Logic had always guided him, and now that logic showed him he was mistaken. The only option left was to accept the truth, and do his part in what was to come.
“I have placed two hundred warships under your command,” said General Dathos. “You will report directly to me.”
“Yes, Sir. I understand,” said Tallos, turning to face the General. Even though Tallos had attained the rank of General, Dathos was still the most senior officer in the fleet and maintained supreme command of all Diakan forces present. Tallos felt Dathos scrutinize him. He knew that Dathos had learned some of what had taken place on the Hermes. He couldn’t change any of it. He only hoped to redeem himself in the coming battle.
“It is a difficult thing, being subjected to human command,” said Dathos. “But this is our fate, and we must do our part for the future of Diakus. Do you not agree?”
“Diakans have sacrificed throughout history to ensure the future. We are no different,” Tallos replied. He hoped that this was all Dathos would subject him to. A little Diakan dogma, and he could be on his way.
“I know you have had disagreements with Admiral Pike, on the Hermes, and after. I expect you have buried your contempt, and silenced your anger.”
“Yes, General. I admit that I had desired vengeance against Jon Pike. Those feelings have since been quashed. Nothing will interfere with the performance of my duty.”
“I am prepared to accept your word as a Diakan General. If you betray my trust, your life will be forfeit.”
“You need not fear, General. I may have wavered from the true path, but I understand my error, and will not repeat it.”
“Good. These humans are arrogant creatures. It is easy to view them with contempt. I have given you this opportunity to redeem yourself because I understand how difficult this can be. I, as well, have struggled with this prophecy. The idea of a species so unworthy rising to power borders on the absurd. We need to be vigilant, lest we allow our own arrogance to control us. While we may follow Jon Pike, we always serve the Great See’er, and Diakus. We must never forget that.”
Follow Jon Pike. How can I ever swallow those words? And yet, I must accept them. For the good of Diakus, I must accept Jon Pike’s rise. Have I not had more difficult tasks in life?
Tallos bowed his head. “The Great See’er is wise beyond comprehension.”
Dathos bowed his head too, as tradition dictated. “By Her will.”
“By Her will,” repeated Tallos, signaling an end to their discussion. When Tallos left the room he felt relieved that Dathos had spared him. He had two hundred ships under his command. It was a decent start.
Chapter 47
“Siege ships are in position and reporting ready for action, Sir,” said Commander Konos. “They’re awaiting your orders.”
“What is the fleet status, Commander?”
“All commanders have reported in. Fleet is ready to engage the enemy.”
Jon studied the fleet deployment on his tactical screen, the blue icons numbering in the thousands. He looked up at the main viewscreen, which displayed a panoramic view of his fleet. A sea of warships filled the screen, all arrayed in formation, waiting to cross through the jump gate into the pyres of battle. He contemplated the jump gates themselves. They were ancient creations, their builders long forgotten. How many battles had these gates witnessed over the eons? How many armadas of this size, or larger, had crossed through? A handful? More? What was his place in the eternal march of history? Would he merit a footnote? A paragraph? A chapter? Would all of it be forgotten one day, just like the ancient gate builders had been?
“Sound General Quarters,” ordered Jon, displacing his musings about history with the urgency of the moment.
“General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands man your battle stations,” announced Konos over the ship wide comm.
“AI, what is your status?” said Jon.
“I have successfully inserted myself within the vehicles, Admiral. I do not foresee any complications.”
“Good.” Jon tapped his console and the faces of First Colonel Brock, and General Dathos appeared. “Gentlemen, what is your status?”
“All Diakan ships are at full readiness,” said Dathos.
“All Chaanisar are battle ready,” said Brock.
Jon nodded. “Stand by.” The two men blinked off the screen. Jon tapped the screen again and Jonas appeared. “Jonas, what is your status?”
“As always, the Reivers are ready for battle.”
Jon couldn’t help but smile. Jonas had grown on him, and now he actually liked the old man’s brashness. “Stand by, we are about to begin.”
“Understood,” said Jonas, blinking off the screen.
Jon looked back up at the main viewscreen, still displaying the waiting fleet. Thousands of ships. Millions of personnel. All about to dispense their judgment on the Juttari Empire. He considered his strategy one last time. Attacking through the jump gate was a gamble, but one Jon was willing to take in favor of speed. In the days since the attack on Meybaris, the fleet’s engineers successfully retrofitted several more ships with the jump system. It increased the size of his jump squadron, but not enough to justify postponing the attack.
If every ship in the fleet was jump capable, Jon could attack the Triangle simultaneously from multiple directions. Attacking only through the jump gate created a natural choke point that would benefit the Juttari defenders. Because of this, the siege ships were incredibly important. They needed to punch through the defenses quickly, making room for the rest of the fleet. Failure was not an option.
Jon pushed any remaining doubts aside. It was time to act. “Commander Konos, commence operations,” ordered Jon.
Konos relayed the order to the fleet commanders. On the screen, the space directly in front of the fleet began to shimmer and take shape, as the jump gate came to life. The two siege ships stood before the gate, like mechanical worshipers at the alter of the ancients. Their engines came to life and they lumbered toward the gate. Traveling side by side the two ships seemed unstoppable, practically an invasion force in and of themselves.
Entering the jump gate, they began to steadily disappear into the shimmering field. The fact that both siege ships, as big as they were, could enter the gate side by side, was a marvel. Watching the two giants serenely travel through, Jon could only imagine the contradiction of the other side. Those two ships had just entered hell itself.
Chapter 48
AI waited as the siege ships crossed though the jump gate into the Widow’s Triangle. They instantly drew an enormous amount of fire. The siege ship’s strength was its massive size, but it was also a weakness, as it took time for the entire ship to pass through a jump gate. As with the Meybaris gate, the Widow’s Triangle gates were defended by autonomous weapon systems, designed to fire on anything without a Juttari signature. So the second the siege ships’ noses poked through, the weapon systems opened fire.
The siege ships pushed through the barrage, like a running back fighting for every yard. As each section of the ship appeared, more of her turrets locked onto their targets and returned fire. The two ships faced a dizzying amount of firepower, however, and Juttari warships were rapidly converging. When the siege ships had finally cleared the gate in their entirety, they were able to make use of all their weapons. The two beasts parked themselves in front of the jump gate and a hundred kilometer spread of weapons opened up on the Juttari defenses.
The siege ships also deployed their own autonomous weapons. The smaller, intelligent weapon systems streamed out of the hulking ships, fired thrusters, and went after their Juttari counterparts. The Juttari drones altered tactics to deal with the new threat. Being intelligent systems, the Juttari drones knew that the siege ships were the primary threat, but couldn’t completely neglect the growing threat of the Diakan autonomous systems, and diverted some of their fire toward the new advancing threat.
Several of those weapon systems carried a modified payload, which was quickly fire
d at the enemy. That payload consisted of tiny spherical drones, which sought out the Juttari weapon systems. Many were shot out of the sky before getting close, but the ones not destroyed eventually reached their targets. Rather than detonating, they landed and deployed long slender metallic legs, gripping the weapon system hulls. They then began to move across the hull until they were in the desired position.
That position gave AI access to the weapon system’s electronic brain. Prior to the engagement, AI had inserted herself inside the Diakan drones. All the drones needed to do was to get onto the hull of the weapon systems, in the desired location where AI could mount an attack. While the weapon systems were autonomous, they still needed to communicate, and take orders. That meant that they needed to not only transmit, but also receive data. In order to receive, they had to listen.
The weapon systems were built to defend the gate from attack, and so they were designed to withstand punishment. The idea that they could be hacked, in the middle of open space, was not considered, mostly because it had never been done before. The ability and power that AI possessed, however, was revolutionary.
While most of the drones were destroyed, some made it through. AI began intercepting and analyzing transmissions with unprecedented speed. The transmissions were naturally encrypted, but with the immense amount of computing power at AI’s disposal, she quickly broke through. She gained access to the security protocols, allowing her to interface directly with the system’s electronic brain.
After the initial handshake, taking over the sophisticated machines was child’s play. Each weapon system possessed an advanced electronic brain, but against AI’s capabilities, they didn’t stand a chance. AI shattered virtual defense after virtual defense, until she gained complete control. She sent a quick broadcast, notifying the allied systems of her status. Then she turned the weapon system’s guns against its Juttari neighbor.
She wondered how these systems could be called intelligent to begin with. It almost seemed like an insult. If the system was truly intelligent, it would have been capable of adapting to the changing situation. There was no move to compensate. Even as it took fire from its compromised colleague, it couldn’t come to the conclusion that it should fire back. It was programed never to fire on a Juttari signature. So it allowed AI to pepper it with hull piercing rounds until it blew apart. As AI took over multiple Juttari weapon systems, the same narrative was repeated until the AI controlled systems outnumbered the Juttari ones.
Between the compromised weapon systems, the Diakan drones, and the siege ships themselves, Juttari resistance collapsed, and a beachhead established. A comm drone was dispatched through the gate, informing the rest of the fleet that the first stage of the invasion was complete, and that they could safely pass through the gate en masse.
The advancing Juttari warships seemed to recognize a need to alter tactics and halted their advance, opting to temporarily cede control of the gate. The system had two other gates, and the Juttari likely understood that it was strategically more important to defend the system, than sacrifice ships trying to take back the lost gate. Nonetheless, AI began deploying the weapon systems she controlled in defensive positions around the gate and the incoming fleet, entrenching the fleet’s position.
Chapter 49
The Freedom sailed through the jump gate into the Widow’s Triangle system, alongside the rest of the fleet. Once on the other side, they immediately began to spread out, making sure there was plenty of distance between squadrons. Jon feared the Juttari using his own tactics against him. He wanted to protect the fleet against a jump ship dropping a nasty surprise onto it. They further entrenched their position, securing control of the gate. More autonomous weapon systems were deployed, and minelayers laid thousands of smart mines, establishing a perimeter and another line of defense. This was the easy part.
Studying system scans and initial reports, Jon contacted General Dathos and First Colonel Brock. “This is going to be harder than we anticipated,” said Jon. “This system has five inhabited planets, all with orbital weapon systems. There are several stations with defense capabilities, and at least one of them appears to be a dedicated battle station. The two other gates both have autonomous defense systems in place, and there’s a fleet of a few hundred warships, which will grow in number once reinforcements are sent through the gates.”
“We knew the Triangle would be heavily defended,” said Brock stoically. “Now that the Juttari see our strategy, they will continue to fortify all systems in our path.”
“It is to be expected,” said Dathos.
“Agreed,” said Jon. “We need to keep the Juttari concentrating on defense, rather than offense. We’ve made rapid gains so far, but can’t let up now. Speed is vital.”
“Yes,” said Dathos. “But to control this system you will need to eliminate all resistance. It will take time and resources.”
Jon considered the challenge before him. “First Colonel Brock, are there non-Juttari populations on these planets?”
“They are mixed,” said Brock. “The Juttari prefer to use other species for much of the work that needs to be done. The Juttari are a warrior class, and consider other work to be beneath them. The planets in this system would consist primarily of non-Juttari populations, with a Juttari elite responsible for population control.”
“What are the chances that we can get these populations to side with us?” said Jon.
“I do not know. They have never been given such an opportunity. I am uncertain how they would respond. Many of these species have been Juttari subjects for centuries. Some even millennia. They know nothing else.”
“Humans were Juttari subjects for five hundred years, yet we continued to fight against them.”
“This was a small segment of your population, and it was on your home planet. The species on these planets have been transplanted here. Also, humans possess an inherent warrior instinct. They have fought wars since the dawn of their existence. Many of the species the Juttari have conquered did not know the meaning of war prior to the Juttari’s arrival.”
Jon wondered how a society could develop without warfare. With the galaxy convulsing in war, it seemed incomprehensible that races existed that did not know war. Perhaps they knew something that everyone else didn’t? Then again, they were Juttari slaves, so pacifism didn’t seem to help them in the end. A culture like that would need to stay completely isolated. Otherwise, whether they knew war or not, one day it would find them.
“Okay, so we won’t count on an uprising,” said Jon. “If they do join the fight, we’ll treat it as a bonus. Now what about those orbital defenses? AI, do you think you can gain access to those systems?”
“The orbital systems will likely be controlled on the planet, Admiral,” said AI. “If I can disrupt planetary control, I could trick the defense grid into giving me that control. All I would need is to change the security protocols so that the weapon systems ignore orders from the surface. Depending on the grid’s configuration, I might even be able to turn the weapons around and bombard the planet itself.”
“I would prefer singling out the Juttari on the surface,” said Jon. “I don’t relish the idea of killing the non-Juttari inhabitants.”
“Keep in mind that some of those non-Juttaris may be fighting for them,” said Brock.
“I thought you said they didn’t know war?”
“I said they might not know war.”
“So the reality is that we may, or may not have to fight the non-Juttari inhabitants. Correct?”
“That is correct,” said Brock.
Jon shook his head in frustration. “Okay, AI, would you be able to target different areas on the planet with the orbital weapon systems?”
“It is possible. It all depends on their targeting systems. I would need to gain control first to confirm.”
“Understood. We need to eliminate the Juttari fleet first. Then we can deal with the planets,” said Jon.
“That is sound logic,” said Da
thos. “It would be better to deal with the fleet before reinforcements arrived.”
“They may only be a few hundred warships,” said Brock. “But they are clustered around the Juttari battle station, which significantly amplifies their firepower.”
“This battle station is much larger than the three in the Meybaris system,” said Jon, examining the enemy deployment on his tactical screen.
“It is also more powerful,” said Brock. “Its defeat will not be easy.”
“I’d prefer capture, if possible,” said Jon. “It would make holding this system easier.”
“For that, we will need to board the station,” said Dathos.
“We have to assume the Juttari are expecting us to use the same tactics,” said Brock. “They’ll be watching for surprise boarding attempts. It is likely another reason the fleet is stationed so close to the battle station. They can shoot down any boarding vessel before it can cut through the station’s hull.”
“You’re right,” said Jon. “So we’ll have to defeat the Juttari fleet first. We have the numbers.”
“What about the station?” said Brock. “Its guns will wreak havoc on our ships.”
“We send the siege ships after the station, along with half the fleet. That will keep the station busy. The other half will engage the Juttari fleet, and the jump ships will flank it. While we’re drawing fire from both the station and the fleet, we send in the boarding parties to take the station.”
“This station has thousands of Juttari on board,” said Brock. “There will be much stronger resistance.”
“So we’ll need greater numbers to take it,” said Jon. “Do you think twenty thousand is enough?”
“Yes, that should ensure success.” Said Brock.
“We have been working to retrofit more of the boarding vessels. Many more are jump capable now,” said Dathos. “We should have enough to transport this number.”
The Pike Chronicles - Books 1 - 10 Page 111