Lansu smashed his fist against the sensor station’s console. It was not the first time the Lycian fleet’s greater maneuverability had frustrated the Commodore. “Typical conniving separatist trick,” he said between clenched teeth. “What ships do they have in orbit?”
“Two light destroyers, Resolve and Glory, and a heavy cruiser, Defiant.”
Lansu smiled. “Two light destroyers and a heavy cruiser. No match for Dominion. What about Challenger?”
“She’s limping toward P3 at quarter speed, sir.”
Lansu nodded. “Even healthy, she’s hardly more than a nuisance. Signal High Command about the situation. They assured us they had gained control of this khâl’s access gates in Lycian space. They were clearly mistaken. They must rectify this immediately to prevent any further ships from coming through.”
“And should we request additional support, sir?” asked Vilna.
Commodore Lansu fixed his blue eyes on the captain. “This is a devastator-class battleship. We do not need additional support if access to this system can be blocked.”
“But given the sensitivity of our mission, perhaps…”
“You have my orders, captain!” shouted Lansu.
“Yes sir,” said Vilna with a slight deferential nod. “What are your orders regarding the Lycian ships in orbit?”
“Prepare torpedo ships and fighter support,” he said. “Alter Dominion’s orbit to engage the enemy. And deploy remaining ground troops. We must gain control of the Kaiytáva. Order the ground forces to find it and take up a defensive position as recommended by Kurak.
Vilna was unable to hide his displeasure with this order. “Am I to understand that we are going to follow his recommendation and ally ourselves with one of the Alamani factions?” he asked.
Lansu looked at the holographic image of the Earth. “If we are to regain the glory of the past and finally put down the Lycian separatists, we will need to replenish our ranks. Supplementing our forces with Alamani soldiers is one way to do that. If Kurak’s plan can help us gain a complete victory, we must consider it, although I find it just as distasteful as you.”
He looked at Captain Vilna. “But our first order of business is to smash the Lycian ships. Now carry out my orders.”
“Yes sir.”
Chapter 59
Kurak and the five Red Leg survivors from the attack on Jasper Air Base had been slowly creeping up a muddy ravine toward the top of a hill overlooking the Mississippi River. They could hear the League troops searching for them on both flanks and knew it was simply a matter of time before they were discovered.
They could also hear the fighting down in the abandoned town below. The Red Legs had initially thought it was a PRA extraction force, but then they saw the strange V-shaped craft and grew uncertain.
“Help is on its way,” said Kurak. “Those are advanced PRA fighters coming for us. We have to get back down the hill.”
He led his men down the ravine toward the abandoned town. The sounds of fighting grew louder. Kurak crept over the ravine’s edge to see what was happening on the slope below. The lead element of the Sahiradin phalanx was advancing up the hill toward him. The remaining Sahiradin were fighting what he recognized as Lycian soldiers. The Sahiradin had cut down about half of the Lycians and the rest were beginning to waver. A few more Lycians fell and the remaining soldiers retreated back down the slope.
Kurak’s Red Leg companions also crept up and peered over the edge of the ravine to see the battle below. As they watched, Kurak slipped back a few steps and silently drew his blade. Then, with deadly efficiency, he slaughtered three of his Red Leg companions. Two of them were able to draw their swords and block a few of Kurak’s attacks, but the Sahiradin made quick work of them as well.
With a broad grin on his face, Kurak climbed out of the ravine and quickly scampered down the hill. When the lead Sahiradin saw him, Kurak stopped and made several hand signals. One of the Sahiradin responded with a hand signal. Kurak then continued down the hill.
“I am Captain Kurak. Lone survivor of the Vanquisher. I have long awaited this moment. Where is the extraction site?”
One of the Sahiradin answered, “There is a force of natives near the crashed ship below. They are receiving aid from the Lycian. We’ll need to find a different place for our ships to retrieve us.”
Kurak nodded, “This way.”
He started running north along the hillside. Moments later, they heard a humming sound and looked down to the town. An oval-shaped craft landed near the Blackhawk.
One of the Sahiradin said, “A Lycian frigate followed us through the khâl. They must be sending additional ground forces.”
They continued running north and at an uphill angle until they reached the tree line of a large open field on top of the hill. The lead Sahiradin pressed a button on his belt. “They will be here in a moment.”
Kurak nodded. “What is your name?”
“Bre Veru, sir.”
“Bre Veru, welcome to the lost Alamani colony.”
Bre Veru looked over the river valley. After a moment he asked, “How did you survive living among them for so long, sir?”
Kurak spat. “By living a lie. I have long endured their foul company, but now that will change.”
Bre Veru nodded. “They are different than their Alamani ancestors. The ones we saw by the river are fierce fighters.”
“The result of having to survive on this planet for so long without the comforts of their precious technology,” answered Kurak.
Bre Veru placed his hand over his ear as he received a transmission into a small communications implant. After a moment he said, “A small task force of Lycian ships is in orbit around this planet. Dominion is moving against them. They cannot retrieve us now, but we are to go to the landing site you had recommended. When Dominion has destroyed the enemy, she will return for us.”
Kurak’s thin lips turned into a thin smile. “Good.”
“Sir, may I ask why we are landing our ground forces here?”
Kurak turned and looked at the dozens of Sahiradin who stood at attention behind Bre Veru and smiled. “The Alamani in this region are about to engage in a civil war. One side in the conflict might be of use to us. If we support them in their war and they win, we will have gained a strong advantage over the others. They will help us master this planet.”
Veru looked puzzled. “Ally ourselves with Alamani?”
“For now,” replied Kurak.
Veru was clearly uncomfortable with the thought but said nothing. Instead, he pointed at a hilltop just to the north. “There they are, sir.”
Kurak looked across the valley to the nearby hill and saw a dozen large transport craft landing. Moments later, Sahiradin soldiers began streaming out of the ships.
Quickly,” said Kurak, his heart swelling with pride at the sight of so many of his warrior brethren. “We must join the army.”
Chapter 60
Logan looked down at the town from his position on the hill. Colonel Longmire had ordered everyone to the top after the Lycians had boarded their oval ship that had come to retrieve them. They carried many wounded compatriots with them but no Sahiradin captives. Logan looked to the north at the hill across from theirs. His heart sank as he watched thousands of Sahiradin busily working to erect small buildings and what appeared to be defensive batteries of some kind.
He looked to his right along the line of troopers and saw Cap, Lena, and a few PRA defectors talking. Cap told a joke that made the others chuckle, but their laughter was mingled with fear. One of them shot a quick look at the Sahiradin camp, then looked back at Cap, who was regaling them with the story of how he had pursued the Blackhawk in the X-1 earlier that day.
Additional League troops had arrived about two hours earlier from Rockford Forward Station, as well as from Davenport and Dubuque. More troops from other League cities had just arrived and were being deployed along the hill. They all wore the same uniform, but they had different patches on their
right shoulders to indicate which city they represented. Kansas City, Omaha, Lincoln, and Tulsa had all sent troops, but they were lightly armed and poorly provisioned. Lieutenant Styles told Logan that Longmire’s data and image uploads had sent shockwaves through the League’s command structure, prompting them to send whatever troops they could spare to their hill on the Mississippi River.
After the new troops had settled in, Lieutenant Styles briefed everyone about the current situation. The PRA had set its war machine into motion. As anticipated, a large force was marching on St. Louis, which the PRA would have to take if it hoped to carve out territory west of the river. But in an unanticipated move, the PRA was also sending thousands of troops, artillery, and tanks north through Dellian territory on rail lines the League had believed to be unusable. It was clear that the Dellians were permitting the PRA to pass through their land in order to launch an attack across the river well north of the League’s strongest defensive positions.
This level of cooperation between the extremely hostile and isolated Dellians and PRA surprised everyone, and some still doubted it. But there was no debating that the Dellians had crossed the river earlier that day in wave after wave of small boats. Surprisingly, they did not march south against the League troops or north against the Northrunners. Instead, they began repairing a nearby ancient rail bridge. And they were not alone. PRA engineers and about five hundred regular PRA soldiers were among the Dellians repair crews.
To further complicate matters, the Dellian incursion west of the river and the sudden appearance of Sahiradin troops had drawn Northrunner defenders south. They were now about ten klicks north of the Sahiradin camp, but they were apparently content to simply observe things for the time being.
After the briefing, Lena and Cap walked over to Logan and sat down. Cap handed a small container of food to Logan. Lena opened her food packet, sniffed at the food, and made a face.
“Either of you get a good look at those Sahiradin encamped on the hill north of us?” she asked.
“Looks like about five thousand of the pasty bastards,” said Cap as he poked at his dinner with the tip of his fork.
“I’d say more like ten,” said Lena.
Cap shrugged and took a bite of something that looked like green beans. He swallowed and nodded approvingly. “Not bad.” He took another bite and then he asked, “I still don’t understand why the Sahiradin and those other aliens don’t have to wear spacesuits. They’re on an alien planet, but they don’t seem to be affected at all.”
Lena took a small bite of something resembling mashed potatoes. “Good question. It suggests they share a common origin, maybe even with the Alamani.”
“Okay, but why does Earth have the right atmosphere and temperature for them?” asked Cap.
“Earth is a former Alamani colony,” said Logan. “Maybe they reshaped its environment to support them. Who knows? Maybe these trees around us aren’t indigenous to Earth. Maybe they were brought here as part of a terraforming effort when the Alamani colonized the place.”
“Makes sense,” said Lena. “After thousands and thousands of years of being transplanted, I don’t think we will ever know for sure what plants or animals on Earth are truly indigenous and which are invasive. Aside from us, that is.”
“Well,” said Cap as he chased some peas around his plate with a spoon, “it’s our planet now and they can all fuck off.”
Logan took a drink from his canteen. He wiped his mouth and said, “You can tell them that, but they aren’t going anywhere without a fight. They exterminated the Alamani in their corner of the galaxy, and now they’ve found a planet full of Alamani descendants that they tried to wipe out with a meteor attack.”
Lena handed Cap a package of something purporting to be dessert, which he happily accepted. “And don’t forget about the troops on the hill over there and the fact that they have at least one ship in orbit above our heads.”
“And the PRA is about to invade,” said Cap. “So we’ll be fighting each other while the Sahiradin plot our extinction. It’s a great situation all around. And who knows what the Germans, Egyptians, Thai, Chinese, and everyone else are going to do. They must know an alien species has arrived in orbit. Hell, if you look closely you can see their orbiting ship with the naked eye.”
He pointed up where the Sahiradin ship had been in orbit in the southern sky, but now the bright dot was racing north until it was directly over their heads.
“Guys,” he said. “That Sahiradin ship is moving north. And fast.”
Logan and Lena looked up into the sky.
“And look!” said Lena pointing north. “There are three more dots heading south.”
Little red puffs of light began erupting high over their heads as the ships’ paths converged.
“Looks like they’re going at it,” said Logan.
“Who should we root for?” asked Cap.
Chapter 61
“Sir, Lycian fighters inbound,” said an officer at a duty station on Dominion’s bridge.
“Number and composition?” asked Captain Vilna.
“Fifty fighters escorting ten fighter-bombers.”
“Order squadrons 1 and 2 to engage against the fighters. Destroy those bombers. Squadrons three and four are to remain with Dominion.”
“Yes sir.”
Two squadrons of Codex fighters pulled out of the group of ships circling Dominion and moved toward the onrushing Lycian ships.
“They are badly outnumbered. What are they hoping to achieve?” asked Commodore Lansu.
“I don’t know, sir,” said Captain Vilna. “They are committing the few fighters they have to a hopeless attack.”
“Pointless sacrifice is not their way,” said the Commodore. “They have two light destroyers, a heavy cruiser, and a handful of fighters.” He put his hand to his chin as he watched the screen. His Codex fighters were nearly in range of the enemy ships and would begin their attack in moments.
“What is the position of their frigate, Challenger?” asked Commodore Lansu.
“Just reaching P4 now, sir,” said an officer. “The battle at the khâl badly damaged her. She’s limping along at just one-eighth speed.
“Even with Challenger, they cannot hope to destroy us,” said Lansu. After a moment he said, “Pull us back, quarter speed. Release mines.” Dominion began moving away from the quickly approaching enemy fighters and warships, releasing small black pods as it did so.
As Dominion retreated, Codex fighters were quickly gaining the upper hand against the significantly outnumbered Lycian fighters and some of them were moving toward the heavy cruiser, Defiant, which was leading the Lycian warships. Green lights began to erupt from Defiant as its automated defense systems targeted the approaching Codex fighters. The fighters changed course to remain out of range and flew parallel with Defiant.
“Sir,” said Vilna. “Codex squadron 1 is requesting additional fighter support and torpedo bombers. They’re asking for permission to attack Defiant.”
“Request denied. They are to maintain position,” said Lansu. “Launch three vector missiles at Defiant.”
“Sir,” said Vilna. “We’re out of effective range. Defiant will destroy or evade them without difficulty.”
“You have my order,” said Lansu. “They are up to something, Vilna. Lycians do not take these kinds of risks without a carefully considered plan. It’s not in their nature.”
Three vector missiles sprang out from launchers positioned along the sides of Dominion. The vectors raced toward Defiant, which fired a dozen small missiles to intercept the vectors.
“Are the ion cannons ready?” asked Lansu?
“Yes sir,” answered Vilna.
“Fire on Defiant when she’s within range,” ordered Lansu.
After a few moments, Lansu said, “On my mark, detonate one of the vector missiles. Coverage one hundred eighty degrees.”
“Yes sir,” said one of his officers.
Defiant and the two light destroyers we
re rapidly approaching Dominion. The vectors missiles and countermeasure missiles came within five hundred meters of each other.
“Now!” said Lansu.
The warhead on the first vector missile exploded, but the blast directed the metal piercing load forward and to the sides. Half of Defiant’s defensive missiles were shredded by the blast, but the remainder was unaffected or received only minor damage. Two of them connected with one of the two remaining vector missiles and disabled it. The third vector missile made its way through and locked onto Defiant.
Defiant turned her nose directly into the path of the vector missile. Automated defensive fire scored several hits but could not disable the oncoming Sahiradin missile. Suddenly a powerful red beam of light shot out from the front of Defiant and cut the vector in half, causing the warhead to spin wildly into the void.
“Defiant has fired her main battery!” said Vilna.
“Quickly, full stop and reverse course before she recharges. Neutralize the mines,” said the Lansu. “Aim both ion cannons at Defiant and fire on my mark.”
Dominion fully engaged her massive main engines and quickly came to a stop. She began moving forward toward the still-accelerating Defiant and her support ships. Defiant fired her forward ballistic and energy guns but they had a minimal effect on Dominion, whose shields held firm against the barrage.
“Ion cannons ready?” asked Lansu.
“Yes sir,” said Vilna.
Lansu leaned forward, staring at the tactical display before him and the data scrolling in the upper right corner. He waited a few moments.
“Sir,” said Vilna, his voice slightly urgent.
Lansu didn’t respond.
“Sir?”
“Fire both cannons!” yelled the Commodore.
“Firing cannons,” said an officer.
Lansu rapidly issued a series of orders. “Full reverse, starboard thirty degrees, z minus five thousand. Drop mines.”
Two bright balls of red light shot out from Dominion’s ion cannon nodes. They raced toward Defiant, which continued forward, quickly closing the distance to Dominion. The tip of her bow began to glow red as her main gun recharged and came back on line. Suddenly both ion energy charges burst in brilliant red light.
The Navigator (The Apollo Stone Trilogy Book 1) Page 34