ARMS Beckland's Fall: (Book 5)

by Stephen Arseneault

  "Nothing happened. That's a problem. Swing us around and I'll pull it back inside."

  Tawn chuckled. "Uh. No. We aren't pulling an armed bomb into our airlock. Bot Fleet, you have orders to go in and destroy as many of those mines as possible. Don't wait for us. And give yourselves enough time to make it to free space should Denzee ships jump in."

  Harris moved back to his chair. "So what do we do in the meantime?"

  Tawn spun the ship around. "First we destroy that bomb. Can’t leave it for them to find. Next we'll go hit a mine or two. Given previous collapse rates, we should have eight or ten minutes to make a run for free space."

  "That'll be cutting it close."

  "Let's hope the Denzee foul up and don't send ships in immediately."

  Minutes later, the Bangor dropped through the hot Eden sky as a fireball. The mining on Eden had been expanded to twenty-six sites, with Fireburg remaining the largest. A handful of transports and freighters zipped off across the surface as death came down from above. All ships were firing in auto mode, a new tungsten round emerging every half second.

  The buildings at Fireburg were soon little more than rubble. The topside mining that had gone underground was demolished as deep pits were dug by repeated firings. Evidence of cave-ins abounded. Five minutes after the melee had begun, Harris ordered the remains of the fleet to hit all twenty-six sites with at least a handful of rounds before turning for the sky.

  As the ships spread out, taking their destruction to the smaller mines, the boson field collapsed in its entirety.

  Harris gave the order. "Head for the stars. We could have visitors at any time."

  As the sky turned into the blackness of space, Tawn powered down the rails of the Bangor. "That went about as well as we could hope for."

  "I don't know. We lost six ships today. Almost half our entire fleet."

  "But we took out those mines. And we did a thorough job of it, I think. I will say I'm a little baffled as to why the Denzee haven't sent in more ships. We stayed down there about five minutes longer than we needed too."

  "Yeah. Can't believe that last bomb was a dud. Thought our manufacturing was better than that."

  "It happens. Anyway, it didn't cost us. Jump is in thirty seconds."

  Harris nodded. "You think Bax made it out of there?"

  Tawn chuckled. "Maybe on one of those freighters. If she didn't, it's too late now. I think I can safely say there's no one left alive down there."

  Harris pulled data up on the display. "Sensors counted twenty-two bios remaining. Somebody made it."

  "Unless they're wearing biosuits it won't matter. And if they are, they probably have less than a day to be rescued. There are no water sources left down there."

  A wormhole was opened to Midelon space. The Bangor slipped through, followed by the other ships of the much smaller fleet. Ten minutes later, they had landed on the grass near the bunker.

  Gandy was sitting in the supply hut. "How'd it go?"

  Tawn replied, "We lost six ships, five Banshees and a Legion. The mines of Eden are no longer in operation. We destroyed four Earther cruisers and disabled all twenty Ratoons. And we had an incident."

  "Incident?"

  "One of our boson bombs didn't detonate. We don't know why, and we had to destroy it as it had already been activated. Maybe Alex can figure something out from what little sensor data we have."

  "Was Miss Rumford there?"

  "We attempted to hail her repeatedly. She didn't reply. Sensors counted twenty-two bios still alive down there. Very doubtful one of them is her."

  Harris said, "We should open a comm to the emperor. I'd like to hear what he has to say."

  Tawn chuckled. "I doubt he wants to shake your hand, if that's what you're after."

  "It's not. Hearing him rant about our intransigence might be fun though."

  "Go ahead, then. Give it a try."

  "Alex, can you open a comm to New Earth and hail the emperor?"

  "I can."

  Harris laughed. "You keep burning me with that one. Please open a comm to New Earth and hail the emperor."

  "One moment."

  Several seconds later a blacked out image appeared. "Mr. Gruberg, I hope you realize what it is you've done."

  "I kicked your ass?"

  "You've weakened our position considerably. And when I say ‘our,’ I'm referring to all Humans."

  "How you figure that?"

  "The Denzee were willing to forego an all out assault in consideration of our offer of the use of Gondol. You saw to it that didn't happen. I made a further concession by offering up assistance with Beckland. They accepted and we gave the assistance as agreed upon. In return they offered help with the truce worlds.

  "You and I both know that truce settlement was anything but equitable. So we took the opportunity to take back what were previously our territories. However, we were only able to do this by showing we still had strength. Your attack brings our ship production to a halt. The Denzee will see that as a weakness. Already they are massing ships near Beinshee.

  "If they turn on us, we will fall hard, and with us any hope of Humans surviving this insurrection."

  "You're the one making deals, Mervin. Had you come to the Domers when the truce was first signed and told them of these invaders, they would have thrown their full support behind you. All Humans would have come out fighting and we would likely not be in this predicament. Any actions that made us weaker are totally yours."

  The sound of a small, clenched fist pounding down on an armrest could be heard through the comm. "You've doomed us, Gruberg. Doomed us all!"

  "If that's the case, why don't you turn control of your assets over to us so we can conduct a proper war? And I would suggest opening a comm to Domicile and begging for their assistance, starting right now. If the Denzee are turning on you as you think, your time to react is very limited. As I've suggested a dozen times before, make the comm to Domicile."

  The comm closed.

  "You think he'll do it?" Gandy asked.

  "Not a chance."

  — Chapter 21 —

  * * *

  In the hours that followed the attack on Eden, a new assault began on the truce world of Baggonesk. This time, the Denzee acted alone. A wormhole opened and the scan that followed revealed more than a hundred fifty thousand objects being released into low orbit. They showed as still living bio-signs.

  Another scan of Viochan and Blewitz indicated Earther ships being recalled. The emperor had given the order that all ships henceforth would be used to protect the homeland.

  Two additional days passed with no further developments. On the third day that changed.

  Alex said, "The Denzee are on the move."

  Harris replied, "What now?"

  "The colony at Barrier has been taken. The Denzee are slaughtering the great herds of bogler. A dozen New Earth ships engaged but were quickly overwhelmed by more than fifty Ratoons. Four of the destroyers escaped, eight were destroyed."

  "What was the colony count there?"

  "Prior to this invasion, Barrier had just under two million citizens. Sensors reveal some resistance fighting taking place on the ground, but nothing that would be recognized as a coherent attempt at defense."

  Tawn shook her head. "All those colonists..."

  Harris crossed his arms. "Not much we can do. We have a new Banshee today, but that's only number four. We lost half our ships against twenty Ratoons. With fifty we don't stand a chance."

  Alex displayed a data table. "The Earthers have gathered their fleet at New Earth. A hundred fifty-two warships are sitting and waiting for an attack. I estimate they may have five additional ships added to that total by day's end. After that, they are out of titanium resources."

  "I thought they had over two hundred?"

  "That may have been prior to these latest hostilities."

  "Open a comm to the colonel for me," Harris said.

  "Gruberg, the DDI and DDF have pulled their ships from t
he Rabid system. If you need crews, we have them at the ready."

  "We don't need crews, Colonel, we need ships. And we can build our own if we have the proper materials. At the moment we're about to run out."

  "What do you need?"

  "I'm sending a list. Any chance you can get some of these from Domicile?"

  "We can certainly try. Although I wouldn't rely on it."

  "I commed to give you the latest status as we know it. We finally took out production at Eden. The Denzee saw it as a weakness and immediately turned on the Earthers, which I would have to believe they planned on doing anyway.

  "The Denzee just invaded Barrier, which is a chief supplier of food for the Earthers. The Earthers’ response has been to abandon all their colonies and focus their fleet at New Earth. We have the Denzee Ratoon count at close to eight hundred."

  "We can't fight a fleet like that."

  "No, but I think we have the means to fight them on a smaller scale. If we can catch a force of twenty to fifty, and have access to New Earth and Domer ships, we could wipe out that small force every time. We believe we have the means to separate them, but we need both Human fleets for an attack."

  "We're all still smarting over the loss of Beckland. If you wanted, we have about ninety-two hundred volunteers here at the Retreat who are ready to fight."

  "Ninety-two hundred? That's all of us, huh? Thought we had a few more."

  "There are about four hundred twenty unaccounted for at the moment. We believe many of them are on the truce worlds with several hundred having been at Nesua."

  "Might be why the colonists there put up such a fight. Regardless, the Denzee have already taken about a third of those colonies. The last one… they spaced the inhabitants. We expect the same on the others. And we have no way to defend them."

  "This makes my blood boil. How many ships can you produce out there?"

  "At the moment, one per day, two tops."

  "I can have crews ready and trained if you need them. We still have the simulators for the freighters here."

  Harris shook his head. "They're Banshee sized. Well, maybe a third smaller. And they're unmanned. We have an AI pilot we drop in each that has been proven to be highly effective. Problem is, we can't build them fast enough, and even if we could we don't have the materials. Wish we still had Mr. Morgan on Domicile, where he could set those supply lines up for us. Instead he's trapped out here."

  "About that, my contact says they may be willing to retract all charges against him if he comes back to help them restore their defense infrastructure. The pacifists there are getting nervous, and some are beginning to feel they may have made a huge mistake with their cuts. And the populace is letting them know it. Once the word got out, Beckland was a huge shock."

  "We can bring Mr. Morgan to you if he agrees to go back, and of course if they want his help."

  "I'll ask. Any way you can share production of those ships with us? I have nine thousand able-bodied Biomarines here who would be eager to help."

  "Alex," Harris said, "what kind of effort would it take to get a Banshee production line going at the Retreat? Assuming we kept the processor production here."

  "If they have access to resources and equipment from Domicile, two to three weeks to first product. Might I instead suggest they be involved in manufacturing the drive system or the wormhole generator? Lines for those could be brought up quickly and expanded if necessary. The processors we are currently producing in abundance. The hull foundry can be scaled up as needed, given access to the raw materials."

  "OK, so if we had access to the material, can you give us an estimated production timeline for turning out ships?"

  "There are many variables involved in such a scenario, Harris. Such as who builds what."

  "Assume the colonel's teams build drive systems. What kind of production could we be seeing in three weeks, and then six weeks?"

  "Three Banshees per day in three weeks, moving up to eight per day in six."

  "Eight? That's possible if we have the materials?"

  "The data would indicate so, yes."

  "And three weeks after that?"

  "Again, given full material access, twenty Banshees per day would be possible."

  "Wow. Didn't think we were anywhere near that kind of production."

  "We aren't. We lack the raw materials."

  "Well, we have to get them then. A month of building at that rate and we could crush the Denzee, without risking a single Human life."

  "Thirteen weeks?" said Tawn. "That's three standard months. We may not be alive that long."

  Harris shook his head. "We will be. New Earth and Domicile may not. Colonel, comm your contact. Give him the news of what you just heard. See if the DDI can free up the resources we need to get this done. And emphasize the fact this may be their last chance at survival, as the Denzee are once again spacing all captives."

  "Will do my best."

  The comm closed.

  "Alex, connect me with Sharvie on the Hailstorm."

  Several seconds passed before her image displayed on the wall. "Yes?"

  "How are we looking out there?"

  "Salvage is difficult but we've made progress. We should have enough material here for another eight Banshees. That storm will be on us in about two hours, so I don't know if we'll be able to bring in any more."

  "Don't take any risks. If you can't get enough for a full ship, just pack things up and come back."

  "Got it. That would probably be now, then. I have a load being brought in. We'll button it up and come home."

  Tawn said, "That's another eight we wouldn't have had."

  "Not close enough to being an effective force. With what we have and what we could build, we'll have enough for two runs similar to Eden. That barely makes a dent in their numbers. And that's only if we get more materials for those bombs."

  "Maybe the Domers are finally wising up."

  Harris chuckled. "Don't know if that's possible, but they're running scared. Alex, ping the colonel once an hour for status. If he has news, patch him through."

  Gandy asked, "Would Eden have any materials we could use? You hammered that place good, but is there damaged equipment we could strip for resources?"

  Harris nodded. "Excellent thought. Alex, can you analyze our recordings from the Eden fight and give us an idea if there are resources we need that are available for salvage?"

  "One moment... yes. A quick analysis shows materials for another five Banshees."

  "Good. When Sharvie arrives, have her dump what she has and tell her to continue on to Eden. I assume you can organize that salvage for her and her bots as well?"

  "I can."

  Harris walked over and picked up an MRE. "Tawn?"

  "Sure."

  The extra meal was handed off as he sat. "So the fate of all Humans will be known in three months."

  "Possibly."

  "I wish there was a better way to hit the Denzee. They must have a vulnerability somewhere."

  "I would think that would be at Rumanta, with the mass of their fleet. The last scan Alex showed had them starting to build another facility to outfit their fleet with wormhole generators. The Ratoons have them, but most of those other ships don't."

  Harris took a bite of a bogler rib. "An army travels on its belly."

  "What?" Gandy asked.

  "An army travels on its belly. They taught us that in our early training. It means you have to feed your army if you want to move them around. Beckland will allow them to restock, but they must have reserves somewhere. What if we were able to find those and take them out?"

  "They eat those little rodents. Not sure what Beckland will be growing."

  "Food for the rats maybe? So do we find and kill their rat production, or figure out how to stop whatever they're planning to grow on Beckland?"

  "Interesting thoughts. They're on the move. We hit their food stocks and we could starve them out. I'm thinking that might be part of why they hit Barrier and killed
all those bogler. That could be their strategy for dealing with the Earthers rather than risking ships."

  Harris took another chunk of meat with his teeth. "I don't quite get why they haven't just gone after the Earthers all out. That fight would only last a day and the threat would be completely gone."

  "Maybe they fear the Domer fleet. Could be they aren't certain they have the numbers to beat the Domers."

  Harris shook his head. "They have to know. The emperor would have given them that info as part of his deal making."

  "Maybe they fear losses would put them at below what they think they need to defend against the Hoya."

  "The Hoya, who knows if they're even real. The data they gave us certainly gave that impression, but data can be faked."

  "That was convincing, even to Alex. They'd have to be masters at manipulation to pull that off."

  "Maybe they are."

  Tawn set down a rib. "Let's assume the Hoya are real and the Denzee are being chased. The current scenario would make sense for a people who were fleeing. They need food. And they'll do what it takes to get it. I would caution, though, if we take theirs, will they try to take ours?"

  "They already are. There was no other reason for them to expend energy and time on killing the herds on Barrier. They're already playing dirty. Maybe it's time we show them how dirty Humans can be."

  Harris turned toward the wall. "Alex, do an analysis of the Denzee food system. Where do they get it? What specifically do they need to keep a steady supply? Do they have hidden or safeguarded stockpiles? Piece that together for us while we finish our meals."

  Tawn chuckled. "Very commanding. You should try that more often."

  "I keep falling into his trap of asking a question rather than giving a command. He knows what I'm saying. He just enjoys poking the bogler."

  Tawn asked, "Gandy, how are our bogler doing?"

  "Good so far as I can tell. I've already seen them making efforts to reproduce."

  Harris laughed. "You'll see a lot of that. It's something they do a lot of. How's your garden coming?"

  "We had a setback. The fence I put up was weak. Our herd kind of trampled some of our early plantings. We'll recover though. The fence has been repaired and upgraded."