by Rod Carstens
"Yes, Senator."
"Yet you changed your own order to Admiral Lule. Why?"
"We received information from the field that pinpointed what we would later come to identify as the Xotoli carrier. It was the ship that was carrying all of their fighters. The carrier is what was giving them fighter superiority in the battle. As long as they held fighter superiority, we had no chance of stopping them."
"And what did you order Admiral Lule to do?"
"I changed her orders and ordered her to destroy the carrier, and then to turn on the Xotoli fleet and destroy it. By destroying the Xotoli carrier, we were able to gain superiority in the battle space around Rift and put their invasion fleet at risk. I then ordered Colonel Sand to coordinate an attack on the Xotoli hybrid ground forces at the same time. My objective was to attack the Xotoli in space and planet side at the same time in an effort to force them to off the planet and out of Rift's orbit."
"Were you able to accomplish this objective, Admiral?" Senator Kago asked.
Carroll was watching in horror as the admiral was coming off as a hero, a quick thinking leader adjusting to a constantly changing battlefield. He had to step in with his big stick and try to disrupt this line of questioning or he would lose his opportunity. Carroll interjected. "Excuse me, Senator, but I have to ask a question. By doing this, did you not order the destroyers Capella and Bernards to attack without the support of the rest of the task force?"
Usiche glared at Carroll with the first obvious sign of her loss of control.
"Yes, I did, Senator," Raurk snapped.
"So by changing your mind and ordering the destroyers to attack the Xotoli carrier by themselves, you lost both those destroyers as well and large number of your own legionnaires and ships?"
There. He had said it. He had used his biggest card, the loss of the Cappella and Bernards with most of their crews.
"No, Senator. I ordered the Capella and Bernards to attack because it would begin the attack on the carrier as soon as possible and create confusion before the main body of the fleet attacked the Xotoli."
Raurk was glaring at Carroll. He could almost feel her gaze on him; it was so intense.
"But by waiting for the rest of the task force you would not have lost those ships. Is it not true that your indecision and change of tactics cost the lives of thousands of Confederation naval personnel and that you were lucky to win the battle?"
The admiral's face flushed with anger. He had her, Carroll thought.
"Enough!" Senator Kago yelled and pounded his big fist on the table. Carroll was startled by Kago’s intensity.
"I had the floor and was not finished with my questioning. For your information, Senator, decisions in battle are not the same as decisions made in business. You do not have the luxury of the time to study the risks and rewards of your decisions before you make them. Nor can you run the numbers and come up with a bottom line that will give you the best solution. Senator, in battle you must make decisions in an environment of constant change and incomplete information. It’s called the Fog of War for a reason. It has been understood by those who study military operations for centuries. Admiral Raurk had to make a critical decision that would decide the battle without complete information. We now have the luxury of hindsight. If she had not made that decision, the battle would have been lost in my opinion. If we had lost at Rift, the Confederation would have been cut off from the majority of our resources and we would be having a very different discussion today. No, Admiral Raurk kept a situational awareness that allowed her to make exactly the right decision at exactly the right time. She not only won the battle, but in my estimation, she saved the Confederation with that decision."
Senator Kago looked at Carroll as if he were speaking directly to him before he said, "Admiral Raurk knew very well what she was asking of her men and women when she gave the orders. If you had watched the video from her command post, you would know that she did not take their sacrifices lightly. All leaders who have held commands in battle can tell you that you will live with the lives of those you lose in battle everyday of your life from that moment on. It’s part of the burden of command. If you had served and commanded men and women in battle, you would know this and never said what you did. If I were the admiral, security would be pulling me off of you at this moment. I would consider myself lucky, from what I understand, Admiral Raurk is a student of our hand-to-hand combat, so security may not have made it in time."
Carroll felt the blood drain from his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Admiral Raurk looked at Kago, and their eyes met. She nodded her head slightly, and he returned the nod. Carroll knew his opportunity had just slipped away. Ms. White would not be pleased. He would pay a price for this. Now he must stay alert for the coming attack.
"Mr. Chairman," Senator Kago said, "It’s my estimation that Admiral Raurk performed in the highest traditions of the naval service and should be commended for her actions that day, not questioned. I yield the floor."
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Xotoli Outpost
Exoplanet 1123.567
Von Fleet Planet 703
1st Marine Raider Battalion
Battalion Headquarters
Major Axec Aijuba didn’t like what she was seeing. First, her three companies were scattered and intermixed. Then, there had been nothing about this strong resistance in their intelligence briefing. Aijuba had wondered how the Xotoli would be in defense. Attacking with waves of troops as they did on Rift was not a sophisticated strategy. When she was planning this raid she had to guess what to prepare for in the way of defensive fortifications. She was finding out that the Xotoli were as tenacious in defense as they were on the attack. They had well prepared fortified defensive positions dug into the rock formations at strategic points around the facility. They had placed crew served weapons in each of those strong points and camouflaged them so they were almost invisible. The Xotoli hybrids had held their fire until the last second before opening up. This caused the maximum amount of casualties. It also kept their positions hidden longer. The various firing positions were built to support one another with covering fire. It all added up to an enemy that may be better in defense than offense.
Aijuba stared at the holo of the battle. Not a single unit was on their timeline. The bad drop and the stiff resistance were creating a tactical situation that demanded more troops. Both Alpha and Bravo companies were experiencing stiff resistance from armored troops, a complete surprise. Casualties were mounting. Unless there was a break through by one of her units, she would have to commit Charlie Company. She didn't want to commit her last reinforcements yet. The Xotoli would begin counterattacking at any weak points in her line they discovered in her line. It was only a matter of time.
Aijuba stood with her command group as they worked their displays. She had chosen the massive crystal-refining center as her command post because it was centrally located to all the raids objectives. The facility was a vast structure that rose hundreds of feet. At ground level was a large open equipment park dotted with huge concrete pillars that supported the structure. They formed an ideal position with cover and enough room for command staff. Aijuba had her security squad turn over a few vehicles to provide additional cover for any fire from ground level. She glanced down at the situational display holo.
Alpha company was heavily engaged in the Von Fleet control center to her left front. They had made progress through the control center and were now working to clear the dorms and outbuildings behind the center. They had run into much heavier resistance than anticipated. They were behind the mission clock in clearing the dome, but had met their initial objectives by capturing the server farm. The second platoon was now downloading information while the first and third platoons were engaged with armored troops. Bravo Company was also facing heavy resistance from the robotic truck control and the main mining facility. They had also taken heavy casualties, but were still pushing forward. The Xotoli held the high ground and
showed no signs of weakening despite Bravo's pressure.
"Raider Actual, this is Alpha Actual."
"Go Alpha," Aijuba said.
"First platoon has armored hybrids massing for an attack. Apparently there is an entrance to the main utility tunnel at the rear of the dome. Second platoon is still downloading the Intel and third has its hands full protecting our rear. Do you have any reserves?"
Shit, Aijuba thought. The Xotoli were fighting as if a Wolf warrior had taught them. She would not underestimate them again. She was going to have to commit Charlie Company if they were going to complete the mission.
"Alpha Actual, I’m going to commit Charlie. I’ll give you a platoon. You are to hold out until they arrive."
"Roger, Raider Actual."
Aijuba looked at the men and women in her command group. They were all staring at her. Even though their armor hid their faces, she knew what they were thinking. The whole operation was in doubt. A single battalion of Raiders wasn’t enough to pull this raid off if every hybrid in the facility was also a trained infantryman. She switched her comm to the command frequency.
"Tarawa Operations, this is Raider actual," Aijuba said.
"Go ahead, Actual."
"Commit Charlie Company to reinforce Alpha and Bravo Company. Have one platoon inserted at the control center. Have the second platoon inserted on top of the robotic truck control. The third platoon is to be inserted on my POS. I want the SOCs to remain on station to provide close combat support."
"Roger, Raider Actual."
"Advise their ETA for coordination of fire."
"Roger, Actual."
Aijuba watched as red, green, and gold tracers crisscrossed from the robotic truck control and Bravo Company. She glanced to her left, but could see nothing but the blowing snow. Most of the fighting must taking place inside the dome, and she only saw darkness through the snow and ice.
"Raider Actual to Alpha Actual."
"Alpha go, Raider."
"You have one platoon from Charlie Company inbound to your pos."
"Roger. We’ll be ready."
"Stine, do you have Bravo Actual on comm?" Sergeant Noot Stine was the best comm and battle display tech they had in the battalion. Aijuba had grabbed her for her command staff after Rift.
"Negative. He’s a yellow. He hasn’t taken himself out of command yet," she said.
That’s all she needed – one of her three company officers down and wounded. Aijuba was trying to think who was second in command in Bravo Company when Stine said, "Major, I've got him now. His suit just came back online after treating him."
Axec took a mental note to have the armorers make sure all of the suits were adjusted so that wounded officers didn’t lose their comm as their armor treated them.
"Raider Actual to Bravo Six."
"This is Bravo Six, go."
"Six, are you still capable of command?"
"Roger, just a leg. The suit has it under control, and I have enough go juice in me to finish this mission and the next."
"Be advised that I have Charlie inbound. They’ll be inserted on the truck control and the SOCs will stick around for close support."
"Roger, Actual. I was about to advise you that we’ll need reinforcements to take our objectives."
"Roger. Get your people ready to support the insertion."
"Roger. Six out."
Aijuba liked the fact that Bravo Company's officer was about to ask for help. He knew he was behind the mission clock and taking heavy casualties. He was a strong enough leader to consider the mission first and how he might look second. Too many officers would have pushed Bravo despite the casualties so they wouldn’t have to ask for reinforcements. Some officers wouldn’t have asked purely out of pride or a desire not to look bad in front of a superior officer. Aijuba still had a feeling that if she had asked him to take the objectives without reinforcements, he would have accomplished that mission no matter what it cost. No, a good officer was comfortable with requesting help as well as driving on. She had chosen her officers well.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Xotoli Outpost
Exoplanet 1123.567
Von Fleet Planet 703
Geosynchronous Orbit
Landing Ship Dock
Tarawa
1st Marine Raider Battalion
Combat Information Center
Lt. Mai Netis gasped the minute the image of the Xotoli came across her screen. She froze the image. She had designed a program to run through armor uploads from the Raiders to the lessons learned database and look for unusual images. She hadn’t expected to see anything on this raid. It was too small, but it was a good test for the program. Yet there it was, a Xotoli! Her hands shook as she zoomed in on the Xotoli's image. She had no idea just seeing the image of one would affect her so profoundly. It had been so long now, ten years, since she had been embedded in the Navy, ten years since she had last seen one. Now, with this one image, her past came back in a rush. She had almost forgotten over the years the effect a Xotoli had on her, but all of the images of her childhood flashed through her head. She watched file through once. Her heart began to pound when she realized what the Marine had done. The she started the video over again. She glanced at the coordinates of the Marines position. He was at least a mile beyond the drop zones and battle. He had been alone.
"Jeez! What in God's name is that?" Hilton, one of her assistants said. He had glanced over at her display and seen the image of the Xotoli.
"It's a Xotoli ... I think," Mai said, trying to keep her voice from shaking.
His words had pulled her out of the shock of seeing the image. She stood.
"Attention, everyone. Attention."
She switched her display to the room’s huge main display at the front of the room.
"General Sand, I think we have an image of a Xotoli," Mai said.
General Sand was on his command platform above and behind her, surrounded by his operations staff. He turned and stared at the image.
"What are we looking at?"
"Sir, this is the KIA upload from a Private Koy Berk. I had a sub program running, looking for any unusual visuals, and this just came up," Mai said, gaining control of her voice.
Sand stared at the image for a long time in silence, his face a frozen mask.
"Where is this from?" General Sand asked.
"Berk's suit was damaged so I don't have an exact position, but it came from this area," Mai said and put up a map showing Berk's approximate position.
"That’s a good mile or more from any friendly unit."
"Yes, I think he was dropped way outside of his drop zone," Mai said. "We lost a SOC about a mile further out. It’s my guess that for some reason, he didn’t drop with the others and didn’t get out until just before the crash."
"Is there more?" Sand asked without taking his eyes from the image of the Xotoli through blowing snow and ice.
"Yes, sir."
Mai turned on the video. They saw Berk drop three of the four bodyguards with fire from his 48. Then they watched as he threw his rifle down, stood, and said.
"Come on, you kak! Fight me, you big shit!" Berk roared over his armor’s loudspeakers.
The room was silent as the video played. Each person in the room was trying to absorb what both the Xotoli and Berk were doing.
"Who is this Berk?" someone asked.
General Sand smiled and shook his head.
"He’s an old legionnaire that I've busted to private more times than I can count. He was a lousy barracks soldier, but you’d want him by your side in a fight. He loves to fight."
They watched as the Xotoli strode toward him.
"It’s very graceful in its movements," someone observed.
"Look at the size of the rounds for that weapon. Shit," a Marine officer said in awe.
There were gasps in the room when it jumped over Berk and then jumped back.
"Shit! That thing is fast," another Marine said.
They watched as Ber
k ducked the Xotoli’s first swing and then struck the Xotoli in retaliation. Then Berk's taunt came over the speakers in the CIC.
"Arrruh. You fuck! That's how a fucking human fights! The armor moves first," Berk's voice said.
"He knew the audio would be recorded," Sand said. "He's giving us Intel even in midst of a fight to the death."
"Kak, he recorded this for us. He knows he’s going to die," someone said in quiet reverence.
They watched as Berk fought the huge alien. When the Xotoli cut off Berk’s hand, there were gasps in room. Then Berk managed to knock the Xotoli to the ground and mount it. For the first time, you could see the armored face of the Xotoli up close.
"Freeze it," General Sand ordered.
Mai froze the frame and everyone in the room stared at the image. The head seemed small for such a large body, or maybe it was small simply in comparison. The armor flowed up from the shoulders like thick muscle, ending where human ears should be. The lens for the eyes were more on the side of the head than in the center of what could be called a face. There was no nose; instead the armor came down into something that almost looked like pincers on an ant. The armor was all flat surfaces forged together with sharp angles. Berk’s blows didn’t seem to be hurting the Xotoli, but they were certainly bothering it. Then Koy managed to put one of the lenses out. A few in the room cheered.
The image brought back memories from Mai's training, memories of the fear and pain, of the tests and what happened to those who didn’t pass those tests. The feel of her Xotoli strength the first time she was allowed to use it, and the terrible rage she felt when she allowed the alien side of her being to take over. She was a Xotec, one of the chosen children of the Xotoli, raised by the Xotoli from the Originals’ genes. As she watched the fight she realized this Berk was a true warrior and the Xotoli would respect his death. Mai shook these thoughts out of her head and turned back to her displays.
The room was silent, each person lost in their thoughts. Mai could only admire what the Marine had done. She knew too well how frightening a Xotoli could be close up. Her humanity pulled for the Marine, fighting down her hybrid genes as they lusted for a kill. Mai had not watched the video completely, she had been too upset, but this time she let the video run. Another Xotoli walked over and drew its crystal sword.