The Pike Chronicles - Books 1 - 10

by Hudson, G. P.

  “I’m not afraid of the Kemmar,” Anki said defiantly.

  “Nobody said you were, little one,” said Jonas. “We all know you are very brave.”

  “Then why can’t I come? I was allowed to go on raids on the Reiver ship.”

  “That was different,” said Breeah. “Your father was the captain of that ship and we lived on it for long periods of time. It was the Reiver way.”

  “But isn’t Jon my new father?”

  The words brought a smile to Jon’s face. While it was true that he had looked at her like a daughter for quite a while, it was the first time Anki had said anything like that about him. But it was a painful reminder of his own daughters, and how much he missed them.

  “Yes, I suppose he is,” said Breeah, smiling at Jon in understanding. It cemented what he already felt, that this was his family now, even if it included the salty old Reiver, Jonas, as his adopted father-in-law.

  “You and Jon are both going, and so is grandfather,” said Anki. “You are my whole family. We should stay together.”

  Breeah, Jonas and Jon exchanged glances. “It’ll be safer for you here, with the Seibens,” said Jon. “Plus, you’ll have Alina and Otka to play with. There won’t be any other children to play with on the Freedom.”

  “I am a Reiver, am I not?” Anki asked her mother.

  “Yes, child,” said Breeah. “Of course you are.”

  “And Reiver children go on raids with their parents, do they not?”

  “They do. But the Freedom is not a Reiver ship,” said Breeah.

  “Then I will go with grandfather. He commands a Reiver ship.”

  “It’s not that simple,” said Jon, wondering how the three of them were losing an argument to a child.

  “Why? I saw battle on my father’s ship. I’ve seen battle on your ships. I’ve seen hand to hand combat. I’ve seen death. Why do you treat me like I am weak?”

  “We’re just trying to protect you,” said Jon, marveling at the little girl’s strength. She would grow up to be a truly formidable woman, just like her mother.

  “Then keep me with you. How can you protect me if I am on Earth, and you are all fighting the Kemmar in space?”

  Breeah fixed her defiant daughter with a piercing gaze.

  “She is certainly your child,” said Jonas, erupting in another bout of laughter. “I say bring her along.”

  “It is not your choice to make, father,” said Breeah, glancing threateningly at her father.

  “No it is not,” said Jonas, still laughing, the implied threat from his daughter clearly having no effect on him. The old warrior swept several strands of his long gray hair off of his face with a big, calloused hand. He shoveled another forkful of food into his mouth, chuckling to himself between bites, but said nothing more.

  “Very well, child,” said Breeah. You may come-”

  “Breeah!” said Jon, but was cut short as Breeah’s eyes came to meet his. He knew that look well enough to remain quiet.

  Jonas burst into another round of laughter in response to Jon’s silent retreat. “My daughter, and my granddaughter, the two deadliest warriors I know!” Shaking his head, he went back to his dinner.

  “As I was saying. You may come, but you have to promise to stay in our quarters. No wandering around the ship, unless you are given permission first. Am I understood?”

  “Yes, mother,” said Anki, bursting with excitement. “Thank you.”

  “And no complaints.”

  “I won’t complain. But can I at least continue my training?”

  “I’ll arrange some time for you,” said Jon. “We’ll just have to make sure to do it when none of my crew are using the training room. I can’t have you putting them all to shame.”

  Jonas erupted into another round of laughter, pounding the table with a heavy hand. “Come on Jon, be a good son-in-law and pour me some more of that Earth ale.”

  Jon reached over, filling Jonas’s glass, then his own. “Here’s to victory,” he said, raising his glass, to which they responded in kind, including Anki and her glass of juice.

  “To victory,” they said in unison.

  Jon took a long drink, warming his belly with the strong brew.

  “When do we leave?” said Breeah.

  “Two weeks,” said Jon. “Although we’ll board the Freedom in a few days.”

  “My ship is ready,” said Jonas. “I can’t wait to try out some of those new weapons.”

  “You’ll be putting them to good use soon enough. Are you looking forward to liberating Telepylos?”

  “Telepylos?” said Jonas in surprise. “Why would I care about that desolate wasteland? I will liberate it because it is the strategic thing to do. Nothing more.”

  “I just thought since it was your home for so long, that you might feel strongly about the place.”

  “Let me tell you something. I don’t know how our people ended up on those rocks. Nobody does. Did that place make us who we are? Yes. Does that mean I miss it? No chance. Life was hard, and I have not met many people since leaving who could endure such an existence. But leave there I did. That part of my life is over, and I have no desire to return to it.”

  “I understand,” said Jon. The old man’s words had struck a chord with him, reminding him of his own upbringing.

  “Yes,” said Jonas, nodding in understanding. “I believe you do. You were born to your own hardships under the Juttari occupation. Breeah has told me something about your life during that time.”

  “I grew up in the resistance on Earth. Life was a constant struggle. We lived in the mountains, never staying in one place for long. We were constantly hunted by the Juttari, and their human collaborators. Like you, I learned to fight at a very young age. From my own grandfather, as a matter of fact.”

  Jonas smiled knowingly. “Do you wish to return to that life?”

  “No. I do not.”

  Jonas emptied his glass and thrust it out to Jon. “Some more ale, Jon Pike. Let us drink to hard lives, and the hope that they never return.”

  “I’ll drink to that,” Jon said sincerely, filling both their glasses. Taking a long drink, he couldn’t remember ale ever tasting this good.

  Chapter 44

  Captain Konos looked on in awe at the armada assembled before him. Never in his wildest dreams had he expected to witness something like this. It was astonishing enough that Admiral Pike had united the colonies. But to deploy a force of this size in the colonies defied belief.

  Just over a year ago they were terrified of the Kemmar, who had simply strolled into several colonial systems without any notable resistance. Now, as part of the UHSF, they were part of an invasion force totaling more than a thousand ships.

  While their number included several hundred Diakan and Chaanisar warships, most of the force was colonial. It proved what could be accomplished when all corporate infrastructure, enhanced by Diakan advancements, committed to the war effort.

  The fleet had amassed in an empty region of space inside the colonies, so as to avoid detection by the Kemmar. There were battleships, carriers, cruisers, destroyers, and gunboats. They were accompanied by support ships, which played the logistical role of keeping a force of this size operating smoothly. A flurry of fighters and bombers, complemented the group.

  Altogether Konos estimated the fleet easily covered a region of space spanning half a million kilometers in diameter. This loose formation, allowing plenty of distance between ships, was adopted to protect against jump attacks.

  The enemy may not have jump bombs, but they had jump ships, and could easily jump a ship into their midst to drop some nukes. If the enemy tried that now, they would only destroy one ship, not a squadron.

  While the force that invaded the Juttari systems last year was larger, the colonies had not contributed much in the way of ships. This, however, was the largest force the colonies had ever fielded. Konos felt proud to be a part of this historical moment.

  “Command has transmitted our jump c
oordinates,” said Commander Mani. “They have been entered into the jump system. We are now jump ready.”

  “Good. Make sure our birds stay close,” said Konos. “The jump command can come at any moment now.”

  Jump drones had been sent into Otan space to map the position of the Kemmar fleet. The drones had to jump in repeatedly in order to find the enemy ships. It took time, but would be worth it in the end.

  There were always ships testing the colonial border defenses, but they wanted to know where the bulk of the occupation force sat. That was the target.

  A contingent armed with jump bombs had been left near the border, to counter possible Kemmar incursions, while the main fleet pushed ahead.

  Due to the sheer size of their armada, they were unable to sync their jump systems. They were forced to jump individually. The challenge became maintaining a safe landing distance between all vessels. To facilitate this, every ship had its own unique jump coordinates.

  The plan was simple. They would jump into Otan space, far enough away, and utilize their jump bombs to soften up the Kemmar before closing with them. They would push deeper and deeper into Kemmar territory, engaging with and destroying any Kemmar ships, or fortifications they came across.

  Based on their experience at DLC Station, Konos was confident that they would be successful. He only hoped to maintain a low casualty rate. They would have to clear planetary defenses, however, and that meant putting boots on the ground. Casualties would be unavoidable.

  The Intrepid’s main viewscreen suddenly flickered to life with a transmission from General Calledonius, the armada’s commander. Konos had served under him during his time in the New Byzantium military. He considered Calledonius to be a competent general, but was surprised to see him appointed commander of the armada.

  The truth was that Calledonius was often set in his ways, and resistant to change. Not exactly what you wanted when you were employing new weapons, and new tactics. Nonetheless, he was the commander, and Konos would obey his orders.

  On the viewscreen, Calledonius looked resolute, defiant. He cleared his throat, before speaking. The transmission was being broadcast to every ship in the armada.

  “We will jump into Otan space momentarily, so I’ll keep this short,” said Calledonius. “The new technology we are carrying will give us a significant advantage, but we cannot rely on it alone. We will need to fight the enemy, just as we always have. As your commander, I want to make my expectations perfectly clear. I don’t care who you are, or where you are from. I don’t care if you have Juttari implants, or green Diakan skin. I don’t care if you come from the colonies, or from Earth itself. All I care is that you go out there and you kill those Kemmar sons of bitches. The more Kemmar we kill, the less of our own we lose. Good luck, and good hunting. Calledonius out.”

  Calledonius’s face disappeared from the viewscreen, replaced by the sea of warships before it.

  “That was short and sweet,” said Mani, with a smirk.

  “It’s a good thing the General chose the military, and not a career as a poet,” said Konos.

  “Sir, the order to jump has just gone out.”

  “Very well. Let’s obey our commander, and go kill some Kemmar sons of bitches.”

  “With pleasure, Sir.”

  Chapter 45

  The Freedom floated in space fifty light years away from the Telepylos system, two hundred light years away from Earth. It shared the system with almost a thousand other ships, a combination of UHSF, Chaanisar, and Diakan forces. They had jumped here twenty-four hours earlier, and waited for their depleted jump systems to recharge, before initiating their assault on Telepylos.

  It would coincide with General Calledonius’s invasion of Otan space. Putting the Kemmar in a vice, where they would be squeezed until their empire was no more. A third fleet, commanded by General Tallos, would invade the Juttari system, in hopes of preventing the Juttari from coming to their ally’s aid.

  “Jump system is at one hundred percent, Sir,” said Ensign Yao, the navigation officer. “We are jump ready.”

  “Load coordinates for first jump, Ensign,” said Jon.

  “Coordinates loaded, Sir.”

  “Mr. Henderson, inform the fleet that we are about to jump. Ensure that they are all jump ready.”

  “Yes, Sir,” said Commander Henderson, the Freedom’s XO.

  Jon cracked his knuckles in anticipation of battle. He felt the creature’s readiness and thirst for blood. Don’t worry, he said. Today, you’ll get your fill.

  Ever since his experience on Diakus, his attitude toward his symbiont had changed. It hadn’t happened on purpose. Jon hadn’t decided to accept the creature. His attitude had softened unconsciously. In the end, his acceptance of the creature came as a surprise, although he wouldn’t accept the bit about being Diakan, or this ‘of the Temple’ nonsense. He never thought he would prefer Diakan arrogance, but even their condescension was better than this crazy reverence. The damn Diakans looked at him like some kind of holy relic.

  He had to admit there was a practical advantage. The Diakans were now fully committed. He was pretty sure they would follow him into a black hole, if he told them to. It wasn’t just about the prophesy anymore. This was something more. Much more.

  The Diakans were zealots. In this way, they were not entirely different from the Juttari. What drove the Juttari to conquer the galaxy was their religion, and their belief that they were the only species fit to rule. It was a hallmark of the Juttari religion.

  But the Diakans were different. Their Temple, and their Great See’er, was the light that led them out of darkness. They did not believe they were preordained to rule the galaxy, like the Juttari. Instead, the light of the Temple was their guide, one that led them to their current position of power in the galaxy.

  How do you argue against that kind of success? If you’re Diakan, you don’t. To a Diakan, the Temple is holy, as is anything begotten from it. That included the Great See’er, and it included him.

  As uncomfortable as it made him, Jon would use his newfound status to his advantage. The Diakans were one of the most powerful races in the galaxy, and they were willing to follow him. He would have to be a fool to throw that away.

  “Ship’s are all reporting jump ready, Sir,” said Henderson, pulling Jon out of his thoughts. The time for action had arrived.

  “Very well,” said Jon. “Transmit the order to jump.”

  “Transmitting.”

  “Helm, initiate jump.”

  The viewscreen flickered, and they landed in an empty region of space. All around them ships began to appear, as the rest of the fleet made the jump. They were now just three light years from Telepylos.

  “Deploy surveillance drones,” said Jon.

  “Drones away,” said Henderson.

  Several small spy drones shot out of tubes in the Freedom’s hull. They fired their jets, racing ahead, and vanished from the sky. Their job was simple. They would land at different locations in the Telepylos system, acquire sensor readings, and return before the Kemmar shot them out of the sky.

  The drones were small, and difficult to identify. They could probably float quietly in space for some time before anyone took notice, but Jon wasn’t taking any chances. The less the Kemmar knew about what was coming their way, the better.

  Waiting for the drones to return, Jon activated his comm display, and Breeah appeared.

  “The fun and games are about to begin,” he said.

  “We will be here,” Breeah said stoically. Turning away for a moment, she nodded. “Anki wants to speak to you,” she said.

  Jon smiled. “Put her on.”

  Anki’s excited face appeared. “Hi Jon,” she said, waving.

  “Hi kid. Are you ready to kick the Kemmar out of your old home?”

  “I am, and I want to tell you something.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’ve decided. I want to become a fighter pilot.”

  “You do? When did yo
u make that decision?”

  “Just now, but I’ve been watching the Freedom’s fighters for a while. They are amazing, and I really want to fly one.”

  “They are pretty awesome. I’ll tell you what. Once this is all over, I’ll arrange for you to take a ride in one. If it’s okay with your mother, of course.”

  Anki looked over at Breeah, who was just outside of the camera’s view. “Can I go?” The little girl then jumped up and down with excitement. “She says I can go!”

  “Great. I’ll set it all up when we’re done with the Kemmar. Now listen. We’re about to go into battle. I want you to stay with your mother. Don’t leave your quarters unless you are with her.”

  “Don’t worry, Jon. I won’t leave. Can I watch the battle on the display?”

  “Ask your mother.”

  Anki nodded.

  “Surveillance drones have returned,” said Henderson. “Receiving data.”

  “I’ve got to go. Don’t forget what I said.”

  “I won’t.”

  Jon closed the comm link. “AI, analyze the data from the surveillance drones, and assign the appropriate jump coordinates to the rest of the fleet.”

  “Yes, Admiral,” said AI, from Jon’s comm. “Coordinates have been assigned and transmitted.”

  “Thank you, AI.”

  “You’re most welcome, Admiral.”

  “Commander, let me see the Kemmar defenses on the main viewscreen.”

  The viewscreen shifted from its view of the far away stars, to one of a couple hundred Kemmar warships.

  “Magnify,” said Jon, the display zooming in. “They’ve learned their lesson. They’re adopting a loose formation, like we do.” Jon leaned in. “Do you see that? It looks like they’ve mined the system.”

  “Yes, Sir, it does.”

  “AI, based on your analysis of the drone data, can you confirm if that is indeed a minefield.”

  “Yes, Admiral. That is correct. Rest assured, I have taken this information into account when I assigned jump coordinates,” said AI.