Scout Force

by Rodney Smith

  “Kelly, follow me. Let’s cut the corner on this guy and cut him off from getting back in-spiral.”

  “Make the turn, I’ll be right here beside you. Just let me know when you are going to turn toward me or slow down quickly.”

  The two fighters, wingtip to wingtip, turned up at an angle and headed to where the scout ship would be in a few seconds.

  “Kelly, what is that turret doing?”

  “Hang on. Wanda, what is the turret doing? Transmit to Angie and I both.”

  “LT Shappelle, the turret keeps pointing in-spiral. It does not appear to be a weapon turret. I believe it is a communications turret. I am recording the position of the scout ship and the angle of the turret. We should be able to triangulate the location of wherever it is pointing to.”

  “Good work, Wanda. Keep tracking that turret. Fleet will want to know where it is pointing.”

  The two fighters were closing the distance on the scout ship. They turned in closer as the distance reduced. The scout ship would not be able to get in-spiral of the two fighters.

  * * * * *

  “Shadow Warrior, we cannot outrun these two fighters. We should turn out-spiral. If we can get them to close with us, we may be able to cause them to overshoot and pass us by. We should then be able to get turned back in-spiral.”

  “Shadow Technician, power up our weapons. I am going to try and split these two ships apart. If we can get between them, you will need to be ready to fire on both of them. This tactic was briefed to me as effective against these pilots. Is the data ready to be transmitted?”

  “Not yet, Shadow Warrior. It will be ten seconds more and then will take 32 seconds to transmit. I recommend that you turn toward the fleet once it begins to transmit. This will give us the best chance of getting and maintaining lock on the relay satellite. They won’t fire on us if they think they may be able to capture us. Do you want me to prepare the ship for self -destruct?”

  “Yes, Shadow Technician M’Drek. If I determine there is no hope, we will make the ultimate sacrifice for the Empire.”

  * * * * *

  “They’ve turned out-spiral, Angie. We should see CPT Chang’s four-ship flight appear any moment now.”

  “Slow down to military power. Let’s not overshoot this guy. As long as he’s running toward the fleet, let him think he can get away.”

  The fleet disposition showed on Kelly’s tactical monitor. The fleet was still arrayed in gunnery formation. The Tenacious and Transcendent were still on the port side of the fleet against the asteroid field. They would not warp to their position in-spiral until CPT Chang’s flight advanced. The scout ship flew straight at the fleet.

  “Kelly, do you think this guy is running at full power or is he sandbagging us?”

  “I think he is powered back some. I expect him to do something to try and throw us off any second now. I am powering up two mini-seekers in case he should split us up. He may fool us, but he won’t get away.”

  “Don’t shoot without asking for permission from fleet. Remember our orders.”

  “You should power up two mini-seekers too. If this guy should get one of us, the survivor shouldn’t take a chance on him getting away.”

  “Good idea, powering up. Here comes Chang’s flight.”

  * * * * *

  “Shadow Warrior, there are four more interceptor ships that have just appeared 20,000 km in front of us. We need five more seconds before our data is sent. I will inform you when the transmission is acknowledged.”

  “Excellent, Shadow Technician. I will hold course until the data is sent. Then I am going to see how brave these humans are. I am going to fly right at them. If they destroy us, we have still succeeded in our mission. If we get through them, I am going to turn into the asteroid field. Let’s see how good pilots these humans are. If we make it into the asteroid field, I want you to shoot nearby asteroids to throw debris in their path. We may just live through this, M’Drek.”

  * * * * *

  CPT Chang led his flight forward out of the asteroid field. His flight was positioned to block the scout ship from reaching the fleet. He expected the scout ship to turn away any second. His flight were all seasoned pilots. They had trained together two years, and he knew their every move. As they advanced toward the scout ship, he spread his two-ship teams apart. He intended to chase this scout ship down himself. The lieutenants Shappelle and Blake would get to watch his flight in action. He would thank them afterwards for running the scout into his snare.

  He keyed his mike and spoke to his flight. “Careful with this guy, I don’t think he realizes we are here yet. Prepare to shoot his engines once he comes in range. We’ll see if we can stop him without damaging the ship too much. LT O’Brien, you take the port engine, I’ll take the starboard one. LT Connell, you take out that turret on the roof. LT Obagwe, see if you can take out his life support. Aim carefully; we want these guys alive and the ship as intact as possible.”

  * * * * *

  “Shadow Warrior, the data transmission is complete. The transmission has been acknowledged. You may take any action you wish now. We have successfully completed our mission. Our names will be read in the scrolls of M’Drella.”

  “Tighten your seat straps, Shadow Technician. I am about to test these pilots’ skills. Turn your sensor recorders on and prepare a data pod for launch if we do not make it. Maybe we can get some more data back to home world after we are no more. If you wish to send a personal message to your clan, you may do so. I will be adding a message to my Crèche Mother.”

  “Thank you, Shadow Warrior. They will sing of us during the fire festival. It has been an honor to serve under you.”

  “Thank you, M’Drek. Prepare to fire on them if we make it through them. Perhaps we can slow their pursuit if they are not as brave as we are.”

  * * * * *

  Kelly watched the situation unfold on his tactical display. It looked like it was almost the end for the scout ship. The scout ship closed the distance on the flight of fighters. Suddenly, the K’Rang ship accelerated and aimed itself at the four-ship flight. The distance closed dramatically. The four-ship flight broke into two pairs of fighters and split apart as the scout blew through their formation. CPT Chang and his wingman had to execute a max-G turn to avoid collision. The move was so unexpected that none of the fighters had a chance to get off a shot.

  “Kelly, CPT Chang’s fighter and his wingman’s are out of position. We need to go in after the scout or he might get away.”

  The scout ship made a radical turn to port and headed for the asteroid field. If it could get deep into the field it would be hard to catch and it might be able to get away. Angie and Kelly followed hot on its tail. CPT Chang and his flight reorganized and followed Angie and Kelly.

  “LT Shappelle, this is CPT Chang, turn aside, and make room for us to pass. We will take up the pursuit.”

  Angie replied, “Negative sir, you won’t catch up until they are in the asteroid field. We could lose this guy if he gets too far into the field. You hold your position. We’ll turn him and send him back out to you.”

  “LT Shappelle, this is Fleet Command, stay on the scout’s tail. CPT Chang, move your flight out-spiral and prepare to move into the asteroid field to block his retreat. We are jumping the Tenacious and Transcendent at this time. You have permission to disable the ship’s weapons and engines, if required.”

  Angie and Kelly followed the scout into the asteroid field. They had to weave up and down, left and right to keep up with the scout. As they approached a congested part of the field, the K’Rang ship used its weapons to blast asteroids into big chunks swirling in their path. Angie and Kelly climbed, dove, and jinked to avoid the bigger bits and stay on the scout’s tail. Their ship’s shields repelled the smaller chunks away.

  Kelly keyed his mike and asked, “Is it just me or is it getting crowded in here? Following this guy is not going to work. We need to get past him and turn him back out of the field and out-spiral again.”


  “Roger, I agree, Kelly. Let’s see if we can get in-spiral of and past him.”

  Angie made a hard turn to port around a large asteroid and increased power. A relatively clear path opened up on the far side of the large asteroid and Angie accelerated. Kelly followed her, one ship’s width away from her. Once they cleared the asteroid they were in-spiral and just ahead of the scout ship. The scout ship turned out-spiral again and Angie and Kelly stayed just 1000 meters off the port side and just ahead of the scout. The scout turned to fly out of the asteroid field. Angie keyed her mike, “CPT Chang, they are coming out your way.”

  “I see them, we’re waiting for them.”

  * * * * *

  “Shadow Warrior, the four interceptors we blew through before are waiting for us just past the asteroid field. They have too much power and are too maneuverable for us to escape.”

  “Shadow Technician, enter the final codes to arm the self-destruct mechanism. Enter them as Shadow Warrior M’Drek. You have earned the title. I am proud to promote you to Warrior of the Empire.”

  “ I am honored, Shadow Warrior.”

  “You may address me as K’tella, fellow warrior.”

  “I am doubly honored, K’Tella. The preparations are complete. Self-destruct will commence when you push the omega button on your console. How long a time lag do you wish?”

  “Make it a five second delay. I may need to maneuver at the last second to assure the most effect. Set the data pod to eject at three seconds.”

  * * * * *

  Upon exiting the asteroid field, the K’Rang ship turned out-spiral and ran toward the fleet, some 30,000 km away, at maximum speed. CPT Chang’s flight flew in pursuit. Angie and Kelly left the asteroid field, kicked it into full power and came up alongside the scout ship between them and the asteroid field. This blocked their escape into the field again. They both felt it was only a matter of time before CPT Chang’s flight disabled the scout or he surrendered. Knowing the K’Rang’s predilection of dying rather than live in captivity, he didn’t think they would give up.

  CPT Chang increased his speed to close the distance to the scout ship. He wanted to get closer so his targeting computer could achieve maximum accuracy. The three other ships maintained formation with him. He was almost to optimum firing range when the K’Rang ship hit reverse thrusters and CPT Chang's flight shot past the scout. As the last fighter of the four-ship formation passed by the scout ship’s pulse guns fired, disabling LT Obagwe’s ship.

  “Kelly, follow me in. We’re going to take away this guy's fangs. I’m going under him and take out his guns. You take out his engines.”

  Angie made a hard turn to starboard to come back at the scout ship. Kelly followed, toggling his weapons from the mini-seekers to guns. The two fighters dropped down below the scout ship and rose up. Angie’s guns reached out and destroyed the scout’s guns. Kelly fired his guns into the rear of the ship, taking out the port engine. The two fighters shot past the scout, executed a sharp loop with the help of their vectored thrust, and Kelly took out the starboard engine. The two shot back under the scout, executed another loop, and a roll to end up above and to port of the scout ship. The scout coasted in space, venting gases, and sparking where the engines had once been. The scout yawed and tumbled in space.

  CPT Chang’s voice came over the communicator, “K’Rang ship, this is CPT Chang of the Galactic Republic Fleet. You are disabled in Galactic Republic space. Prepare to be towed. Disable all your systems but basic life support. Any deviation will result in your ship being destroyed.”

  There was no response from the K’Rang ship. CPT Chang flew his fighter over to do a visual check of the scout.

  His voice came over the inter-ship frequency, “LT Shappelle, would you and your wing man tow LT Obagwe’s ship back to the carrier. We can take the scout from here.”

  Kelly switched to Angie and his private frequency and said, “He can take it from here? He let the K’Rang ship outfly him twice, got one of his ships shot up, and had to have us take it out for him, but he can take it from here. What kind of BS is this?”

  Angie replied, “Relax, the data captured by the Bolivar will show what happened here. Let’s let him tow the hulk in.”

  Wanda said, “Kelly, I am picking up a strange reading from the K’Rang ship. I sense an energy build up on the scout ship.”

  Kelly’s turned his eyes toward the scout ship. CPT Chang and his two remaining fighters were pulling up to the scout ship to affect the tow. The revelation hit him in an instant. He keyed his mike on the fleet frequency and yelled into his mike, “Chang, get away from him. He’s activated his self-destruct. Get out of there now!”

  CPT Chang and his two escorts didn’t hesitate. They hit max power and had blasted to several kilometers from the scout when it lit up the black space like a supernova. The blast wave rocked Angie and Kelly, but did no damage to any of the fighters in either group.

  Angie said, “Well, that was fun. Let’s go get LT Obagwe and tow him to the carrier.”

  Kelly said, “Thank you Wanda, you saved a bunch of us just then. It’s good to fly with you.”

  “Thank you, Kelly, it’s good to fly with you, too.”

  The two ships moved to LT Obagwe's disabled fighter and engaged their tractor beams to tow his fighter back. A shuttle from the nearest frigate was dispatched to retrieve as much debris from the scout ship as they could find.

  * * * * *

  As the six fighters proceeded to the Bolivar, a data pod sped in-spiral. Its laser communicator extended and transmitted the last data collected by the late K’Rang Shadow Scout Ship D’Rella. The data stream sped to the waiting relay satellite. The data transmission completed and the personal messages of Shadow Warriors K’Tella and M’Drek were sent out. M’Drek’s message was to inform his father and clan mates that he died willingly in service to the Empire and to remember him at the reading of the M’Drella. K’Tella sent a message to his Crèche mother that his sacrifice was in honor of her and she should remember his sacrifice to his crèche mates. At the end of the transmission, the pod waited for acknowledgement, received it, and then self-destructed.

  * * * * *

  In-spiral of the fleet, another larger black spot in space waited. Inside it was the orderly buzz of activity indicative of a military vessel.

  A sensor crewman looked up from his screen, “I think that is the last of the data pod transmission, Captain.”

  “The captain of the GRS Vehement, latest ship in the Valiant Class of Scout Ships, nodded at his crewman and called across the bridge, “Exec, how long will it take to shut down that K’Rang satellite in our hold?”

  A Fleet Lieutenant, Junior Grade walked over from his console and replied, “Captain, it will take about a half hour to spin down and secure the satellite’s electronics. I’m closing the hold doors now. We should have normal atmosphere in there in a few minutes.”

  “Okay, Exec, take care of it and then set course for Antares at best possible speed.”

  The captain walked over to the sensor crewman and said, “Poor bastards, their sacrifices were for naught. Did we get all the data the K’Rang ship sent since they crossed the frontier?”

  The crewman looked up from his screen again and replied, “Yes sir, nothing got through. We got it all, every last photon.”

  * * * * *

  Kelly discontinued his musing, shut down his terminal, and turned in.

  Chapter Seven

  The Vigilant’s return flight to Antares was uneventful. The crew spent the time working on the ship. Anything that could be was fine-tuned. Engineering found a way to gain an extra power .4 light speed. Sensors found ways to increase the sensitivity and resolution. Gunnery ran simulations and qualified 70 percent of the gunners as expert. Some were even better than Kelly.

  The galley was where great advances were made. Because they had stayed out longer than the 30 days they had scheduled, the galley was getting a little sparse. Cookie found ways to use the remaining
rations and the replicator to come up with culinary delights. What could have been several days of dried rations and sandwiches became a feast as the galley crew used the replicator in ways its designers never envisioned. The good thing about the replicator was that mistakes could be fed back in and tried again. It was also faster than traditional cooking once the programming was complete. LCDR Timmons was their most finicky customer, and even he was pleased with the results. Next patrol would see a lot more replicator use.

  The Antares system appeared on the long-range sensors, and the crew went into a hum of activity. Duty uniforms were brought out of the lockers and donned. Chief Watson had each section giving their areas the once over to make sure they were shipshape. Chief Willis actually looked hurt at the suggestion that his engineering space could be improved.

  Antares control cleared them into the system and they made a normal approach into Antares Base Space Port. The ship landed at its assigned space and started shutting systems down. The Base ground crew personnel hooked them up to shore comms, power, water, and sewage. Chief Willis initiated shut down procedures on the engines. LCDR Timmons called Kelly into his quarters.

  “Exec, I want you to look at these sensor records and log entries again to make sure that we haven’t left anything out.”

  Kelly felt that he had already done this, but if the captain wanted it done again, he would. He knew that the record was important. Their monitoring of the Indigo Consortium and K’Rang meeting was significant. The files would be turned over to Fleet Intelligence and they would glean every last bit of information. The computers on the Vigilant were good, but could not match the speed and power of the systems available to a Fleet Base like Antares.

  Kelly realized he had been at the task for over an hour when LCDR Timmons asked if he was through and suggested they get some lunch. Kelly closed down the terminal and followed the captain.