Battle for the Earth

by John P. Gledhill

  That’s it, thought Gargius. That’s why there’s no population. They’re not on the surface of the planet, they’re under it! It was now as plain as the grimace on his face. The Dropas specialities were technology and mining. Where else could they keep the population of a planet but underground? Why had nobody else come to this conclusion sooner? It was obvious the Dropas had been instrumental in this and by all accounts had made an excellent job of creating an environment of subterfuge.

  Gargius now knew what he had to do. The only questions that remained were: how and where?

  **

  24

  Marie and Ravel were intent on watching the approach of a single Annunaki battle cruiser. Blue Star Base was on full alert, and in silent mode. The cruiser looked as if it was just on a fishing mission, but they couldn’t be sure. It was around 500,000 miles out on the long-range sensor console and on a course directly towards them but, strangely, moving very slowly.

  Jumouk and Lee were on board the Katchinas. Konoco was on the ESG battle cruiser Iron Duke, all within the ESG fleet above Blue Star Base, and under the mag shield. Everyone was on full alert, and every commander was watching the slow approach of the Annunaki battle cruiser; Jumouk felt uneasy and raised the question everyone was thinking.

  ‘Why is it travelling so slowly, Lee?’

  ‘Maybe it’s damaged,’ Lee speculated.

  ‘Where has it come from?’

  Jumouk and Lee had spoken more or less in the same instant. Neither had an answer and neither would allow his eyes to stray from the console. It was almost mesmerising, watching the craft ambling along like some kind of huge albatross in space. This was exactly the result Nalater had hoped for. He had carefully instructed the commander of the battle cruiser to act out of character, hoping this would distract the moon base from the real intention of his cruiser’s approach. That way the other battle cruisers could sneak slowly round the other side of the moon, effectively blindsiding the moon base.

  When Nalater had given the orders to the cruisers, the decoy cruiser was to head directly towards the sun during the next solar flare. Solar flares always affected proximity detectors and scanning technology. Keeping the Earth between itself and the moon, spin round the sun, then hyper-space to the far side of Jupiter and rapidly approach the Earth’s moon, slowing down when it was around 500,000 miles out.

  Jumouk didn’t like what he was seeing. He had a very bad feeling about it. Something just didn’t add up. For the first time in what seemed an eternity Jumouk slowly raised his eyes from the console and looked at the three-dimensional representation of space around the Earth and moon. This was situated directly in the middle of the table, and was unusually hazy.

  ‘Where are the three Annunaki battle cruisers that were in Earth’s orbit?’

  Lee spun round. The cruisers were no longer in Earth’s orbit. Frantically he began scanning, short range, long range and Earth itself.

  **

  Damn these solar flares, he thought to himself! They affect everything.

  The scanners were having a lot of difficulty identifying what was going on. They had picked up the Annunaki battle cruiser that was being repaired in Western Australia, but there was still no sign of the other battle cruisers. Jumouk looked at Lee, they were both thinking the same thing. The moon base’s cover had been blown.

  Lee snarled the command.

  ‘Battle stations! All cruisers break cover now, and launch all assault craft.’

  Too late! The Katchinas rocked under the volley of pulse fire from the two Annunaki battle cruisers bearing down on the stricken Blue Star Base. What was worse the third decoy Annunaki battle cruiser had now joined the fray.

  The three ESG battle cruisers bolted in different directions, spewing out assault ships as they fled in confusion. All three cruisers had now taken substantial damage but were not being pursued by the Annunaki, who were now intent on pummelling the moon base and its surrounding defences.

  **

  The mag shield had now collapsed around the moon base and the true nature of the damage being inflicted could be seen by all. In fairness to the moon base and its surrounding defences, they were putting up a ferocious defence and indeed inflicting significant damage on all three of the attacking battle cruisers. Assault vessels, both Annunaki and ESG, had engaged each other in a mass of brutal, individual dog fights scattering above and over the lunar surface and base.

  **

  Ravel was in the Blue Star Base control room, trying desperately to co-ordinate the moon base defence. Things were happening so quickly, communications had gone down and Marie was doing what she could to get them restored.

  An ESG assault craft that had been chased down by three Annunaki assault ships skimmed over the clear roof of the control room, making everyone inside duck as a reflex action.

  Watching in disbelief, the horrified onlookers saw the vessel hit the lunar surface and literally bounce into one of the defence pods, bringing its fight for survival to an end. The three Annunaki assault ships carried on firing, this time targeting the other defence pod.

  The Annunaki vessels were not to get it all their own way, however, as two of the craft disintegrated amongst the rain of pulse fire from the defence pod. The other Annunaki craft peeled off and sped away to hunt down more ESG prey.

  The defence pod now came under fire from one of the three Annunaki battle cruisers lurking above it. Even with its energy-absorbing qualities the pod didn’t last long before it imploded in on itself.

  **

  It was now becoming clear that the moon base was stricken as Ravel struggled with the systems and emergency back-ups. Fortunately for him the automated air-lock systems were still all functioning.

  **

  As structure and area after area failed, Ravel was desperately considering the best way to evacuate the base. One of the main problems was there were still no communications, even though Marie had left a while ago to expedite the repairs. All of a sudden there was a deathly hush in the control room. Ravel looked round to see everyone with their heads tilted upwards, He joined them. The sight he saw astounded him. An Annunaki battle cruiser was being savaged almost right above them by two ESG cruisers. The Annunaki cruiser simply crumpled and smashed into the lunar landscape as if in slow motion, the shock wave from the impact rattling through the whole moon base to threaten the very integrity of the polycarbonate glass panels which made up the major part of the roofing on the structure.

  Still the show wasn’t over. Away in the distance the Katchinas was in a fight for its life with another Annunaki battle cruiser. Help came in the form of the two ESG cruisers turning their attention to the Annunaki vessel and enveloping it in a barrage of pulse weapons fire.

  Finally the Annunaki battle cruiser succumbed to the weapons fire and started to roll onto its back, dropping as it went, its bow high above its stern in a last dance of death. The resulting explosion seemed to caress the Katchinas before she too, as if in sympathy, erupted in a fireball.

  **

  All who watched the spectacle in the control room stood aghast at the loss of the Katchinas. It was only when the shock wave hit them that it seemed to bring them all back to reality.

  After the shudder had passed, a loud sound of rushing air could be heard, and the two airtight doors leading into and out of the control room automatically snapped shut. Ravel looked upwards. The problem was obvious. One of the polycarbonate glass panels making up the roof had splintered, and now disintegrated, venting the precious atmosphere into space. Ravel looked around him frantically. Time was short, they had to plug the hole or die in minutes.

  The panel was approximately two foot square and, fortunately, flat.

  The table, he thought!

  There in the corner under the coffee-making machine was a small, steel, portable table. It was approximately four feet square and would cover the gaping hole perfectly. The pressure in the control room would do its job to keep the tabl
e in place. Ravel ran over to the table, scattering the clutter on top including the coffee maker as he went, grabbed it, and ran across to a point directly under the hole in the roof.

  The next part of his plan was really hit or miss. With all his might he launched the table upwards towards the hole, relying on the powerful current of air rushing to the hole to carry it to its new home, with luck sealing off the hole. The table hit the hole at a forty-five degree angle, and bounced precariously, finally coming to rest directly over the hole and sealing it off.

  Loud applause rang out around the control room. Ravel had been so caught up in what he was doing that he hadn’t noticed everyone was watching his every move. To Ravel the whole episode had been instinctive; to everyone else, it had been miraculous.

  Ravel felt embarrassed, but nodded in acknowledgement anyway. The best news was that he could hear the hiss of pressurisation in the background. Now at least, he thought, they should all be safe.

  **

  The weapons fire that had been battering the moon base now seemed to subside, although alarms were still sounding everywhere. It almost seemed to Ravel that the Annunaki assault vessels were retreating to the one remaining battle cruiser. It could be seen fairly clearly from the control room and, sure enough, one after another Annunaki assault craft were returning and docking with the huge craft.

  Ravel took comfort in this as he could see the two ESG battle cruisers coming in ready to hover over Blue Star Moon Base. Then, suddenly, without warning two Annunaki assault craft that had been chasing down an ESG vessel broke their attack on it and released a final flurry of pulse fire onto the moon base before retreating to the waiting Nephilimis.

  Ravel saw the bright blue streak of the pulse weapons fire heading straight for them. His last thoughts were for the fifty or so souls in the control room whom he had so bravely tried to save, now alas in vain.

  **

  At the start of the attack Jumouk ordered his three battle cruisers to engage the Annunaki vessels. For the first time the two foes were more or less on an even standing. Lee led the attack with the Katchinas, this time powering in with all pulse weapons blazing, followed by the other two ESG cruisers, Victory and Iron Duke.

  **

  Nalater stood on the bridge of the Nephilimis, watching one of the last pods around the moon base disintegrate to a pile of dust on the lunar surface. The main part of the moon base was still intact, but only just.

  Without warning the bridge on the Nephilimis suddenly and violently arched and flexed, and but for the quick thinking of the Annunaki helmsman, the cascade of pulse fire from the Katchinas would have cut the Nephilimis in half. As it was she was tumbling at a very precarious angle towards the lunar surface, the helmsman fighting with all of his experience to regain altitude and yaw.

  All that Nalater could do was to watch as the lunar surface and the moon base - at least what was left of it -hurtled towards the front viewing window. Slowly but surely the darkness of space started to replace the fearsome view of the moon base and the lunar surface, as the helmsman battled his ship back onto an even keel and out into open space.

  Tannacha had now joined Nalater on the bridge and they could both see the other two Annunaki battle cruisers were in serious trouble. Just as he was turning to speak to Nalater, one of the huge ships shuddered in a death throe under a hail of pulse fire from the two ESG battle cruisers that had been hounding it. The spine of the huge ship fractured in four places and the cruiser crumpled like a discarded tin can being crunched underfoot before disintegrating into the lunar landscape.

  **

  The Katchinas was now in a life or death struggle with the other Annunaki cruiser. Both colossal ships unleashed a blanketing of death from their vast arrays of pulse weapons. At first sight it looked as if the Annunaki battle cruiser had the upper hand; the Katchinas was in a very bad way and was listing very badly to the port side with serious fires on virtually all of her decks.

  All of a sudden both ESG cruisers involved in downing the first Annunaki battle cruiser, opened up with a deadly barrage of pulse weapons fire. This was directed onto the Annunaki battle cruiser which was mauling the Katchinas. The Annunaki battle cruiser could no longer avoid its fate and exploded in a fireball, unluckily taking the Katchinas with her.

  Nalater immediately recalled all of the Annunaki assault ships that still hadn’t docked and any stragglers from the other cruisers. Once they were all safely aboard, he powered his engines and headed for Western Australia.

  **

  25

  Both ESG cruisers began a search for survivors from the Katchinas and the moon base, Blue Star orbital. The surface of the moon was littered with escape pods, mainly from the Katchinas.

  **

  Jumouk and Lee had already commenced the abandonment of the Katchinas well before the Annunaki cruiser had exploded around them. It had been clear to both of them that the unfortunate Katchinas was not going to survive this confrontation and they had taken steps to ensure minimum loss of life amongst the crew. Shuttles were sent from both cruisers and the rescue of survivors began with the retrieval of all the life pods showing signs of life.

  The moon base was a total scene of devastation; Marie had survived but Ravel had died when the control room was destroyed. There were only a few pockets of survivors where the automated airtight safety doors had created areas of relative safety.

  Marie was in the communications room along with thirty other people. She had gone there after communications had failed in the main control room, leaving Ravel to oversee operations there. Although the communications room was airtight for the moment, its structural integrity was in serious doubt, Marie was well aware that at any time one of the many cracks on the polycarbonate glass panels that made up the roof of the structure could fail.

  Through the panels of glass that were not damaged Marie had seen the demise of the Katchinas and wondered if Jumouk and her good friend Lee had been able to escape safely. It was now looking like the ESG was in serious trouble and their ability to defend Earth was weakening by the day. Tens of thousands had been killed on the moon base alone and the base itself was now virtually destroyed.

  Marie was just coming to terms with the hopelessness of the situation, when directly above her a shuttle had come to rest and the pilot was making desperate hand signals at her.

  Marie assumed that the pilot wanted her to get ready to open the air lock, although this was not obvious from the mixed-up jumble of hand signals that the pilot was giving.

  She went to the control panel next to the airtight door and prepared to open it manually. In the meantime the shuttle cleared the debris, mainly destroyed corridor from the other side of the door. This was quite a tricky operation for the pilot as he had to be very careful not to put any further strain on the airtight room for fear of structural failure.

  After around twenty minutes of nail-biting tension both for the pilot, and survivors in the airtight room, he was now in the position to back his shuttle carefully up against the airtight door and create a seal for an air lock between his shuttle and the room.

  Finally Marie heard the knock on the door signifying that the pilot was ready for them. She wound the small wheel which would manually open the door as fast as she could; at last the door was open wide enough to slip through into the safety of the shuttle. Once everyone was safely on board the shuttle the pilot disconnected the air lock and gently glided away from the structure, heading back towards the two ESG cruisers and safety.

  **

  Jumouk, Lee and Konoco were all in the conference room aboard Iron Duke, one of the two remaining ESG battle cruisers, when Marie came bursting through the door. She could not contain her delight at hearing both Jumouk and, especially, Lee had been rescued safely from the lunar surface. Konoco had already been on board Iron Duke during the furious fighting.

  Lee spun round with a big grin and wrapped his arms around Marie. They were obviously more than delighte
d to see each other. Jumouk smiled then went back to concentrating on the job in hand. The first thing they had to determine was what forces they had left, and the battle-worthy condition of the Annunaki fleet.

  Marie and Lee rejoined him at the conference table. They knew this was going to be a tough job. They had two cruisers left, Victory and Iron Duke, but they were still waiting for a head count on the assault vessels, both in space and back on Earth. Then there were the ground forces. The one thing they all agreed on was that now they had inflicted a lot of damage on the Annunaki fleet, and they had to keep the pressure on.

  **

  26

  As Terry and his three wings of assault craft burst through the waters off Western Australia, the timing couldn’t have been worse. More or less right above them the Nephilimis was coming into land at Perth Airport.