formation. It didn’t take long for the screeners to take their picket positions left and right of the dirty-looking brown planet. The assault ships created a second defensive line between the pounders as they came forward of the screeners.
When the pounders finally moved into position, Plon hit the option to activate the communication link with the command deck. “Jime, move into a rear-guard position behind the pounders and swing us broadside to the planet.”
It took a few ticks for Jime to reach the communication controls and respond. “Yes, Plon.”
Chapter Five
“All Kracks have been brought into the confines of the Rugg, Council Leader,” Overlord Ridnig reported.
Klickest rotated a tired eye away from the monitor positioned on the council table to inspect his aide. He kept his other eyed glued to the monitor that provided a view of the destruction occurring overhead.
The other council members also sat around the table, clearly subdued after watching the alien fleet wipe out their minefield, launch platforms and now the attack against their ships and docking station. The effectiveness of their destructive behavior made Klickest glad he had the foresight to abandon the ships, station and platforms and bring those crewing them back to the planet and within the safety of the rugg.
Realizing that Ridnig still awaited his reply, he said, “That is good to hear, Overlord. Have the council guards been positioned at the rugg entrance to provide warning against attack?”
“Yes, Council Leader. As you ordered, half of them will stand guard to be relieved by the other half at regular intervals. Nothing will come into the rugg entrance uncontested.”
“You may return to your duties, Overlord.”
Rotating his eye back onto the monitor, he used his other eye to spy the table. He could see the other members of the Council watching the monitor intently. This had to be the first time in Kracks’ history that a session was held without any shouting between members.
The monitor suddenly went dark. The invaders finally destroyed the docking station, and with it, the data capture mounted on the top. With nothing more to see, Klickest’s thoughts turned to what the creatures would do next. Whatever it was he would be powerless to do anything about it. He may not be able to prevent them from coming down to the surface of Kracks, but he could make sure they would severely regret trying to enter this rugg.
“What could they possible want that this planet would provide them?” Wiskum’s question drove the silence from the room.
“I have no idea, Masterlord. Perhaps they are just a destructive species,” Klickest responded.
“They are here to take revenge on us for defeating them before. The ships are clearly from the same creatures,” Triff said.
“That could well be, but they will have a hard time getting at us to seek that revenge,” Klickest said.
“I agree,” Bolard said. “This rugg is easily defendable. They can only come in through the main tunnel. That will cause them to have to funnel any attacks they try to make. We will tear them to pieces.” His boasting seemed to lift the spirits of the entire Council.
“Yes, let them come. My claws will drip with their blood,” Rentum said while holding one arm up to point his claws upward.
A heavy thud sounded, and the entire chamber shook. Dirt and dust drifted down from the ceiling to cover the table in a thin brown layer. Klickest felt a small pebble bounce off his snout. Spinning both eyes up, he studied the solid rock overhead to see if it had cracked, but no sign of any damage could be seen.
The chamber came alive with continued heavy thuds and vibrations. The monitor on the table vibrated heavily. After several beats, Overlord Ridnig appeared in the chamber. He said, “The council guards report that the invaders are bombarding the planet’s surface with highly explosive weapons. They are targeting the surface buildings.”
“Bring the guards into the rugg,” Klickest ordered. “As long as this pounding is going on, I do not believe they will attempt to send anyone down. There is no use risking one of those weapons landing close enough to harm them.”
“At once, Council Leader.”
Klickest waited until Ridnig left before saying, “Once these creatures complete their leveling of our old dwellings, perhaps they will believe we have been eliminated and leave for good.”
“How would we ever know? We have lost our ability to see them,” Bolard asked.
“Your question is a good one, Masterlord,” Klickest responded. “There may never be a way to know for sure if they have ships up there in space or not. However, does it really matter? If they stay up there, they can do us no harm.”
“They could wait for us to come out and begin firing down on us again,” Triff said.
“As long as we stay safely within this rugg, they cannot harm us. We will only send out small hunting parties as needed. Time is on our side.”
◆◆◆
Just before the pounders began unleashing their devastating bombardment, none of the ships’ rebounders had recorded any energy readings on the planet’s surface. They did find what appeared to be an old village, but it looked deserted now. Plon would let the pounders have their fun destroying it and the surrounding area. It would prove a nice exercise for future invasions elsewhere.
“Plon, strategic fails to detect any sign of amassed life on the surface. All we are seeing so far is scattered migrations of herd animals,” Jime reported.
Glancing down at her, Jime stared up at him with a look of impatience. Plon thought over the idea of wiping out the herds, but he had no idea if the inhabitants of this planet were even carnivorous. They could chew on tree bark for all he knew. Besides, it would take forever to try to clear the planet of all life. If they had fled this planet, it would be a waste of bombs anyway.
“Control to all pounders, cease-fire and begin discharging your landing forces.”
“What good will that do, Plon? There is nothing down there,” Jime said.
Plon looked down to see her still
standing before the comm control scowling up at him. Activating the response link, he answered, “Consider it a fleet exercise. Who knows, those ground pounders may find something useful down there. Now, you command the Ciat and leave me to decide what’s best for the fleet.”
Jime pulled her thumb off the comm button in an over exaggerated symbol of defiance. After staring up at him for several ticks, she finally turned to go about commanding her ship. When she was out of eyesight, Plon smiled at her spunk. If you weren’t so ugly, Jime, I’d drag you into to my square and give you a coupling you wouldn’t soon forget.
Releasing his animal desires, he returned his focus back onto the pounders. Large hatches swung down and outward from their underbellies to begin expelling landing crafts. It reminded Plon of a hoard of insects pouring out of a rotted log. The nose of each landing craft pointed down as they dove for the planet’s surface.
◆◆◆
Ground Master Suna sat upfront in the lead Curanian landing craft. His assault force headed for the planet surface with his craft in the lead. With each craft hauling twenty members of his assault force, he could put close to a thousand troops on the surface in a single trip. More would follow later, if he deemed it necessary.
Suna studied the small craft’s rebounder data that provided detailed information of the planet surface. He failed to see anything that told him a sizable force resided on this planet to challenge him. In fact, he was beginning to feel that this planet might be an outpost that was abandoned after the first attack. If that assumption was true, it would explain why no resistance was offered. He wasn’t taking anything for granted, however. If resistance was awaiting his forces, he would be ready to meet it.
The Curanian Dominance: The Linda Eccles Series - Volume Three Page 3