“Brace is training a new squad of marines,” Angela replied as she ate the last of her baked chicken. “They’re to be assigned to some of the Alton ships to increase their internal security.”
“A number of marines are being trained for duty on the Alton ships,” Jeremy confirmed as he took a bite of his mashed potatoes and gravy. “I’m just glad we could all get together today.”
“We’ve been so busy getting the fleet ready,” Kelsey said, laying her fork down and looking at the others. “Sometime in the next few weeks, we’ll be going to attack the Hocklyn home worlds. I’ve known for a while this day was coming; I just don’t know if I’m ready for it.”
“It was one of the things your father dreamed of,” responded Jeremy, softly. Kelsey’s father had been the commanding admiral of Ceres while they were at the academy and later when they were serving in the Ceres fleet. The admiral had often spoken of the day Humans would take the war to the Hocklyn home worlds.
“I know,” Kelsey responded with a look of sadness in her eyes. “I just wish he could be here to see it.”
“It'll be a great day for the Federation when the Hocklyn home worlds are no longer a threat,” Ariel spoke in a solemn voice. “Fleet Admiral Streth and others that were in the original group of cyrosleepers have long looked forward to this day. Your father would be very proud of you, Kelsey.”
Kelsey nodded; there were times when she really missed her parents.
“Even the Kessels and the Darvonians will be taking part,” Kevin added as he ate the last french fry on his plate. “Grayseth has been running battle drills on the Carethian ships for days in preparation. He says it will be a great hunt and payback for the Hocklyns destroying their colony and occupying their world.”
“I’m heading over to the Warrior’s Pride tomorrow,” Jeremy informed them. “Grayseth and I are going to go over fleet tactics for engaging the Hocklyns.”
“Katie and I are going over to the Bears' mobile shipyard,” added Kelsey, looking over at Katie. “We’re going to work with Malith and Karelle and get them up to date on our current navigation systems as well as the new communication protocols.”
“We might not have many more opportunities like this,” Angela said in a soft and longing voice. “It feels good for all of us to be together again.”
Ariel nodded her head in agreement. She wished all of the Special Five were still on the Avenger where she could watch over them. However, if she had to pick a ship for any of them to be on, it would be the StarStrike with Fleet Admiral Streth. It also helped that Clarissa was aboard the StarStrike and could keep an eye on Katie and Kelsey.
-
Back in the new Human Federation of Worlds, Fleet Admiral Karla Johnson was on her way to meet Admiral Kalen and President Kincaid about the coming offensive against the Hocklyn home worlds. She was on board the Orion Victory, the Federations’ newest battleship. She stood next to the ship’s commanding officer, Oliver Hanks, who was quite an imposing figure. The tall, dark haired commander was quite experienced at handling the warships of the Federation and had distinguished himself in the big battle at New Tellus.
“We’ll be dropping out of hyperspace shortly,” Commander Hanks informed her as the Helm prepared for maneuvering as soon as they exited the spatial vortex.
Karla nodded; it was difficult for her to come to Earth’s system even though she'd been born on the planet. The problem was Ceres. It was in Earth’s system and every time she came close to it, she thought of Admiral Telleck and the future that had been stolen from her. If the Federation survived when the war ended, she planned on retiring and turning the day-to-day operations of the fleet over to Admiral Nagumo. She was thinking very seriously about emigrating to the old Federation worlds.
A sudden, gut wrenching feeling and Karla knew that the Orion Victory had exited hyperspace and was now in the solar system.
“We’ve exited hyperspace,” the helm officer reported.
“Receiving standard challenge,” added the com officer. “Transmitting ship IDs.”
“Take us to Ceres,” Karla spoke in a slightly strained voice. The meeting was to be held inside the asteroid in Governor Malleck’s office.
“Setting course,” the helm officer replied. “We should be there in forty minutes at standard sublight speed.” Sublight speeds were regulated in the solar system due to all the traffic.
“Very well,” answered Commander Hanks. “I’ll notify Admiral Freeman that we’ve arrived.”
“Thank you,” Karla responded. Admiral Freeman was in charge of all the Federations’ many shipyards and had come along for this meeting. He was currently in his quarters reviewing the latest ship construction reports.
As they neared Ceres, Karla couldn’t help but notice all the warships surrounding the large asteroid. Admiral Kalen had taken over as overall military commander of the Ceres fleet since the unfortunate death of Admiral Telleck at the battle of Careth. On the viewscreen, the Ceres fleet flagship, the new battleship Ceres, was being prominently displayed. Its new commanding officer was Commander Kathryn Barnes, the daughter of the Ceres Senator. She was also the last one to speak to Admiral Telleck before he died. Karla had spoken briefly to Kathryn about the admiral’s death and Kathryn had explained how the admiral had died a hero saving the members of his command crew, including Kathryn.
Other ships were also visible. With the departure of Admiral Nagumo, the Ceres fleet was now the largest fleet in the solar system and responsible for its defense. It had grown as the massive ship building facilities inside Ceres were fully activated and turning out new warships like clockwork. The fleet had six battleships, ten battlecarriers, twenty battlecruisers, forty-four strikecruisers, and sixty light cruisers in its complement with more being added weekly.
Karla watched the viewscreens as the Orion Victory flew past the imposing fleet. She let out a heavy sigh knowing how much Glenn would have enjoyed commanding a fleet with the new battleships.
“We’ll be at Ceres in ten more minutes,” Commander Hanks informed her.
“Make my shuttle ready and have Admiral Freeman meet me in the flight bay,” Karla ordered as she turned to leave the Command Center.
A few minutes later, Karla reached the flight bay and found Admiral Freeman waiting for her.
“Are you all right, Admiral?” Freeman asked. He knew how hard Admiral Telleck’s death had shaken her.
“I’m fine,” Karla responded with a weak smile. “Let’s get to this meeting.”
-
The shuttle left the flight bay and headed toward the dark gray surface of Ceres. Around the asteroid, numerous defensive platforms were in orbit ensuring no vessel was allowed admittance to Ceres space without proper identification. Alton particle beam satellites were prevalent as well as numerous laser satellites and missile platforms. The surface of Ceres was covered in offensive and defensive weaponry. It was the heaviest defended colony in the entire Human Federation of Worlds.
A large hatch slid open revealing a brightly lit tunnel leading deep into the asteroid. The shuttle dropped down and entered, flying past several power beam turrets, which tracked any vessel that neared the entrance. After flying down the tunnel and through several more massive metal hatches that opened as the shuttle approached, they finally entered an enormous brightly lit flight bay.
The shuttle set down next to a light cruiser. Once down, the shuttle’s hatch opened and its metal landing ramp extended until it touched the bay’s deck. “We’re down and the hatch is secured,” the pilot announced.
Karla stood up and headed for the exit, followed by Admiral Freeman. Karla was surprised to see Commander Kathryn Barnes and several other officers at the base of the ramp waiting for her.
“Fleet Admiral arriving!” one of the officers spoke in a loud and commanding voice. Instantly all work in the immediate vicinity stopped and everyone turned to salute.
Karla returned the salute and came to a stop in front of Commander Barnes. “It’s good
to see you again, Commander,” she said.
“Thank you, Admiral,” Kathryn responded with a hint of a smile. “President Kincaid, Admiral Kalen, Governor Malleck, Ambassador Tureen, and my father are waiting for you in the governor’s office.”
“Will you also be attending?” asked Karla, raising her eyebrow.
“Yes,” answered Kathryn” looking confused. “Though I don’t understand why they want me in this meeting.”
“I’m sure there’s a reason,” Karla replied in a pleasant voice. “Now, let’s get going so we don’t keep them waiting.”
-
Arriving at Governor Malleck’s spacious office, Karla was ready for the meeting to begin. She felt uncomfortable being on Ceres after all that had happened. Everywhere she looked only helped to remind her of Glenn.
“We have two operations we need to discuss,” President Kincaid began as soon as everyone was seated. “The first is the coming attack upon the Hocklyn home worlds. Fleet Admiral Johnson, would you please brief us on the current status of that operation.”
Karla nodded and looked around the group. “As all of you know, Admiral Nagumo recently departed for New Providence with a major portion of the Federation fleet. Fleet Admiral Streth has successfully destroyed the Hocklyns’ major sources of food for their worlds and from his latest reports, nearly all of their fleet units are being pulled back to their twelve home systems. He firmly believes that unrest due to a lack of food will occur shortly if it hasn’t already.”
“What will the Hocklyn military do?” Admiral Kalen asked his eyes looking sharply at the Fleet Admiral. “Will they be used to put down the unrest and keep the Hocklyn High Council in control?”
“Fleet Admiral Streth doesn’t believe so,” Karla answered. She pursed her lips and then continued. “Due to the honor system that has become such a large part of how their Empire is run, he feels that many of the warships will stay loyal to those families that control the Empire. He feels there is a good chance they will turn on each other to procure whatever food stores or resources are left in the home systems.”
“A civil war then,” uttered Senator Barnes in a serious tone, raising his eyebrows. “A lack of food can be a terrible driving force. I have spoken to several psychologists and they say it can drive one to the brink of madness.”
“Fleet Admiral Streth plans on allowing the civil war to take place and then move in and eliminate what remains of the Hocklyn warfleets,” Karla continued. “There will be no attempt to land troops upon their worlds or any of their habitats. Once their warships are eliminated, they will no longer pose a threat to the Federation or anyone else.”
“So the Hocklyn war will end,” spoke Governor Malleck, finding it hard to believe they'd reached this point. “This is something we’ve worked toward for hundreds of years; it’s just hard to believe it’s finally arrived.”
“We still have the AIs,” Ambassador Tureen reminded them in a soft voice. The white haired Alton looked around the group, making sure he had their full attention. “The defeat of the Hocklyns is just one aspect of what’s in our immediate future. We’re currently training the crews for our battleships, and in another eight weeks they'll set course for New Providence.”
“We’ll also be sending all of our new construction,” added Admiral Freeman. “We have a number of ships coming out of the construction yards, and they'll be going with the Alton ships. All will have the new hyperdrives as well as the augmented inertial compensators.”
“Due to the high force of gravity induced by the black hole, those modifications are necessary to allow a ship to jump to where the AIs have built their constructions and not suffer terminal damage,” Karla explained. “We’re talking about taking the fleet to within one tenth of a light year of the black hole.”
“How are we going to modify all of our existing ships?” asked President Kincaid, sounding concerned. “Surely that will be a major undertaking.”
“All of the ships with Admiral Nagumo have been modified already to an extent. The new units just need to be installed as a component,” explained Admiral Freeman. “The modification can be done on a ship in just a few hours. On the ships Fleet Admiral Streth currently has, the modifications will take longer. We’ll use the two new shipyards in orbit around New Providence as well as the ten fleet repair ships already en route.”
“Why haven’t we already started on Fleet Admiral Streth’s ships?” asked Senator Barnes. “Surely those modifications would help in his attack upon the Hocklyn home worlds.” He knew the biggest weakness with Federation ships was not being able to jump inside a planet’s gravity well.
“We didn’t want to take the risk of this technology falling into the hands of the Hocklyns,” answered Karla, recalling the many long discussions over this very subject. “After all of this is over, there’s still a good likelihood of some Hocklyn warships escaping our attack upon their home systems.”
“What about our allies?” Governor Malleck asked. “Will the Kessels and the Darvonians be involved in the attack upon the AIs?”
“Yes,” answered Ambassador Tureen. “We've had a number of technicians assisting them with updating their warships in their home systems. A major portion of them will be assigned to the attack on the AIs. They will be ready when our battleships are.”
“What about the Ceres fleet?’ asked President Kincaid, looking over at Admiral Kalen. “Is part of it going along as well?” He didn’t like the thought of sending the fleet on this mission, but he understood the necessity. If they lost the battle at the galactic center, then the galaxy was doomed.
“Yes,” Admiral Kalen answered with a smile. “We’ll be sending nearly half of it, and it will also be updated before leaving the solar system.” Kalen then turned to look at Commander Barnes. “We need a commander for the fleet that will be participating in the attack.” He reached into his shirt pocket and took out two rear admiral pins. Standing up, he walked over and handed them to Kathryn. “Congratulations, Rear Admiral Barnes, you will be leading the forces of Ceres in this battle.”
Kathryn was stunned. She didn’t know what to say. “I don’t understand, shouldn’t it be you leading our fleet?”
“Admiral Kalen will be responsible for the defense of the solar system,” Governor Malleck answered. “He will also be responsible for an evacuation if the AIs manage to set off their doomsday weapon.”
“An evacuation?” Kathryn spoke a look of surprise on her face. “Where to? The weapon supposedly will cover our entire galaxy.”
“Yes,” Tureen answered with a nod. “If the weapon goes off, we'll attempt to gather as many people as we can and flee the galaxy. My own people once considered doing that very thing to escape the AIs. The trip will be long and dangerous, but we believe it can be done.”
-
The meeting lasted for a few more hours as details were ironed out and plans were made. When it was over with, Karla made her way to the Aquarian habitat to the overlook that she and Glenn had stood upon so often, looking over the wondrous world the old Federation survivors had created inside Ceres. The Aquarian habitat was only one of many. She stood there lost in thought, recalling all the conversations she and Admiral Telleck had shared standing here together.
“I thought I would find you here,” Admiral Kalen said as he walked up to stand next to Karla. “I think this was one of Glenn’s favorite places.”
“I know it was,” Karla replied with a heavy sigh, turning to look at the admiral. “He told me so.”
“I understand you will be going with the fleet to New Providence.”
“Yes,” replied Karla, squaring her shoulders. “I have to be there for the final battle. If things go south, then everything will be up to you. Just as Fleet Admiral Streth did so many years ago, you'll have to gather our people and lead them to safety.”
“I will do what I have to,” Kalen replied as he turned to look out over the habitat. “Hopefully, it won’t be necessary.”
Karla nodded; s
he had confidence in Fleet Admiral Streth defeating the Hocklyns; all of the old stories all agreed that he would arise from cryosleep and save the Federation. However, nowhere did it mention the AIs. She wasn’t sure even the venerated Fleet Admiral could pull off that miracle.
Chapter Twelve
Chaos had descended into the heart of the Hocklyn Empire. After centuries of unchecked population growth, leaving very little space in the home systems to raise food, it had finally reached the tipping point. With the destruction by the Humans and the Altons of so many of their key food distribution and shipping centers on numerous agricultural slave worlds, they no longer had the necessary resources to feed their overly abundant population. As shortages spread from planet to planet and habitat to habitat, powerful Hocklyn families began to look for other sources of food. Rumors of families hiding vast stocks of food supplies on their worlds and habitats spread, causing fighting to break out between the different Hocklyn factions. In just a matter of a few days, anarchy rapidly spread throughout the twelve core systems.
In the system of Anlesh, fighting was growing more intense as the opposing Hocklyn fleets resorted to using their nuclear missiles upon one another. Brilliant flashes of light erupted across the battling lines of warships. One fleet was defending a massive orbital habitat where nearly eight hundred thousand Hocklyns lived. The other fleet was vying to take over the habitat and seize its reported stocks of food supplies. Rumors had it that the supply rooms on this habitat were overflowing with hoarded supplies.
-
“They refuse to capitulate,” reported First Leader Ashk as he felt the dreadnought shudder from weapons fire impacting the ship’s energy screen.
“The fools!” roared War Leader Queex, glaring at the opposing ships on the main viewscreens. “They could have joined us and shared in the bounty. Now they can starve like so many others! Press the attack!”
His own habitat was nearly out of food. In three more days, the last of it would be gone. Queex knew that if he couldn’t secure these supplies, his home habitat would go the way of so many others as the population inside turned on one another like ferocious animals.
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