The Turret: Starclan Foundation
Page 23
“Hull clamp active, Major. Beginning to bore.” Sergeant Anderson Poul supervised the boring operation. The twenty marines could do nothing but wait until the bore made it through to the single huge chamber thought to be inside the Bug Super Ship.
“We’re through, Major.”
“C’mon, you Devil Dogs, ya wanna live forever? Down the hole!” Major Otis Finch dropped a stun grenade down the hole, counted to four, and then jumped in himself.
Nineteen marines wearing evil grimaces dropped down the hole yelling, “HOO-RAH!”
The Bug Super Ship exploded before the Major reached the end of the hole.
***
The Battle For Turret Halsey
CIC
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Ready, I think they’ll be coming soon. Check your ammo.” Mike went down his mental checklist. He looked around, remembering the faces he saw when he first came aboard the station. He looked at his father-in-law, as strong a figure as ever, even after losing a leg to a plasma blot that hit just below his knee. He looked to his wife, and his heart screamed in pain. Others injured as badly, or worse. Jane’s voice brought him back to the task at hand.
“Ammo has been redistributed, Captain. Everyone able to fire has thirty rounds, plus handguns and a combat knife.”
Damn. That gives us less than a minute of combat. Corry, I’m sorry. Mike looked at the gorgeous face of his wife, caked with the sweat and grime of combat and paled by her injury; he saw her face that night he proposed, his Angel, his life. He saw the tattoo they shared, and looked down at his own right shoulder. Fortiter!
“OK, people, there can’t be many of those bugs left. Make every round count, and stay focused. Next Tuesday, the first round is on me!”
“There,” Jock called, “The door, they’re clearing…” Jock raised his carbine and aimed.
“Hello! Hello! Is anybody in there?”
***
Chrysler Building
55th Floor
New York City
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Someone will have to monitor things until a more… permanent solution is decided upon. Your temporary comm station is here. Anything you desire will be delivered to you here, all you have to do is ask.”
“What happened to that comm station?” The young man looked at the melted comm station on the right hand side of the massive desk.
“You need not concern yourself with that. Just handle the tasks as they arrive.”
“Understood.” I hope!
***
The Battle For Castle Shannon
USF Jeremiah Wadsworth
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Damn it!” Jack Macalister pounded his fist onto his command console. “One hundred and thirty eight men dead! Damn it!”
“Jack, it was a gamble. We couldn’t know they’d react that quickly, or that they’d scuttle their ship rather than let us capture it. Every one of those men volunteered, and you tried to talk every single one of them out of it. Sometimes this crap happens in war.” Peter’s speech struck a chord with Jack. He was right on every count.
“Maybe, Pete. But it still sucks. I shouldn’t have tried this.”
“Jack, the chance to capture a Bug Super ship! It was worth the risk.” Kesa tried to use her unquestionable logic to comfort her husband.
“Jack, I’m picking up more ships. A lot more ships.” Peter’s voice was excited, almost panicked. “Jack, there’s another Bug fleet coming.”
“Pete, get the details to Kesa. Kesa, tight beam it to ADS 1284 and Lunar Command. We’re turning around.”
“Kesa, I’ve got six hundred Bug Super Ships headed inbound at zero-point-seven light speed. No smaller ships. Position is… twenty light minutes behind Bug main body.”
“Sent. Jack, why send to 1284?”
“Admiral Seymour mentioned that they were commanding Castle Shannon; they’ll be on Taclink. The entire fleet will know what they know.”
“What’s your plan, Commodore?” Peter asked.
“I plan to run the weapons test on Big Bertha.”
***
The Battle For Turret Halsey
CIC
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Who goes there?” Mike’s bass voice boomed out.
“Lieutenant James Jenkins, USFMC, Nili Patera Station. I’ve got some marines from the other turrets here as well.” Jenkins finished his introduction as he shoved the last Bug body out of the doorway and stepped into the CIC. “Good God!” he gasped as the scene before him hit his senses.
Florescent green was splattered everywhere, Bug blood. The stench of rotten garbage, burned flesh, and fried electronics choked the nostrils. There were Bug bodies everywhere, and a lot of human bodies as well, all of it veiled in a thin reddish-brown smoke.
“This is Marine Captain Michael Halsey. I have several injured people here. Are there medics with you?”
“Yes, Captain. We need to get your wounded stabilized and onto the shuttles quickly though. The Bug vanguard is coming back.” Jenkins turned his head and yelled, “MEDICS!”
***
The Battle For Castle Shannon
Tracy’s Turret
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Have you got that, Admiral?” Commander Tracy Singh asked Admiral Jericho Bucktooth.
“Hell yes. Hold tight, Commander. Bucktooth out.”
“Yeah, ‘hold tight’. What hell else can we do here?” Tracy started at the sound of her voice; Damn, did I say that out loud? “Alex, anything on the Halsey evacuation?”
“Shuttles are away, Commander. Bug vanguard looks to be in pursuit.” Alex MacAlister felt renewed energy. His father and sister were still alive. If I had a sword, I could whip the whole Bug fleet with it right now!
“Easy, Lieutenant. Don’t get too excited. I need you focused here. ETA for shuttles and Bug vanguard?”
“Shuttle ETA four minutes. Vanguard ETA five minutes. Shuttles will be in vanguard range in three minutes. Vanguard will be in our laser range in two-point-five minutes.”
“That’s cutting it close.”
“Roger that, Sir.”
***
Task Force Anvil
USF Victory
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Comm, Task Force Nail grav-burst”
“Grav-burst comm open, Admiral”
“Rhodes, execute.”
“Grave-burst sent. Confirmed receipt.”
“Jeri, didn’t Nail come back with Hammer?” Captain Charlie Walker asked on a private comm.
“My orders were to return every ship and task force on Taclink to Earth orbit. I followed my orders. Nail went off Taclink when they went dark. Rhonda’s been sharpening her claws ever since.”
“I don’t doubt that, Sir.” Charlie grinned at the thought of that tiger being unleashed.
“Oh, and Charlie, my orders never specified how long we had to remain in Earth orbit.”
***
Task Force Nail
USF Lexington
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Grav-burst coming in, Captain.”
“My CHUD. Thanks, Sparks.” Commodore Rhonda Rhodes ordered. She read the command, twitching like a cat about to pounce
“Comm, open Nail.”
“Open.”
“This is Commodore Rhodes. Attack formation Alpha 4. Good hunting Nail!”
The twelve battlecruisers and their escorts moved from silent and invisible in space quickly to full powered maximum drive, hitting three hundred times the speed of light instantly. They stopped amid the Bug main body.
“Lasers, fire at will. GravTorps, fire! Just like practice, gentlemen. Give ‘em hell!”
“GravTorps away!”
“Maneuver Rhodes One, NOW!”
Task Force Nail disappeared before a Bug ship could target them. The lasers had vaporized seventy bug ships, and now the GravTorps t
ook out hundreds more.
“Nail reports all torpedo tubes reloaded, Commodore.” The Task Force had sped away at three hundred times the speed of light after firing their ordinance. Now they would return and hit the enemy again.
“Nail, execute maneuver Rhodes Two, NOW!”
Thirty-six laser spiting USF ships stopped, surrounding the Bug Super ship in the center of the Bug main body. Task Force Nail spent seven seconds pounding it with lasers as they unleashed their GravTorp salvo outward at the defending main body. On the eighth second, Nail was gone again. Another two hundred and forty Bug ships had died.
It took Commodore Rhonda Rhodes exactly sixty-four seconds to reduce the Bug main body to a few confused stragglers.
“Comm, Nail.”
“Open.”
“Nail, follow me. We’re going hunting for bugs. Formation Loyal.”
***
The Battle For Castle Shannon
Tracy’s Turret
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“I’ll be damned!” Commander Singh’s awed whisper was lost amid the frantic cheering in her CIC. So, that is what FTL ships can do to a sub-light fleet! I hope they get here in time!
“Commander, Task Force Nail in position between our shuttle and the Bug vanguard.” Alex cheered.
Tracy watched the images on her CHUD. This is fucking amazing! “I have GOT to get me one of those ships!”
Task Force Nail came out of FTL in a hemispherical formation, with the light cruisers in the center and the battlecruisers on the rim, to concentrate their firepower on the tightly packed Bug formation. The closest bug ships simply vanished under the onslaught of laser fire, now augmented by the accurate lasers from Castle Shannon. When the Shrikes and GravTorps began hitting the Bug ships, it was all over. In three minutes time, the eighteen ships of Task Force Nail had destroyed over a thousand Bug ships. No Bug ship had managed to fire a shot in that time.
***
Task Force Anvil
USF Victory
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“Comm, USF Lexington.”
“Open.”
“Commodore Rhodes, superlatives are inadequate to define what you have accomplished. Well done to you and Task Force Nail.”
“Admiral, the crews of these ships deserve the credit. All I did was let go of the leash.”
“Roger that, Commodore. Status of your Task Force?”
“We are undamaged. Two ships reporting torpedo tube malfunctions, four have silo door failures. Half of our ships have at least one laser battery burned-out from overheating. We are down to five percent stocks on GravTorps and ten percent on Shrikes. We can support Castle Shannon, Admiral, but not for long.”
“Understood, Commodore. Your orders are to rejoin Taclink and do just that. Comm, private line to Rhodes.”
“Open.”
“Rhonda, Shut up and take this. I’m proud of you. You did a hell of a lot more than unleash the hounds, you personally sharpened each and every one of their teeth. Well done.”
“Admiral, I…” Commodore Rhonda Rhodes sat back in her chair, a tear on each cheek. USF Nili Patera, she thought about the crew that didn’t survive that collision. And that the two crew members that did survive it had demanded that they be assigned to the Lexington. “Thank you Sir,” she replied quietly.
“Comm, Task Force Nail general.” The Admiral ordered.
“Open.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is Admiral Bucktooth. Well done, Nail. To each and every one of you, well done. Bucktooth out. Comm, Hammer.”
“Open,”
“Admiral Gordon, it’s your turn. Target that new Bug formation and destroy them. No-holds-barred, Mark.”
“Aye, aye, SIR!”
“Good hunting. Bucktooth out.”
***
The Battle For Castle Shannon
USF Jeremiah Wadsworth
Standard Earth Date March 31 3488
“All stop.”
“All stop confirmed. Weapon charged.”
“Kesa, target status?”
“Locked on the center of the formation, Jack.”
“Here goes. Firing.” Jack hit the trigger and everything went dark on the Jeremiah Wadsworth.
***
Task Force Hammer
USF Dreadnought
Standard Earth Date March 30 3488
“Forty seconds until firing position, Admiral.”
“Admiral to Hammer, look sharp and good hunting!” Mark Gordon swallowed hard. He reached up and ran a finger under his collar. It sure felt tighter than it was!
“Admiral, something…what the hell? Admiral, a huge energy burst has destroyed half of the Bug Super ships!”
Admiral Gordon had seen it on his CHUD, but he wasn’t sure if he believed it. Then he remembered…
“Scan the area for a cold ship.”
“Got it, Sir! How did you know?”
“It’s an Admiral’s job to know everything, Lieutenant MacAlister. Can you get an ID from its config?”
“Config matches AG-1 Thistle ninety-six percent, Sir.”
“Admiral Gordon to USF Indianapolis, detach and assist USF Jeremiah Wadsworth. Evacuate any crew to ADS 1284.”
“Aye-aye, Sir.”
“Charlie, you ready for your knife fight?”
Captain Charlie Walker loudly patted his combat knife sheath.
“I never leave home without it.”
“Firing position in three. Two. One. Now.”
Thirty battlecruisers, thirty heavy cruisers and thirty light cruisers were suddenly on top of the remnants of the Bug formation. Admiral Gordon hadn’t had time to put together any elegant battle plans, but he did have information. He had seen Nail’s firepower overwhelm the Bug ships. Where Rhodes had needed to stab the Bug fleet with her Nail, Gordon was content to pound this Bug fleet with his Hammer.
The huge blast that had halved the Bug fleet had also disorganized it. There was no return fire for twenty seconds. In that time, eighty-seven Bug ships had died.
The big Bug Superships had considerably greater firepower than the standard Bug ships. Each had four beams that approximately doubled the power of the smaller Bug vessels. Over the next sixty seconds, ten light and four heavy cruisers were destroyed by concentrated firepower from dozens of Bug ships. Four battlecruisers were heavily damaged, but the Bugs were being pounded as well. Another ninety-six Bug Superships were killed.
Then Bug ships started exploding all over space, as Task Force Nail in stealth mode swooped in on the alien formation and hit them from behind. Within forty-three seconds, all of the alien ships had been destroyed.
“Comm, Rhodes.”
“Open.”
“Nice shooting, Rhonda. I owe you a beer.”
“I…”A screaming static hit Marks’ ears for a split second before silence replaced it.
“Sir, the Lexington…it, it just blew up!”
***
Lunar Command Station
Hospital Complex
Tsiolkovskiy Crater
Standard Earth Date April 3 3488
“How are you feeling, Jock?” Jericho Bucktooth sat down next to his friend’s hospital bed.
“Leg’s sore. Other than that, well…”
“We kicked their exoskeletal asses, MacAlister. In a very large part because of your efforts.”
“That’s not what they’re saying back home, is it, Jeri.”
“Fuck them.” Admiral Bucktooth stood up, frowning. “Damn it, Jock, you saved the Goddamn world! You should be getting a parade, or something…”
“I don’t care about that, Jeri. What were the final totals?”
“The formal briefing and analysis will be in five days. The short version is this. We lost too much, Jock. Three battlecruisers, ten heavy and ten light cruisers. Plus ADS 1437, the people there. Six LCPAs. And, Jock…” Jeri sat down and looked into Jock’s eyes. Jock knew that look. He’d seen it before, a lifetime ago…
“Jack and Kesa. They fired some super beam Jack had designed, and the kickback fried everything inside that old bucket. Jock, they never felt it.”
Jock turned his head, and looked at the ceiling. “Jeri,” he said quietly, “I…”
“Oh!”
The thud from the doorway caught the two men’s attention. Jeri moved fast to her side, only to find Jock already there, somehow lifting his wife while standing on one leg.
“Jeri, help.”
The two of them managed to get Sandy onto the bed. Jock sat next to her, panting, pale, and drenched in sweat.
“I’ll get a nur…”
Jeri’s voice was cut short by four large black-suited men at the door to the room. Two pushed roughly past him and moved to Sandy.
“Hey!” Jeri reached to grab one, and was immediately held by the other two. Jock stood up on one leg and smiled at the closest black-suit.
“You wouldn’t hit a cripple, would you?” Jock pointed to his leg that ended in a bloody bandage at mid-calf. When the suit looked at the leg, Jock swung. He was somehow across the bed in front of the other suit before the first one hit the floor.
“Admiral! We’re Secret Service! We’re your wife’s security detail!” Agent Hiram Abim yelled as he backed away. “Admiral, are you OK?”
Jock waivered, then fell down on the bed.
“I’ve had better days.”
Chapter Nine
United News Network