But the most numerous by far were the fighter and infiltrator craft, the Krakens. They were small but deadly in numbers. They were only large enough to hold one Chitin soldier, but as none had ever been captured, it was not known for sure how many Chitins piloted the Krakens, or if there were any Chitin soldiers aboard at all. The best guess of many in Fleet Intelligence was that they were autonomous, or that they were in fact a different breed of Chitin, one designed to operate in the vacuum of space. A soldier, pilot, and spacecraft all rolled in to one deadly, aggressive package.
The frigate altered course and swept an arc, showing more of the Chitin craft. Several Krakens broke from the Chitin formation and headed directly for the lone frigate.
Pretorius watched. He leaned forward in his chair. He noticed the bridge crew all turned in their seats watching the holoimage, all willing the frigate back to the safety of the planetary defenses.
The frigate was fast, but the Krakens were faster. They closed the distance. A new group of signals appeared on the holostage—a squadron of Blades, the Fleet’s deadly fighter ships. The Blades rushed from their orbit around Eros and moved to intercept the Krakens. The squadron was made up of the fighters that had escaped the destruction of the Monarch. They were without a carrier to call home and were eager for revenge. The squadron had taken the name of The Orphans, and they were filled with deadly rage.
The two groups of ships rushed toward each other until, with the Krakens almost in firing range of the frigate, they broke off and headed back to the safety of their Chitin armada.
But the Orphans kept up their pursuit. And they closed in, racing past the retreating frigate to the fleeing Krakens.
“Break off,” Pretorius whispered to himself. There could be nothing gained from a pointless little skirmish between two massed forces teetering on the brink of a deadly maelstrom of fire and fury.
The Monarch’s Orphans broke off their pursuit and turned back toward Eros. The image on the holostage returned to its previous scale and space looked calm and empty, but now humanity knew that the Chitins were just out of range, hiding just out of sight, thousands of ships, poised to attack and destroy humanity once and for all.
The reports came in to Pretorius from the Fleet Command and Control Headquarters. A similar probe around the sister planet, Eras, had just revealed the same thing: a swarm of Chitin craft sitting just beyond sensor range.
6
Jack stepped away from his holodesk. He had watched the probing frigate reveal the presence of nearly countless Chitin ships and he felt a deep-seated worry. He had been in danger many times but always in the thick of the action. Watching the Chitins massed in the distance, simply sitting and waiting, was torturous. He shook off the feelings of dread and went to inspect the company’s deployment.
Jack pulled on his helmet and left the office complex.
The massive doors to the main entrance had been partially closed. Access to the moon beyond was now only through a narrow slit near the ground. High enough to let a Marine walk through without ducking, low enough to prevent any vehicles from entering the hangar. The door had been rolled down and locked in the defensive position.
Several squads were positioned in that opening, ready to defend the facility. Jack crossed the smooth floor of the entrance hangar and stepped out onto the moon’s surface. He looked up into the dark and empty space. Somewhere overhead, beyond visual and sensor range, was the heaviest concentration of Chitin warships ever seen by human eyes. A battle was coming, a battle he knew must be won.
Jack looked across the surface of Brecon. Half a million kilometers away was the blue planet of Eros. It was rising over Brecon’s surface. A beautiful blue and white vision. Jack raised his field scanner and took a closer look. He could make out the prairies of his childhood, half a million kilometers away. They seemed a lifetime away. He had been pressed into the service of the Fleet Marines, and now it seemed as if it was the only life he’d ever had. The past was so distant now, it seemed like a different life, a different world. All he knew now was war and violence. He wished he could go back and retake his place in university, to sit around on the campus lawns and discuss engineering principles under the warmth of the sun, unaware of the malicious enemy that lurked in the dark of space, innocent of war and battle.
But fate had brought him here, to this desolate, dry, and dusty moon, half a million kilometers above his childhood home. Jack feared it was the closest he would ever get to home again.
The voice of Major Griff came over his communicator. It pulled Jack out of his reverie.
“Not disturbing you, am I, Jack?” Griff said.
“No, Harry. Not at all.” Jack took a few steps further out onto the dusty surface of Brecon under the towering defense cannon.
“How are you doing down there?” Griff asked.
Jack looked up. “Just sitting around. Waiting to see what the Chits will do next.”
“Maybe they’ll go away,” Griff laughed.
Jack laughed along with his commanding officer, but Jack had a feeling that Griff was laughing a bit too hard. Griff had been a great help to Jack when he had first become company commander. Jack owed Griff his gratitude and respect. But Griff was not settling into the position of battalion major so easily.
Griff seemed on edge and hesitant. He was not the same man who had fought so valiantly against the Chits in the asteroid belt and on numerous other occasions as company commander.
“How are things on the Scorpio?” Jack asked.
“Yeah, yeah,” Griff said, still chuckling at his previous joke. “Adder Company is deployed throughout the ship to hold off any Chitin incursions. Hope it doesn’t come to it, but your internal defense plans are still the best. You know it is standard across all destroyers now?”
Jack felt surprised. “I didn’t know that.”
“Yeah. The captain sent your internal defense outlines to all destroyer captains and Fleet Marine majors. A dozen battalion majors are cursing you, Jack, for making extra work for them. They’ll thank you if they ever have to fight off a Chitin incursion.”
“Really,” Jack said, still genuinely surprised. He had designed the internal defense and it had seemed elementary, obvious even, that it was the best way to hold off a Chitin incursion.
“Only,” Griff went on, “it’s not a dozen anymore, is it? How many destroyers are left in the fleet?”
“Nine,” Jack said. His matter-of-fact tone belied the worry that the Fleet had so few craft in the face of such overwhelming odds.
“Yeah,” Griff agreed. “Who have we got…” he mused. “Scorpio, of course. And the Aries, and Pisces. The entire Monarch Carrier Group is still in the fight. Not the Monarch though,” Griff laughed. “That got smashed, didn’t it?”
“Umm, yes.” Jack turned and looked at his Marines all waiting for action. “Harry, are you okay?”
“Yeah. Yeah,” Griff replied. “And the Aquarius, and the Libra.”
Feeling a mounting concern for his commanding officer, Jack walked back to the entrance hangar. He had first heard of Major Griff when he had saved his battalion after the destruction of his destroyer, the Libra. The Libra Battalion had held out in the asteroid belt, hopping from one asteroid to another, evading and engaging the Chits. It had been a master stoke of military command and had earned Griff his reputation as a leader and skilled tactician.
“The Libra, Harry?” Jack asked carefully.
“Call me sir, Jack,” Griff snapped. “I am major now, and your commanding officer. I’ll have a bit more formality from my officers. Do you read me, Commander?”
“Yes, sir. My apologies.”
“No, not the Libra,” Griff said, returning immediately to a jovial tone. “What am I thinking? She went down. She was destroyed. She’s gone now. The Chitins blew her up. I watched it happen. I was off ship, on deployment in the asteroid belt. Boom. She went down fast. They can really pack a punch, those kravin no good Chitin bastards.”
“Harry?”
Jack asked calmly. “Sir. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Griff replied brusquely. “Just letting you know I am organizing that supply drop for you myself. It’ll be with you soon. Griff out.”
“Thank you, sir,” Jack said, but he had a feeling that Griff wasn’t listening.
Jack had known Harry Griff long enough to know he was a relaxed and jovial character. He carried the burden of responsibility lightly. He had helped Jack carry his burden as company commander and Jack owed him for that. But Griff was acting strangely. This was not the Harry Griff he had come to know and respect.
There was only one person he could mention his concerns to. He walked back out onto the planetary surface and activated his communicator.
“Scorpio, this is Forge. Is the captain available?”
“What is it, Jack?” the captain replied immediately. He was busy but available.
“Have you spoken to Major Griff?” Jack began tactfully.
“What is it, Commander?” Pretorius was not available for a meandering chat.
“I think he’s experiencing stress, sir. I’m worried about him.”
“We are all under pressure, Jack.”
“Yes, sir. Of course, sir.”
“Thank you for bringing your concerns to me. Pretorius out.”
Jack stood in the dust. His sprained ankle was feeling better now that his suit’s medical package was administering treatment, but it was still tender from the crash. He wondered if he was suffering from battlefield stress himself. He looked across the gulf of space to the blue and white planet below. He could only imagine the terror and fear amongst the population there, knowing the wolf was at their door.
Griff’s voice came over Jack’s communicator. He sounded breathless but much more like his old self.
“Jack. The Chitins are moving into sensor range. It looks like they’re attacking again.”
“Thanks for letting me know, Harry,” Jack said.
Running back into the planetary defense cannon facility, Jack ignored the pain in his ankle and administered a painkiller from his med package. He ran across the entrance hangar and toward the rotating airlock doorway to the inner complex. Once through the door, Jack pulled off his helmet. He entered his makeshift operation center and stood before the small holodesk. The Chitins were moving. A hundred Hydras were in sensor range and moving toward Eros. In their way stood the Scorpio, the planetary defenses on Brecon, and Jack Forge, Commander of Cobra Company.
7
The Hydras raced toward Brecon. Jack watched the movements of the Scorpio. Pretorius was presenting the port-side battery toward the oncoming Hydras. The destroyer Aries was moving from its orbit around Eros, seemingly on a heading for Brecon.
Then the planetary defense cannon began to power up. Jack felt the hairs stand up all over his body. The energy being primed for the weapon was massive.
The cannon was virtually silent. There was a slight whirring sound, but the main evidence that anything was happening was the tension felt in the thin Brecon air, the hairs standing to attention.
The first blast from the huge cannon was released and a Chitin Hydra disintegrated. The hairs on Jack’s body fell and lay flat, as if pressed by some force. Then Jack felt his hairs begin to stand on end again.
He watched the holodesk intently as it displayed the destruction of one Hydra after another. Then the Hydra flotilla came into the range of the Scorpio’s guns.
The hail of kinetic shot ripped into the Hydras. Jack zoomed in on his holodesk view and watched the Hydra being ripped apart by the Scorpio’s guns and disintegrated by the massive, silent blasts from the planetary defense cannon. Each time Jack’s hairs fell flat against the back of his neck, another Hydra was destroyed.
The Hydras closed the distance to Brecon, taking a loss every second. Then the Aries came into position and added its fire to the barrage.
Jack could see that the Hydras were taking a brutal punishment, but he knew that many would make it through. They might attack the destroyers as they had done so many times before, attach themselves to the hulls and cut their way in. The Chits had taken destroyers down from the inside before.
But there was another possibility. The Chitin Hydras were heading to Brecon. Each Hydra carried eight Chitin soldiers. The soldiers were determined and ruthless. They would not surrender. They would attack until either their target was destroyed, or they were. Jack pulled on his helmet and left the office complex. He was needed at the front line. He needed to be with his company of Marines.
He called into his communicator. “Pull in the forward observation post. Redeploy squads eleven and twelve to overwatch on the roof level. Watch out for incoming Hydras. Stand by, Cobra. Stand by for action."
Jack stepped into the entrance hangar. The Marines from the forward observation posts were running in through the narrow gap at the bottom of the entrance.
The squad leader from 8th squad ran over to Jack.
“The last of the observation posts are back inside, sir. Shall I close the entrance?”
“No,” Jack said. He walked toward the entrance. “Form a line,” he shouted. “Take up position just inside the entrance. Watch out for the Chits.”
The Marines advanced and spread out along the opening. Some lay, others on one knee. All had their pulse rifles aimed at the opening and out toward the dusty surface of Brecon.
The dust rose with every blast from the massive cannon, rhythmically rising and falling along with Jack’s hairs each time the massive energy weapon fired. Every time Jack saw the dust fall back to the surface of the moon, he knew another Hydra was destroyed and there were eight fewer Chitin soldiers to deal with.
“Squad Leaders,” Jack shouted. “Hold position. Hold the line.” Jack backed away from the line of Marines. He turned and ran to the stairway that would take him from the cavernous entrance hangar to the roof level of the facility.
The view from the top was spectacular and frightening. Drive trails from the Hydras were meeting laser blasts from the two destroyers engaging them. The black of space was dotted with small, glowing balls of fire where a Chitin Hydra was destroyed. The space was crossed with plasma arcs slashing out from the attacking Hydras and the pulses of laser fire from the Scorpio and the Aries.
And through it all was the rhythmic pulse of the planetary defense cannon. Jack looked up and saw the tortured rainbow gather at the muzzle before the weapon discharged. Somewhere above, a Chitin Hydra was destroyed, smashed into fragments no bigger than sand.
“Forge, this is Scorpio,” Jack heard the message from a cool Major Griff. “The Chitins have broken through our barrage. Hydras are heading to your location now.”
Jack received the coordinates of the incoming Hydras. They were on a trajectory that would land them a few meters from the walls of the facility.
“Copy that, Major. We’re ready to defend the facility.”
Jack saw the first Hydra land heavily directly in front of him, just in front of the main entrance. The fire from the Marines in the entrance leapt up, pulse rounds streaking across the pale, dusty surface of Brecon. The rounds slammed into the hull of the Hydra. A second Hydra landed just as heavily, throwing up another cloud of dust.
“Hold your fire,” Jack spoke into his communicator, transmitting to the entire company. “There’s nothing to shoot at yet. Wait until you can see them.”
The pulse rifle fire stopped immediately. The Marines on the roof level around Jack watched the Hydra.
“Forge, this is Scorpio. The Chitins are pulling back.” Major Griff sounded elated. “We destroyed sixty of their Hydras.”
Jack felt the cannon fire again and knew yet another had been destroyed.
“Copy that, Major. Two Hydras landed on our doorstep. Request the Scorpio put a laser blast through their hulls.”
Jack waited and watched.
“Negative on the fire mission, Jack.” It was Captain Pretorius, speaking matter-of-factly. “The targeting systems are getting a b
it scrambled so close to the cannon.”
“You hear that, Jack,” Major Griff said. “Destroy those Hydras by any means at your disposal. Copy?”
“Copy that,” Jack said.
Jack looked to the two Hydras. They seemed so innocuous, half-buried in the dust. There was no movement. Jack pulled up his field scanner and looked more closely. No movement and no signs of power.
“First squad. Third squad,” Jack spoke calmly, watching the Hydras. “Advance on those Chitin ships and destroy them. Copy?”
Squad Leaders Stone and Allen responded. A moment later, Jack saw the two squads leave the facility and advance swiftly toward the crashed Hydras.
Allen moved to the left while Stone led 1st directly toward the crashed ships. Jack was impressed with the teamwork between Stone and Allen to create a cross-fire should any Chitins emerge from the Hydras. The two squad leaders had not known each other long, but they were working well together. Allen was experienced, and Jack was glad to have such an experienced squad leader in his company. Stone was green but skilled. He watched their advance through his field scanner.
“Do you think they’ve given up?” Horan, the squad leader of 2nd, was standing next to Jack. Ben Horan had been a squad leader in Cobra Company before Jack had even joined the Fleet Marines. Horan had seen Jack rise through the ranks.
“I don’t think so, Ben,” Jack said.
“But they’ve been beaten back twice now. They lost all those Leviathans, and now they tried attacking us with the Hydras. They’ve learned their lesson now, don’t you think?”
Jack dropped his field scanner. “No, Ben, I don’t think they’ve given up. I think they have got us right where they want us and now they are just testing us.”
Forged Under Siege (Jack Forge, Fleet Marine Book 6) Page 4