“How are you going to handle it?” Mallory asked.
“Give it to Shane Delacruz. The older Halder brother is on Lorelei. It is on the way to Marblefall. If he chooses, Shane can stop there and talk with the brother to get the lay of the land, and also to impart our own deep concern over this incident. After that he can move on to Marblefall and do whatever he wants.”
“Aren’t you worried about the brother warning his cousin?” Mallory continued.
“He will warn him but the cousin’s ship is deep in repairs and can’t be pulled out, so if Frederich wants to run, he’ll have to find another way. We have a few people watching Fred so he isn’t going to slip off planet without us knowing it. Right now this looks like the cousin is the only one involved, but Delacruz can come to his own conclusions on Lorelei. He can also tell Jochen if the two brothers choose to intervene, it would be viewed dimly by our flotilla, and we would be forced to take steps to show our displeasure in a more concrete way. I know the two brothers are close to each other but not all that close to their cousin. I also suspect they got no money out of this episode, so they probably won’t go all in for Fred. If it comes to the brothers joining in or delaying Delacruz to let Fred escape, the people watching Fred have orders to kill him to prevent such an escape. Not the greatest answer as that pleasure should go to Charlie squadron, but it does get the job done.”
Mallory nodded in response. If she was in command, she would never allow ships to depart her flotilla on another mission when faced with this current tactical situation, but that was not her call here. As if reading her mind, Hawkins looked directly at Mallory as he continued, “I’m not wild about pulling ships away from the primary mission but, quite frankly, it is somewhat out of my hands as all of Charlie Squadron might depart to get their revenge on the Halders if I tried to hold all their ships here. My hold on command is not as strong as you have in your navy. Our ships can come and go as they please. Charlie Squadron needs to see progress on the revenge mission, so trying to keep all their ships here would be problematical at best. I thought about just ordering a kill on Frederich Halder but that wouldn’t fly with the Charlie crews either. They have to get the kill themselves, if at all possible, and I have to support that if I’m to continue to make demands on them. ”
The two Zeke officers nodded and an awkward silence followed until Tactical spoke up, “What ships will Captain Delacruz take?” She had to make adjustments to the force list.
“I think Vindictive and Bandit. Bandit is the most heavily armed corvette. He’ll have those two ships and a bunch of lies to tell Jochen Halder. If the two brothers decide to join in or Delacruz decides to dish out some punishment for general purposes, those two ships can hold their own against any foreseen threat. Besides, no way Emily Legrand lets this happen without her. ”
Emily Legrand was captain of Bandit and most keen on revenge. She felt a personal responsibility for this episode as she scouted and recommended the house location to Shane Delacruz. Nobody else had thought she deserved any of the blame but Legrand would not to be consoled.
The meeting adjourned soon after and the plan was adjusted to accommodate the new mission. Tactical and Baby Doll continued to shape the attack plan and Rafe retired to his cabin.
Once there, he stretched out on the couch in his day cabin. His captain’s cabin was just beyond the day cabin with only a door separating them, but Rafe preferred to nap on his couch rather than his bed. He stared at the overhead and reviewed the upcoming actions once again for flaws or improvements. He saw none but would review the plan several more times between now and its execution.
He smiled to himself. He was under no illusion as to the how long the Zekes would be his allies, but for once it was nice to have more firepower on his side. He was also under no illusion as to how much his aid to the Zekes at Potenka would be worth in the future. Mallory was undoubtedly grateful and would support him in the near future but her days in the Badlands were numbered. If she survived the upcoming battles and won, she would be pulled back to the Empire to defend the home systems. Her new cruiser would go with her and only a few old Empire vessels would remain to show the flag here. Their commander would be someone not currently here in theater and not beholding to Hawkins in any way. In fact, he or she would probably view the assignment here far away from the “real war” as a career killer and most likely will be a pain in the ass to deal with. Too bad. He liked Mallory and felt he could at least coexist with her but there would be no opportunity to find out. Rafe drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 34
The destroyer Abendhimmel reached the outer defenses of Rosstrappe and gave all passwords and electronic keys to ensure her safe passage through the array of missile batteries, minefields, and electronic sensors. After making voice contact, she continued inbound to the docking facilities. During this transit, it was not unusual for ships already at the base to call newcomers to welcome them back or for ship captains to renew acquaintances. Despite the several dozen ships in orbit or in floating docks, nobody called or even acknowledged Abendhimmel’s approach. “Word travels fast,” thought Steiner as his ship limped into inner orbit above the base and preceded directly to a space repair dock. The bridge was absolutely quiet except for maneuvering orders given in a near whisper by the Officer of the Deck. The crew knew they were now pariahs, at least for the short term. As soon as his ship was safely docked, Fregattenkapitan Steiner disembarked via a port shuttle and went directly to fleet headquarters on the planet’s surface as ordered. As he sat in the passenger compartment, he steeled himself for the coming ordeal. His recent space battle now shimmered like a bad dream in his memory. The headiness of cheating death had faded, and what seemed so starkly true in deep space now had lost much of its definition with their arrival at this busy major base far from the combat zone. However, his resolve was not shaken. He would tell the truth as to recent events. He realized the fleet commander, Admiral Werner Beck, had recently taken over Third Fleet and wanted to make immediate progress in the Badlands. He also knew the Admiral had never served in this area and had a reputation as a by-the-book tactician and strategist.
The young ship captain turned and looked out one of the small portholes on the side of the shuttle. He stared down on the large manicured base with its trimmed greenery and well maintained buildings. The equally impressive headquarters building grew in size as the shuttle approached. The five-story structure was composed of three wings joined to a center circle topped by a dome. A flagstaff extended from the dome’s apex and a large flag of the Goldenes Tor topped the staff with an equally impressive flag of the Imperial Navy just below it. The two huge emblems of the homeland and its chief protector flapped slowly in a light breeze. Solid and stately, the building spoke of power and prestige. It reflected history, dedication, and a stoic permanence in an ever-evolving universe. At least that had been the impression the building made on a young Fritz Steiner the first time he had seen it. The headquarters was still impressive, but now Steiner was older and wiser, and he found the building also reflected reactionary ideas and a certain detachment from the front lines. Hell, he thought, it had nothing to do with the building but everything to do with the people inside it.
The shuttle landed atop one of the wings and Steiner departed the vehicle. As he walked down the shuttle steps, a young enlisted woman came to attention and saluted him. He returned the salute. The young woman turned and gestured the way ahead with her hand. She had clearly been sent to escort him to the Admiral’s office. Usually the admiral’s aide or another officer would perform this duty to demonstrate respect for a ship captain. The fact a young enlisted sailor had been sent was not lost on Steiner but he was unruffled. The two of them entered the building via a rooftop door and went down one flight of stairs and, after two turns in the passageways, they arrived at a decorative door. The sailor knocked and opened the door for Steiner. He nodded his thanks to her as he entered and she closed the door softly behind him.
Steiner ente
red a large, well-appointed briefing room. A soft gray carpet adorned the floor. Flags, banners, and mementos decorated the walls. A large window looked out on the sprawling base. Three officers sat on one side of a long polished briefing table at the far end of the room and stared at Steiner as he approached, stopped in front of the table, came to attention, and saluted.
The center man, Admiral Beck, casually motioned to Steiner to lower his hand, and then pointed to a seat on the opposite side of the table directly across from the Admiral. Steiner knew a board of inquiry when he saw one, an informal board to be sure, but just as potent. He took the chair and faced the three senior officers.
Admiral Beck was all business as he gestured to the men on either side of him, “Fregattenkapitan Steiner, this is the Fleet chief of staff, Captain Alfred Morstein and the Fleet Operations Officer, Captain Kurt Bergman. We would like you to go over your recent mission for us, please.”
Steiner had sent a full report in as soon as the recent convoy battle had ended. The report had gone to Admiral Kaufmann still back in the Badlands with the OrCon squadron and to this base. The three officers would have read the report but it was obvious they wanted to discuss it and, maybe, to hang Steiner with his own words. He recounted the mission beginning with his ship’s departure with Admiral Kaufmann’s squadron from Rosstrappe to his return to the base just thirty minutes prior. He reviewed the settlement destruction on Ulatar, escorting the OrCons to the vicinity of Potenka, the cleanup in the aftermath of that battle, and the return trip to Rosstrappe that lead to the destruction of two of the three-ship convoy. He stated his part in all actions and the roles played by others as far as he knew what they had done. He left nothing out including the conversations and actions of the pirates. Although he was carrying a copy of his report and supporting documents in a folder with him, he did not refer to them at all. After his verbal report ended, he sat and evenly returned the gazes of the three men.
“You think the pirates are going to continue their support of the Zeke squadron?” asked Admiral Beck.
“Yes, sir. They want revenge for the destruction of their settlement. They also know if the Zeke squadron is wiped out it will create a power vacuum in the Badlands, and we would benefit from it. They won’t want our influence to expand in the Badlands.”
“You seem to have made friends with some of them,” Captain Bergman did not bother to mask the accusatory tone in his voice.
“I think the attack on the settlement was wrong, and that attack will have repercussions far into the future. I tried to state that position at Ulatar just before the attack began when it became obvious what was about to happen. The pirates knew I had done this and gave my ship a one-time pass. I’m sure in the future they will not hesitate to kill me.” He had covered this in his written report and in his verbal report only minutes prior, but Bergman obviously wanted to highlight it.
“You give the pirates credit for strategic thinking and planning, and for mercy toward you because of your actions. I would say you are in a small minority in that type of thinking.” Captain Morstein finally weighed in.
Steiner could see where this was going and decided if he was going to go down in flames, he would at least tell the truth. He stared at the three men for a moment. All were new to this area. The old Third Fleet and local area commanders were not getting the job done and had been swept out and replaced. He knew these three officers had come in the same recent turnover of high officers that had brought Light Admiral Kaufmann to the area. Steiner could see the military leaders may have changed, but the thinking was the same. He placed his arms on the table in front of him and leaned forward.
“I’ve served all my operational time in the Badlands on three separate tours. There has always been one constant to all our operations. We always underestimate the pirates, and it always comes back to bite us. The pirates who engaged our three ships returning to Rosstrappe were commanded by Killian O’Hare and Shane Delacruz. They are part of Raferty Hawkins’ flotilla. He thinks on both a tactical and strategic level. He has a very extensive intel and logistical systems. It is rumored he has legitimate investments throughout the region so has a continuous flow of income. He leaves the small local traders and independent businesses alone while concentrating on us, our commercial interests, the slave traders, and big corporations. He is viewed as a good man by most populations in the Badlands. He commands loyalty or fear in all the Badlands systems. He leads at least a dozen ships. Yet we always treat him as if he is a small time thief in a back alley. As long as we do that, he will continue to beat us.”
The three men stared at him. He stared back. Finally, Admiral Beck spoke, “Return to your ship and see to her repairs.” He accompanied the command with a dismissive wave of his right hand.
After Steiner’s departure, silence briefly ruled the room. Captain Bergman was the first to speak. “This captain must be replaced now. He is a coward and his warning at the pirate settlement could be viewed as treason.”
Admiral Beck was noncommittal. “Survival is not necessarily cowardice. Regardless, there will be time for action against Steiner, if required. His ship is damaged and needs repairs so is unavailable for operations. He will not be departing anytime soon. It is time to look at the bigger picture here.”
Silence returned as Beck was thinking and the two captains dared not interrupt his train of thought. After thirty seconds the Admiral spoke, “We are going to send a relief convoy into the Badlands to rendezvous with the combined force. I’m not sure they will need the supplies but it is a good pretense to put more forces in the vicinity of the OrCon ships without ruffling any feathers. The relief convoy will have a large escort with Admiral Dietrich’s squadron as its core. His orders will be to escort the convoy, and if the opportunity arises, he will engage any pirate forces encountered regardless of their vicinity to Zeke forces. If Zeke forces got caught in the middle, such is the fortunes of war.” Admiral Beck now turned to Bergman. “Captain, you will accompany Admiral Dietrich on his flagship to observe the situation first hand.”
Captain Bergman nodded but his voice was tight as he spoke. “Admiral Dietrich will undoubtedly view me as your spy on his ship.”
Beck nodded in agreement and gave a cold smile. “That’s because that is exactly what you will be. I will speak with him to smooth this over. I’m new here and so are both of you. We need to get down to business and learn the ins and outs here as quickly as possible. The Badlands is strange enough even in the best of times and now with an OrCon force here and pirates helping Zekes, it is unprecedented. We need to bring this to a successful conclusion, and fast. I don’t care who gets the kills or the glory, I just want this thing solved and as many pirates killed as possible.”
The two captains nodded in agreement.
Chapter 35
“Wolfpack is thirty minutes out,” reported Baby Doll routinely from a sensor station.
“Inform our companions of Wolfpack’s habit at these times,” Hawkins spoke to Tactical.
Tactical nodded, moved to a comm station, and called her counterpart on Mackenzie. “Captain O’Hare and her squadron like to buzz through the formation and try to set off every ship’s collision alarm. They will pass close to you but just hold course and they will miss you.”
“Great,” Sky shook her head when informed by Commander Cassidy. “Pass that on to all ships and emphasize the holding course part of it. Last thing we need is a bunch of moving parts here.”
As Wolfpack approached, they assumed a line abeam formation and only slightly reduced speed. The four fighting ships sped through the formation below the pirate line of ships and above the two Zeke lines as their supply ship, Steppenwolf, sedately joined the rear of the formation. Klaxons sounded aboard all the ships as collisions seemed imminent. Sky gripped her seat arms and unconsciously braced for impact. Nemesis flashed by above Mackenzie and under Predator. All four joining ships passed through the main formation, turned to parallel, and assumed a line next to Hawkins’ squadro
n and above the Zekes. The chameleon paint jobs on the four pirate ships were off and as the ships tilted back toward the large flotilla to slow their speed just prior to joining the formation, everyone on the Mackenzie’s bridge could see the gaudy paint jobs on the newcomers. A fierce wolf decorated the upper hull of Nemesis. A close up face with staring eyes, a cowboy hat, and a red handkerchief over the nose and mouth graced Outlaw. Gunfighter had the black silhouette of a cowboy drawing his pistol. Desperado was also a western cowboy, but this figure was colorfully painted in a casual standing pose with a pistol on each hip, his left thumb hooked in his gun belt, and a rifle in his right hand with the barrel resting on his right shoulder. His unshaven face sported a cigarette and a wicked smile.
“To blow through the formation and yank it around to fall into position requires good helmsmen,” observed Cassidy. “Still the structural stress doesn’t do the integrity of those ships any good.”
Sky smiled, partly in relief. “A maneuver which would get you court-martialed in our Navy is a routine joining maneuver for them.” She glanced at her screen. Windows started appearing on the screen as all pirate captains joined on the command net. Nobody spoke. The last one to appear onscreen was Killian O’Hare.
“Wolfpack reporting abroad.” She spoke calmly, but her smile portrayed her glee at the entrance.
Rafe smiled, “Welcome abroad, Wolfpack. Good to see you, as always.”
That was the end of the formal procedure as the silence was quickly replaced by all the captains talking at the same time. Laughter and shouting crowded over the single frequency. The captains talked to and over each other, but nobody addressed Captain Mallory even though her image was there for all to see.
Allies of Convenience: Pirates of the Badlands Series Book 1 Page 16