by John Walker
“No doubt,” Gray replied. “And they’ll need escorts. But don’t forget the shuttle pilots either. They’re going to need some backup just to get the marines into position.”
“I have a thought for that,” Athan said. “One of the two capital ships can make the path for the marines. If we put them all on board one of those ships and it flies straight for the base, none of the smaller vessels will be able to engage. They’ll be too busy fleeing. No one wants to be rammed. As we pull close, we direct the hangars toward the base and deploy.”
Kale nodded. “A bold plan…somewhat reckless. I think it would work. Captain?”
“Yes, I agree.” Gray rubbed his chin. “Once they’re deployed we could microjump back out to the other ship to continue the assault.”
“So one of the two of us will have to hold off the perimeter guards alone for a short period of time.”
Adam shook his head. “We launch all fighters prior to the action you’re talking about. They can then start the fight as well, supported by the other capital ship.”
“Excellent.” Kale pointed to the base on the map. “The operative suggests there may be up to three hundred men on that base. Are we sure about attacking it the way we want to?”
Gray shrugged. “I’ve looked at the schematics and even if they have five hundred, there’s precious little those numbers will do for them. The corridors are too small. Our forces will have to bring enough ammunition but if they face opposition in a hallway, they’ll simply be busy for a while taking people out.”
Athan spoke up, “you’ve encountered these villains before. Are they good at what they do or merely dangerous because of their ideology?”
“It all depends on which ones you encounter,” Gray replied. “There are conscripts which barely know which end of a rifle to point and then there are the volunteers. Some of them are terrifying. Krilan has attracted amazing soldiers to his cause but he’s pressed plenty into service. If I were to guess, we’ll encounter a lot more of the latter than the former.”
“Are you referring to the ground crews?” Kale asked. “Or does he put pressed pilots into service?”
“We have no evidence about that,” Adam said. “But I would imagine he doesn’t entrust a conscript with a space vehicle. They could quite easily defect and flee. No, the pilots are the determined ones. Same with the officers.”
Kale hummed. “I would like to go over our supplies again for the engagement. If you’ll look at the manifest and deployment schedules…”
They hammered out the nuanced details of their operation, checking to ensure their requests were being handled by the quartermaster of the station. Many Anthars put in complaints about their priority treatment and it frustrated Gray because they couldn’t talk about their mission.
Somewhere along the way, it became a secret.
Apparently, the military wanted a crack at Orion’s Light and Siva knew they needed to spend their time preparing for the Devaran engagement. This meant giving The Crystal Font and The Behemoth priority and top secret clearance. Not even high command would necessarily know what they were up to.
Siva promised to turn over a briefing but until the action was completed, she didn’t want any leaks. So they became rather unpopular with their peers for a while. Maybe the glory of finishing off a terrorist group will win us back their good graces. I can only hope. Depending on how many ships are really there, this might be the craziest thing we’ve ever done.
And the most necessary. Here we come, Krilan. I hope you’re ready. We sure as hell are.
Chapter 3
Kale arranged a private meeting with Siva regarding the people under his command. Many of them expressed concern about another mission so soon after the event they just survived. Some worried about potential side effects in regards to the jump disaster. Others made up excuses to stay behind.
The bottom line came down to a good chunk of his crew who desperately wanted reassignment.
Talking with Siva worked out far better than he anticipated but then, he probably offered more than he should’ve. When they got together, he offered his own service up for the release of several of the lower ranked individuals and the choice for his senior staff. She agreed immediately and let him know he had full control over who crewed for him.
I could’ve let them go without committing myself. Kale hadn’t dealt with intelligence before so he wasn’t surprised by his mistake but it did disappoint him. When he returned to the ship, he communicated with high command and let them know he would need to pull from the unassigned pool as he transferred people off the ship.
Kale addressed the entire crew and let them know what he’d arranged. Those who wanted to leave expressed their gratitude and relief. He pulled together the bridge staff and gave them the same offer. He half expected Wena to leave her post but none of them stepped forward to accept his offer.
In the end, he only had to requisition thirty-five people and there were many ambitious young men and women who rallied to the cause. They on boarded quickly, taking up their new positions and getting the crash course before heading out on the mission. The fact he had new blood worried him a little but there were enough veterans to pull them through.
When he finished, he retired to his quarters but found Vinthari Alma Il’Var waiting for him. She stood at attention as he approached and offered a crisp salute which he returned, sizing her up. He’d known the woman for some time but not well. Her demeanor made her difficult to read and she rarely conveyed emotions around superior officers.
“What can I do for you?” Kale asked.
“Permission to speak with you in private, sir.”
“Come in.” Kale opened the door and let her enter, following her. “At ease.”
“Thank you. May I speak freely?”
“Please do.”
“I’m concerned about the upcoming mission,” Alma said. “I do not believe we have enough intelligence to perform the tasks you’ve put forth. The initial strike, launching the fighters as we enter the space, may waste a lot of resources and fuel. Whichever ship charges the base will have a hard time protecting those shuttles. Ultimately, this is a poor decision for the aerial part of the conflict.”
“Do you have a better idea?” Kale asked.
“I propose that we probe the area with a smaller craft, a jump capable shuttle. It will enter the space and send back exact fleet position. When we know that, we adjust our own course and jump into space without a great deal of them nearby. Our fighters launch and form a screen to protect the capital ships and defend the shuttles.
“Then, we launch the marines to do their ground assault. Meanwhile, we scan the base and bomb the structures most likely to hold crew to minimize the numbers our marines need to face. Finally, the capital ships engage the larger vessels and take out as many as possible. This will occupy all forces in the area long enough to complete our mission.”
“Sound tactics,” Kale said. “Some day you’ll be in the position to make these decisions, Alma. You’re a solid officer. But we’ve already decided the course of action. Senior staff deliberated over this for two shifts and we already have most of the intelligence you’re talking about without risking a pilot on the small ship jump you proposed.”
“You won’t take my suggestion under advisement?”
Kale sighed. “The plan is in motion.”
Alma nodded once. “Understood.”
Kale observed her for a moment before replying. She stood stiff, even at attention. Her eyes were distant and he saw the muscles in her jaw go tight. Part of him wanted to dismiss her, to let her cool off but that wouldn’t necessarily be the best thing for her. He could tell her Su-Anthar to coach her.
I’m right here. I might as well speak now.
“You haven’t been happy since we left that sector. Is this over the man you lost?”
“Partially,” Alma replied.
“You have been given permission to speak freely.”
“Very well.” Alma
met his eyes. “I feel like your command has been based around luck and not sound tactics. Our successes, extraordinary as they have been, all come down to chance. The Behemoth arrived just in time or we’d all be dead. Even your rise to Anthar came on the heels of our previous Anthar’s death.”
“I see. How did I earn so little credit in your eyes? Surely, you don’t think every battle we’ve been in together has been chance. What about our escape from the research facility?”
“A trick.”
“Not luck.”
Alma frowned. “It shouldn’t have worked.”
“Alma, you already know what I’m about to say but I’d like you to apply it to command. You can plan for combat in every possible way imaginable. You can stack the odds in your favor, bring more forces or the right training…better equipment or knowledgable troops but in the end, conflict is chaos.
“Whether you’re in the cockpit of a fighter craft, holding a gun on the ground or sitting on the bridge of a capital ship, you experience the same thing. Reactions to events you could not anticipate. All our drills, training, education and experience makes us capable of handling these rapid changes.”
Alma nodded slowly. “We hone our instincts.”
“Precisely. Normal people do not feel compelled to charge into danger. We, as soldiers and officers, learn to do so. What you think is chance is my attempt to respond to new information. Have I always been successful? No, I don’t think so. I’m not perfect. However, we’ve been doing pretty well so far. This crew has shown its worth.”
“I admit, I hadn’t thought of it like that.” Alma looked away. “My apologies for…the harsh criticism.”
Kale peered at her through narrow eyes. She was coming around but despite her apology, she hadn’t come fully across. “I understand your concern. Have you lost men under your command before?”
Alma shook her head.
“It’s hard for a wide variety of reasons. Not the least of which being a sincere desire to lay some blame.” Kale turned to look out the porthole. “The first time someone died under me, we were on a ground mission. I’d just become a Vinthari and he was shot by a pirate. We didn’t know there were any opposing forces in that area.
“I felt responsible, of course but I didn’t feel it fair that I hold it on my shoulders solely. I resented my commanding officer and of course, I put the largest amount of the blame on intelligence.” Kale smirked. “Did I ever…I wrote a formal complaint about it to my Su-Anthar though I honestly wanted to go straight to the top. High command.”
Alma’s eyes widened as she turned to him. “You almost contacted high command?”
Kale nodded. “Yes. It impacted me in a major way. I was miserable. The fact is yes, there are many people to blame for the loss of a soldier’s life. His commanders, his peers, even he is to blame for what happened to some extent. But we are in a dangerous profession and people will get hurt and be lost. If you refer back to my point about conflict and chaos…”
“Yes…” Alma clenched her fists. “You’re right.”
“It’s a hard concept to embrace. Take your time to think about it. One thing I should caution you about: you’ll never be comfortable with it. It won’t be okay. You’ll just accept it better and find a way to move on without the anger. Grief, rarely fades quickly and sometimes never. But you have to let go of the guilt…and in so doing that, don’t cast it on another.”
Alma blinked several times and nodded. “I appreciate your time today, sir. If I may be frank, this conversation has surprised me. I wish I had thought of these points on my own but I would like to thank you for helping me see them. I should have gone to my Su-Anthar and for that, I apologize.”
“In this case, I think it was appropriate.” Kale met her eyes again. “Would you rather this conversation remain off the record? An officer to an officer?”
Relief melted Alma’s stern exterior and she nodded. “If that would be okay, sir. I would very much appreciate it. I don’t want to have my commanding officer upset that I broke the chain of command.”
“Take care of it in the future,” Kale said. “As I said, eventually you’ll be making the decisions that I had to make today. You don’t want that delayed over a protocol breach. Right?”
“No, sir.” Alma stood at attention and saluted him. “Thank you again for your time.”
“No problem.” Kale motioned for the door. “I’m not dismissing you since this was informal. Get some rest. We’ve got a busy couple of shifts coming up.”
“As you say.” Alma left his room and he flopped in a chair, staring at the ceiling.
I’m surprised she stayed on board with the grudge she was carrying. Kale rubbed his eyes. I didn’t dare tell her I agreed with her. A lot of my successes have been thanks to chance. I’d like to think I stacked the odds but it always came down to that one little thing that went my way. I can’t live like that forever. I can’t put their lives on the line for that kind of thing.
Maybe there was no choice. Kale determined to talk to Gray about his opinion on the subject and see how he’d felt about their own successes. Especially with the upcoming mission, he wondered if he had time for a quick conversation. Probably not. It’ll have to wait until we get back. Maybe I won’t need it after we’ve successfully finished off these terrorists.
Maybe.
***
Wing Commander Meagan Pointer and her peers all gathered on the space station in the lounge, waiting for their counterparts from the Crystal Font. They’d been assigned a mirror, a partner from the different ships so they could coordinate their efforts once they arrived in enemy space.
Meagan would be working with Alma, the woman she briefly met over the alien world. She didn’t know much about her other than she was a brusque person and a solid flyer. Whether they’d get along, that remained to be seen but Meagan tended to be fairly laid back. She only hoped they wouldn’t clash over command authority.
Command didn’t give me any real instructions of who was senior. Partnerships don’t tend to work in the military. This could get messy.
A meeting with Group Commander Estaban Revente was already on Meagan’s calendar just in case she needed to address concerns. She didn’t want to find herself in a situation where she would be in danger because her backup proved unreliable. And her faith in kielan pilots wasn’t as high as she’d feel on her own.
They should’ve paired us up with our own people. This joint task nonsense doesn’t work on short notice.
The kielans all came in together checking their tablets before advancing into the room, presumably to figure out who they were meeting. Meagan stood up to make herself more obvious. She hadn’t bothered to look up Alma’s picture but when a striking woman with short, jet black hair and nearly orange eyes looked her way, she figured she’d found her partner.
That’s pretty much what I pictured her looking like when I heard her over the com.
The woman approached and nodded her head. “Hello. I’m Vinthari Alma Il’Var.”
“Wing Commander Meagan Pointer.” Meagan shook her hand. “A pleasure.”
They both sat down and Alma began without preamble. “I remember you from when we tried to stop the bombs from hitting the surface of the planet.”
“That was me,” Meagan said. “I’m sorry about your loss.”
“Thank you.” Alma looked away for a moment, took a deep breath and pressed on. “So you and I are expected to partner up on this adventure but I think we both know our people are not ready for such a thing.”
“Yes, I agree.”
“I received clarification about this mission…I protested to my Su-Anthar concerning it.”
“Oh?”
Alma cleared her throat. “They do not necessarily want us working together as a joint unit. They wanted us to meet and know one another so we will have an easier time coordinating…so our pilots won’t be a danger to our side.”
Meagan tilted her head. “So this is what…a social call?”
/> “In a manner of speaking though I brought the mission briefing and thought we might go over some of the finer points. There are many duties for us to take on here. Harassment of the enemy fleet, mopping up the perimeter, protecting the shuttles and engaging the enemy fighters. Where do you see your wing performing best?”
Meagan chuckled. “We tend to be all over the place. Our Group Commander sends us where we need to be, which means we can end up doing any of the tasks you just mentioned. However, if I had to pick, I’d say we’re pretty solid at the dogfighting. Escort tasks we leave to Tiger…er…one of our other units. They’ve got the most experience.”
Alma nodded. “My wing is also particularly good with ship to ship combat. We’ve been assigned to bomber detail before. Perhaps it would do us all some good to at least head out on our vessels and fly together. Even if we’re not specifically doing maneuvers, we can get a feel for style.”
“I’m game for it. I understand we’re supposed to get in a little practice before leaving anyway.”
“I can show you the course where I learned to fly…before I joined the military. It’s cleared out for us and has holographic obstacles we can tune our computers into. The application will measure how close you get and if you hit one, it indicates how much damage would be caused. It can be…entertaining.”
“Sounds good to me.” Meagan leaned back. “How do your people feel about getting right back out there? Going off to fight a battle so soon after getting home?”
“Those who remained on The Crystal Font want to see it to the end. We lost a number of people who elected to be transferred off. This means we now have new men and women who have to learn the nuances of our ship. That doesn’t make me feel particularly confident. Overall, I’d say that morale is cautiously optimistic.”
“We’re in the same boat in a way,” Meagan said. “We haven’t seen home in a while now. All our time’s been spent out here at your home. Each time we come back from a mission, we dock here and do what we need to do. Our folks have started to understand your amenities but it’s taken a while.”