by D. J. Holmes
Lightfoot had his doubts but before he could voice them the tactical officer chimed in, “it’s possible sir, given enough spare valstronium a small ship could be made reasonably safe for high velocities. If it could be kept relatively stealthy they would make good surprise attack craft. They’d be damned hard to spot at anything more than close range.”
Slowly, a new picture dawned on Lightfoot as he seriously considered the possibility. The Chinese must have bought the two freighters and converted them to house these small attack craft. The freighters would have had no problem passing the checks in the Sol and Alpha systems unless someone actually boarded them and obviously no one had. Whatever armaments the small attack craft were carrying were going to be bad for the defenders of Cook. “Communications send a signal back into the system. Inform the Admiral that we believe these two freighters have just deployed a group of fighters. Let them know that the fighters may be coming in on a different attack vector than the one we sent them. If they are in any way maneuverable, they will alter course before lining up for their attack run. A straight line into the system would only lead our defenses back to the two freighters.”
“Message away sir.”
“Good, navigation how long until we get within weapons range of the two freighters?” Lightfoot asked.
Instead of replying the navigation officer frantically danced his fingers across his command terminal. “One moment sir, the two freighters have just powered up their drives and are altering course.”
There were two beeps in quick succession from one of the secondary display screens. Each beep indicated the gravimetric sensors had detected a ship jumping into shift space.
“I’m afraid we have lost them sir. Both freighters just jumped into shift space. The computer is trying to calculate their precise route now. It may take up to thirty minutes though. The only thing I can say for sure is that they didn’t jump towards a shift passage. It looks like they jumped somewhere further round the edge of the system.”
“Damn,” Lightfoot swore as he punched his fists down on his command chair. Before saying anything else that might give away his disappointment he began to think. Whatever size those fighters are they can’t have their own jump drives. That means they have to meet up with those freighters again if they want to get out of here after their attack. “Tactical, bring up the rough estimate of the direction the freighters jumped.”
When the image appeared on the holo display Lightfoot studied it. “It looks like they jumped at an angle to make their way around the mass shadow and towards the Britannia jump passage, what do you think tactical?”
As the tactical officer began to run the numbers, Lightfoot pictured the Cook system in his mind. Every solar system created a mass shadow within which the shift drive wouldn’t work because of the system’s gravimetric field. That same gravimetric field also created a bubble in the dark matter that was strewn about the galaxy. Often the gap between the mass shadow and the outer edge of the dark matter bubble was negligible. Yet, in certain systems like Cook, it was large enough to allow ships to make a series of shift drive jumps around the edge of the system. Doing so, allowed ships to move from one shift passage to another without having to enter the inner system. Since Cook was colonized the British government had had problems collecting transport fees from shipping companies who ordered their freighters to skirt around the edge of the Cook system to avoid any fees.
“It’s possible sir,” the tactical officer began after reviewing the data, “the Cook system has one of the largest bubbles of dark matter. If they jumped far enough out, they could turn around and jump back along the mass shadow towards the shift passage. That or they could disembark another flight of fighters to make a second attack run on the system from another angle.”
Lightfoot almost didn’t hear his Lieutenant’s last sentence. If they sortie another attack there was nothing he could do, but if they were planning to regroup with their fighters and then go to Britannia and launch another strike… that he could deal with.
“Navigation, plot the likely least time jump pattern those freighters would use to reach the Britannia passage. Then plot us a series of jumps to follow, only keep us 1.1 light hours back from them. They probably don’t have military grade gravimetric sensors but I don’t want to take the chance they get a sniff of us.
*
“Flight Leader, this is Red Dragon Two. The power readings on our impulse drive are fluctuating beyond the safety parameters. We’re going to have to drop back out of formation.”
Flight Leader Le cursed after he keyed an acknowledgement. That was the second missileboat that had been forced to drop back. After an initial burst of their impulse engines to clear the freighters, his ships had cruised into the Cook system for an hour before lighting off their engines again. If they were spotted they didn’t want to draw any attention to the freighters that were their only ride home. He now had his flight of twenty-eight remaining missileboats making a slow burn up above the star’s ecliptic. Once far enough away from the freighters, they would turn back down and charge into the system to deal out as much destruction as possible.
As his ships continued their cruise, Le began to zone out his surroundings and enter into the mediation technique he had been teaching himself. Ever since the first day of training for operating the new missileboats he had had to endure long simulator runs. Almost every attack plan his superiors had been able to come up with involved long engine burns into a system toward their targets. It could play havoc on anyone’s nerves, being so closely confined for up to ten hours at a time. The only way Le had stayed sane during his training had been using a mediation technique he had downloaded off the datanet and had been teaching himself. When the time came for his missileboats to alter course and begin their dive into the system he gave the order, barely noticing it. Even when another missileboat reported engine trouble and had to drop back he was able to stay calm.
Eventually they got to within one light hour of their target. Slowly Le brought himself out of his meditative state. Almost as soon as he did his ships began to report active radars ahead. At this range Le knew they could only be from a ship’s main search radar. Someone knew they were coming. Instead of being able to carry out a simple sweep in towards Cook, he now had to contemplate dancing his way past a number of patrols before he could get close enough to launch his missiles.
Before leaving Chinese space he had drilled for just such a situation with his fellow pilots. Everyone knew what to do. Their one advantage was that their ships were too small for the system pickets to hit with their anti-ship missiles. They would have to close to plasma cannon and anti-missile range. If Le could manage it, he should be able to dart through the picket line before they realized that they would have to close with him.
For the next ten minutes he allowed his missileboat’s computer to analyze all the radar energy his flight was picking up. Soon he had a rough plot of where all the picket ships were. Carefully, he planned out a route past them all and sent it to the rest of his ships via laser links. Any radio transmissions would give them away.
When the final missileboat acknowledged Le sent out the order. As one, the missileboats turned onto the new vector. He was reasonably confident that the pickets wouldn’t pick up the thermal readings from their small maneuvering thrusters. However, they would have to make their next course adjustment only twenty light minutes from one of the picket ships. That was going to be close.
All of a sudden the radar sweeps from the pickets began to change. The sweeps switched from a regular pattern to random high-powered beams. It also seemed as if the pickets themselves had given up their pre-set flight path and were now deviating their trajectory randomly. They know we’re not missiles, Le thought to himself. Or at least standard missiles, they think we can maneuver past their pickets. Le smiled. With luck they wouldn’t realize just how good their stealth tech was. It had been one of the Chinese intelligence services’ better successes. His missileboat and the other twen
ty-six of his remaining flight were covered in an outer layer of the latest British radar-absorbing tech. Even the picket’s random search patterns shouldn’t be able to detect them all.
Le looked down as the computer beeped. The new trajectories of the picket ships meant they would have to make their next course change soon. If they delayed any longer the thermal bloom from their engines would be detected. Yet their new course would also now bring them closer to several British ships.
After sending the updated course to his flight Le keyed the audio link. “This is Dragon Leader. We’re going to pass close to three British ships. If they detect you I want you to go to full power and make a run at the ship. See if you can take it out. Hopefully that will get everyone’s attention and allow the rest of us to get through to our target. We all volunteered for this and we knew what we’re signing up for. Good luck. Dragon Leader out.”
*
Aboard the frigate Ajax, Commander Montgomery wasn’t sure what the Admiral was thinking. Currently Montgomery had his ship powering through space making random course changes, often severe ones. That and having to run his primary search radar for so long was going to mean Ajax would be making a trip to the repair yard at Cook sometime soon for a replacement. He understood there was a creditable threat to the system’s industry, but fighters? And ones that would be able to sneak past the outer picket the Admiral had set up – it seemed far-fetched! Orders were orders though and if Ajax had to spend some down time at the repair dock his crew would enjoy the shore leave.
Just then alarms went off around the bridge. “Commander,” shouted one of the bridge officers, “we have picked up two small anomalies twenty light seconds off the starboard beam. They are very small but they are in the range of what we have been told to look for.”
Montgomery tried to shake himself out of his doubtful thoughts but it was difficult. “So you think these are the fighters we are expecting?”
“They appear to match the data Ghost sent to the fleet sir,” the officer replied.
“Very well, can you get a missile lock on them?”
“Not a clear one, they must have some radar absorbing tech. Even at this close range we’re struggling to get a read on them,” the tactical officer said.
“Ok here’s the plan. We’ll launch two missiles at each of those craft and then we’ll come about and head for them at full power. Hopefully, when we get closer our radar will be able to burn through their protection and give the missiles something to lock onto. In the meantime we will try and get into plasma cannon range, we won’t need a firm lock to begin to pick them off with plasma.”
Before he had finished speaking the tactical officer had already updated the missile’s firing solutions. “We’re ready to fire when you give the word Commander,” he reported.
“Navigation, are you ready to bring us about after we fire?”
“Yes sir.”
“Ok Tactical, fire!”
Almost as soon as the four missiles left the acceleration tubes the two anomalies plus a third craft began to maneuver. Their engine plumes immediately gave them away, allowing the missiles to get a firm lock on them. It only took Ajax’s tactical officer moments to fire another two missiles at the third craft. Yet as the missiles approached their targets, it was clear they weren’t going to get things all their own way.
Two counter missiles shot off from each of the small craft, taking out two of the incoming missiles. Then the small craft went to full power and began drastic evasive maneuvers whilst powering up their ECM jammers. Three of the remaining four missiles missed their targets but one managed to get a proximity detonation. The small craft simply vanished in the expanding nuclear fireball.
As soon as the other two ships were clear of the missiles pursuing them they swung around and headed straight for Ajax. Commander Montgomery looked at the status of the missiles tubes. Ajax had expended all her missiles and it would take another two minutes to reload. By then the small craft would be within range of Ajax’s counter missiles, never mind her plasma cannons.
“Tactical, target the main plasma cannons, then use point defenses to take them out if you have to.”
Montgomery watched as the main plasma cannons had little effect. Ajax’s cannons were designed to punch through the valstronium armor of another ship, not swat these smaller flies. The random jerks and twitches the two small craft were making made it impossible for the plasma cannons to track them.
Before Montgomery could think of a new plan the tactical officer broke his thoughts.
“Sir, I’m detecting two more launches from each of the fighters. They’re not firing counter missiles, these things are bigger, anti-ship missiles I think.”
As he stared at the plot the two incoming ships ceased their jerking to line up their shots. One blew up as a plasma bolt finally managed to make a direct hit yet the fighter had already got away its two missiles.
Quickly Montgomery worked out the closing speeds in his head. Ajax was heading straight for the fighters at 0.2c. The fighters were closing at 0.35c. If they had acceleration tubes their missiles could be coming in at over 0.4c, never mind the acceleration they would put on once their own engines kicked in. They would be closing at almost the speed of light!
Even as he shouted orders to put the ship into reverse and bring the point defense network to full, he knew it was too late. The sharp thud of counter missiles being fired off in rapid succession by the ship’s automated defenses told him the missiles were already very close. Before he could finish his next thought he was thrown out of his command seat and right across the bridge as the concussive force of a missile hitting his ship threw everyone to the floor. As the missile detonated, Ajax exploded, leaving nothing behind but atoms in space. Alone the kinetic energy from the missile that had hit the ship vaporized the front nose section. The nuclear explosion finished the rest of the ship off.
Chapter 18 - Devastation
In contrast to the later wars humanity would get itself embroiled in, only rarely did the wars between the different human space faring powers overspill into attacks upon orbital and planetary targets. Yet when they did, the destruction always proved devastating.
-Excerpt from Empire’s Rising, 3002 AD
11th April 2465 AD, inner Cook system.
Flight Leader Le didn’t know whether to be overjoyed or depressed. He had managed to steer his flight of missileboats through the outer picket of Cook’s defenders. After hours of cruising into the system they were now only ten minutes out from their target. Yet of the thirty missileboats he had begun the mission with, three had dropped back because of engine problems. The pickets had destroyed a further five, although his ships had taken out a frigate and a light cruiser. Now he only had twenty-two missileboats left. That gave him forty-four missiles, not enough to get the job done. Dismissing his pessimism, Le instead turned his mind to the task of re-evaluating his targets.
Three destroyers were frantically making their way towards Cook’s orbital shipyard while a frigate was settling into position to cover the planet’s main defensive battlestation that was in orbit over the largest city. A second frigate was boosting around the planet to join the defense of the battlestation.
Bringing up the visuals of the nearest frigate, Le knew his fears were justified. The frigate was one of the new flak frigates and that meant the second frigate likely was too. Since the intel from the Damang Incident, his officers had run simulations going up against the new British flak frigates with missileboats. They never ended well. While their small size and stealth technology made them hard to hit with conventional missiles and even heavy plasma cannons, the flak rounds were another matter. Only the front thirty percent of his missileboats were armored with valstronium to protect against cosmic particles. The rest of the missileboats only had titanium armor and a flak round traveling at even 0.1c would shred his boat apart. Never mind the fact that the frigates would be able to knock down more of his missiles as well.
Quickly, he readjus
ted his attack plans and then transmitted them to the other missileboats. As each ship acknowledged he watched as his force split into three groups. He had ordered first flight to attack the shipyard while the ten missileboats of his third flight headed for the main battlestation. One of the missileboats of second flight carried a special weapons package so the rest of that flight would escort it to its target.
As the shipyard was the closest target, Le had a few seconds to watch first flight’s attack commence. Racing in at 0.35c, the missileboats released their missiles as soon as they came into range. The three destroyers had already fired their own anti-ship missiles and were filling space with plasma rounds as well.
Ignoring the threat to their own lives the missileboats’ commanders kept their ships directly on line with their target until all their missiles had been deployed. Only then did they begin evasive maneuvers as they turned away from the shipyard and tried to put some distance between them and the defending destroyers. Too late for some, for two anti-ship missiles managed to get proximity detonations, taking out three missileboats. The rest managed to escape as both the destroyers’ and the shipyard’s defenses switched over to trying to take out the incoming missiles.