Search for the Saiph (The Saiph Series Book 2)

Home > Other > Search for the Saiph (The Saiph Series Book 2) > Page 30
Search for the Saiph (The Saiph Series Book 2) Page 30

by PP Corcoran


  Ai had brought his forces out of fold space on the outer edges of the Durav system. In the large main holo cube of the Resolute’s flag bridge, the system lay before him. Sixteen planets orbiting a yellow G-class star. Highlighted on the outer edge of the Goldilocks zone was his objective. Durav. Home planet of the Others. As the fleet’s sensors probed deeper into the system, the computer filled in the gaps in the intelligence picture. The large asteroid belt encircling the star was a hive of activity. Power sources were abundantly spread throughout the tens of millions of asteroids. Mining and processing facilities no doubt, thought Ai. Maybe some military bases but he couldn’t be certain until he got closer. As he continued to survey the readouts, he was struck by the lack of space ship drives. Such a large mining operation should have ships continuously transiting back and forth to the inner system.

  “Tactical. There seems to be a distinct lack of ship drives in the system, any ideas?”

  The commander at tactical had been thinking the same thing and he had been searching frantically for an answer. Ah… found you.

  The holo cube zoomed in on the area between Durav and its two orbiting moons. There. Clustered so tightly together that they obscured each other’s drives were literally thousands of ships of all sizes. From small inter-system shuttles to massive cargo haulers.

  Well, it looks like we were expected. “Try and clean up the readings, Tactical, I’d like to distinguish between warships and civilian.”

  “Aye-aye, sir. It might take me a while, but our readings should clear up as we get closer to the planet.”

  That would be soon enough, thought Ai. “Any indication of dampening buoys?”

  “None yet, Admiral.”

  “Fold transit! It’s the Benii carriers, sir. High Commander Botac sends her regards and requests permission to join the fleet.”

  “Very well. Fleet general signal. Fleet will assume formation Delta. Navigation. Shape us a course for the inner system. Fleet will advance at 0.1 of light. Tactical. Let’s get BatFors 2.1 and 2.2 out in front, I need their eyes. BatFor 1.1 and 1.2 are to expedite the launching of half their Freibas equipped for an anti-shipping strike I want them on our flanks acting as a trip wire in case the enemy decides to try a sneak attack. All remaining Freibas are to go to a rotating thirty-minute alert status.”

  The officer at comms acknowledged the orders and began transmitting them to the fleet. So it begins, thought Ai.

  #

  As the Commonwealth fleet crawled through the outer reaches of the Durav system, the Others remained apparently motionless. It wasn’t until the fleet passed through the system’s asteroid belt that they detected any signs of enemy activity.

  “Dampening fields detected, Admiral.”

  Ai stirred in the seat he had refused to leave in the hours since the fleet’s arrival.

  “Show me on the tactical display. Pinpoint the center of the field and its extent, if you please.”

  In Ai’s tactical holo cube a patchwork of seemingly random spheres blossomed into life. The majority were in the path of the fleet’s advance but some were clustered around one of Durav’s moons while a few were in the wake of the fleet. An attempt to block his escape route? Ai continued to look at the display for another moment before coming to a decision. Tapping a key on his armrest, he waited patiently for a second while the link was established and the face of Gavin Glandinning appeared in the holo cube.

  “Admiral Jing, sir.”

  “Admiral Glandinning, it appears that I require the services of your cruisers.”

  In the display, Gavin nodded expectantly. “Locate and destroy the dampening buoys, sir?”

  Ai graced him with a small, tight smile. “Start with the buoys to our rear. Better safe than sorry, I think. Contact me again once you have destroyed them, I want to think about the ones in our path. They may appear random but if nothing else, our past experiences have taught us that the enemy doesn’t do anything randomly, they always have a purpose. I just have to figure out what it is.”

  “Aye-aye, sir. Glandinning clear.”

  Ai went back to his contemplation of the tactical display, as if by staring long enough, he could divine the enemy’s intentions. He didn’t have to wait too long.

  “Admiral. Movement. It looks like every enemy ship in the inner system has lit their drives off as one. We’re getting thousands of returns. The computers are trying to clear up the picture but my initial take is that they’re forming up into three waves and heading out to meet us.”

  Ai did his best to appear calm, but inside his stomach was doing somersaults.

  “Estimated time to contact with the first wave?”

  “If they continue on their current course and acceleration, BatFor 2.2 should be in contact in twenty-six minutes, with the main fleet entering effective weapons range in forty-two minutes.”

  “Understood.” Ai ran the projected courses and speed through his tactical brain, the numbers crunching as fast as any computer. “BatFor 1.1, 2.1, and 3.2 will launch their Freibas for an anti-shipping strike timed to intercept the first wave two minutes before the enemy enters the missile envelope of BatFor 2.2. What is the time between enemy waves?”

  The commander at tactical was still working his readouts furiously. “Sorry, sir. The first wave has turned on its ECM. At this distance, my sensors can’t burn through the interference.”

  Ai mulled the problem over. He needed to know what the subsequent enemy waves were up to. Well, that was what he had stripped down BatFor 2.1 and 2.2 for. “Order BatFor 2.1 to make an immediate fold to system north. 2 AUs should be enough for them to get a good look down onto the enemy movements. Priority is to be given to identifying enemy command and control ships.”

  #

  Wing Leader Yel Valat led her wing of ten Freibas into another set of tight, intricate turns as she and her fellow pilots sped toward the oncoming wave of enemy small ships. Her targeting display was filled with returns and even as she closed the range, the on-board computers were still having difficulty identifying individual targets as the enemy was flying so close together. No matter, she thought, as she warmed up the seeker heads of her anti-ship missiles. This was what any fighter pilot of any race would call a target-rich environment.

  A low warbling tone in her helmet let her know that her missiles had pierced the enemy’s ECM and had achieved a solid lock. Yel held her fire for another few seconds as the computer confirmed that each Freiba under her command had target lock and then as one, the entire wing loosed its load of missiles. Eight missiles per Freiba. Eighty missiles per wing. Thirty wings tasked to the strike. 2400 missiles streaked toward their targets. Inevitably, more than one missile locked onto the same target but there were so many missiles launched that it didn’t really matter. Less than fifteen seconds after launch, the Benii missiles reached their targets and space was filled by the blinding light of nuclear detonations as the attackers’ formation was decimated.

  Yel let out a small, excited whoop before she regained control of herself. As her targeting display cleared and the tactical picture became clear, she saw that even through the maelstrom of destruction that she and her wing mates had released, there were enemy survivors who were still intent on reaching the fleet. Well, she wasn’t about to let that happen.

  “Waya Wing will break right and engage remaining targets with guns. Standby… Break! Break! Break!”

  Arming her beam emitters, she executed another tight turn that had her restraints pulling her tight to her seat as she swooped down on the nearest enemy ship, her wingman tucking herself in tight. The first enemy ship. It looked like a small shuttle craft. Filled her targeting sights and she lightly stroked the trigger sending a line of deadly, highly charged particles into the center of the target. The beam emitters of a Freiba could do light to moderate damage to battle armor but to an unarmored shuttle it was like pushing a hot needle through wax. Her fire hardly slowed as it passed through the shuttle’s hull without pause and it was then that the
fleet learned of the enemy ships deadly cargo. The resulting detonation of the nuclear weapons that filled the shuttle’s cargo bay to the gunnels not only wiped it from space but took Yel and her wingman with it into fiery death.

  #

  The barely disguised profanity that came from tactical grabbed Ai’s attention like a physical thing.

  “Report!” Ai demanded stridently.

  “Admiral, it appears that the small craft are loaded with nukes. The Freibas killed the majority of the first wave with missiles, but when they engaged with guns they had to get in close and we’ve lost over sixty that were caught in the resulting explosions.”

  If Ai had been a man who used profanity he would have joined his tactical section. Instead he began firing out orders. “Order the Freibas to withdraw and re-arm with missiles. Get the second flight of Freibas away now to mop up the remaining enemy ships. I want each BatFor to reconfigure formation so they have a solid screen of Agis destroyers between themselves and the next wave. I have no doubt that our capital ships, in particular the carriers, will be the enemy’s main target.”

  As the bridge crew bent to their tasks Ai reviewed the main holo cube. The feed from BatFor 2.1 was just starting to fill the cube. Yes, there was the second wave and... Ah-ha! Ai knew that the enemy wouldn’t just randomly place its dampening buoys. The enemy second wave was breaking up into smaller formations and each was making a beeline for one of the spheres that indicated an area covered by the dampening buoy. If he let them reach the fields, he would lose the advantage of his GD missiles, which would force him to either expend Freibas to go in and get them or close tactical missile and energy weapon range with his capital ships. A prospect he didn’t savor if each of those thousand-plus ships was filled with nuclear warheads. With the amount of destructive force aboard a single enemy vessel, even a near-miss detonation would cause severe damage and inflict heavy casualties. No. He had another idea. As one of his military predecessors had said, you either use them or lose them.

  A tap of an armrest control and the inevitable wait for a secure link to be established. The face of a frowning John Radford appeared in the split screen.

  “Admiral Radford, by your face I see you may have perceived my problem.”

  Although significantly younger than the senior admiral, the last few years had aged John in a way he wouldn’t have believed possible and he returned Ai’s sage-like look with one of his own.

  “If you mean we’re about to lose our most important tactical advantage to those dampening buoys, then we’re on the same wavelength, sir. If I may make a suggestion?”

  A nod from Ai and John continued.

  “We launch a maximum effort GD missile strike now using the targeting data from BatFor 2.1. Target the second wave before they can reach the relative safety of the dampening fields.”

  “My thoughts exactly, Admiral Radford, but with one amendment. It will not be a fleet-wide maximum effort. I want to hold a strategic reserve. I don’t think we’ve seen the last twist in this fight yet. I’m chopping operational control of BatFor 2.1 to you for the purposes of the GD missile strike…”

  The commander at comms nodded as he acknowledged Ai’s instructions and sent the order on to BatFor 2.1.

  “I want you to flush all your available GD missiles as soon as you can…” A glance at the tactical display told Ai what he needed to know. “You have four minutes until the first enemy ship reaches the dampening field.”

  In the display John gave him a curt nod and cut the link.

  Ai sat back and rubbed his eyes through closed lids. The fight wasn’t over yet but he felt reasonably confident that if Third Fleet could destroy the second wave before it reached the relative safety of the dampening fields, then he would have more than sufficient resources to deal with the third and final enemy wave.

  Radford had obviously been expecting an order to fire on the second wave as in under a minute Ai’s tactical officer had received a preliminary strike package from his opposite number in Third Fleet. The arrival of the strike package was quickly followed by the first GD missile leaving the tubes of Third Fleet.

  “Third Fleet has launched, Admiral. Admiral Radford’s intentions appear to be to hold the first wave of missiles at a staging point while he gets a second wave away. Both waves will then target the enemy ships from opposite directions, spreading their defensive fire.”

  Ai waved a hand in acknowledgment. If Radford was going to get a second missile salvo into position before the first enemy ships reached the safety of the dampening field, then his crews would need to be quick.

  “Second salvo of missiles away from Third Fleet, sir. Enemy ships should reach the dampening field in forty-five seconds. Time to missile impact… thirty-four seconds.”

  Ai’s eyes were glued to the tactical holo cube as the two groups of missiles appeared momentarily in the feed from BatFor 2.1, only to disappear a fraction of a second later. Ai knew that the feed was as close to real time as he was going to get but still he wished it was faster. The missiles re-appeared less than 5000 kilometers from the enemy ships and bored in at maximum acceleration. Laser turrets swiveled to engage the approaching threat but there were simply too many of them for even computer-aided reflexes to react in time. It was a slaughter. Third Fleet’s missiles tore into the enemy ranks. The exploding warheads caused a chain reaction and it was as if the gates of hell themselves had opened as the roiling, expanding, superheated plasma of the missiles and the enemy ships payloads combined. For just a moment it seemed like a new star had been born and when the destruction ended, over 1100 enemy ships ceased to exist.

  Anyone who had witnessed the death dealt by Third Fleet would have to wonder at the dedication of the enemy crews as the third and final wave broke orbit and headed out to meet the Commonwealth fleet. Ai noticed immediately that again, the enemy was changing tactics on him as the ships formed up into four globes, civilian ships centered on what the computers were calling a core of Buzzards and Vultures.

  “Tactical, let’s get a GD missile strike package ready. I want the primary target to be the capital ships at the heart of each globe. Warn off all the Freibas for a follow-up anti-shipping strike on the enemy ships of the outer shell. We’ll kill the capital ships with missiles then maneuver the fleet to hold the smaller ships at maximum range and pick them off. No sense taking casualties when we don’t need to.”

  “Aye-aye, sir.” The tactical section raced to prepare the package and Ai took the opportunity to review the battle so far. The first enemy wave had caused him to take casualties amongst his Benii fighters but the losses had been minimal and the enemy had shown their hand. They were lacking in real warships, so had used civilian ships to carry nuclear warheads with the intention of closing like the old Japanese Kamikazes and detonating their weapons as close to his ships as they could get. A second strike by the Freibas and the protective shield of Agis destroyers had finished off the first wave. The second wave had tried a different tactic. They had headed for pre-deployed dampening buoys, which, if they had reached the fields, would have been safe from his GD missiles and he would have had to close with them to kill them but the quick actions of Third Fleet had dealt with them before they had been able to reach the cover of the dampening fields. Ai turned his attention back to the approaching third wave. The four globes were approaching the Commonwealth fleet in line abreast. They were presenting themselves as an easy target for Ai’s GD missiles. Ai would be able to fire wave after wave of missiles at them without them being able to reply as long as he kept the distance to them open. Ai could feel a familiar tingling at the back of his neck as his hands formed an involuntary steeple. Why would they try to approach the fleet in a fashion that they knew could only result in their defeat? Ai began tapping away at his terminal, bringing up power readings from the core of each globe. Hoping that he was wrong. But as the computer spat out its reply, his expression hardened. The Others had sprung their next surprise.

  “Tactical, get our GD mi
ssiles away now!”

  The commander at Tactical turned to request more time to finish his work, but the look on Ai’s face told him it wouldn’t be forthcoming.

  “Missiles away. I’ve had to let forty percent find their own targets, since the package wasn’t complete. Sorry, sir.”

  Ai ignored him as he concentrated on his holo cube. The missile strike appeared in the display approximately 6000 kilometers from each of the globes. The missiles took only a fraction of a second for their electronic brains to get their bearings but it was a fraction of a second too long. At the heart of each globe, a Buzzard towing a dampening buoy activated it. The entire missile strike was now nothing more than expensive metal cylinders floating uselessly in space as each and every gravity drive failed. The Commonwealth’s greatest advantage was gone in one simple stroke.

 

‹ Prev