by J. J. Snow
“Roger that, Duv. Tiny and I are going to help you cut a path so we can get the hell out of here. Follow us!”
Reilly pulled her bird in front of the gunship and Tiny joined her. In front of them, another twenty or so fighters and several large AOC vessels with barrage guns waited, ready to engage them.
—————
Seth sat up from where he had been working as his ship’s proximity sensor went off. Another Dark Angel appeared off his port side and signaled him.
He grimaced and accepted the link. The HAILE identified the Commander as the holoscreen came up, and Seth saw Trace Callum looking at him strangely. Apparently the Commander had neglected to tell Captain Callum he was in pursuit of a fourteen-year-old Gaiden.
“Uh, Dark Angel Charlie-Delta-five-three-Echo-Juliet-one-two, you are ordered to return to port immediately by the Commander of ISU forces. How copy?” Callum looked at him, still confused by what he was seeing.
“Good copy,” Seth replied. “But I’m not going back. I’m on an emergency mission.”
He bent over and finished connecting the last remaining wires as Trace tried to figure out what to say. When he stood back up, the captain was looking at him again, but with a more determined expression.
“Look kid, Commander Zain ordered us to bring you in. I don’t know what your deal is, but right now we need every ship and crew member we can get. I don’t want to waste you or your ship because you decide to do something stupid.”
Seth smiled. “You know, I like a challenge, Captain. How about this? If your pilot can catch me before I make the next planet in this solar system, I’ll head back with you. And if not, then I jump on to my next journey and you stay out of my way. Deal?”
Captain Callum shook his head. “Kid, you’ve got some brass ones, I’ll give you that. But there is no way you can outfly my pilot, so just give it a rest and let’s head back to the base.”
“No can do, Captain. Catch me if you can!” Seth clicked off the mic and kicked the Dark Angel into high gear, pulling away and up from his pursuit.
“What the hell? Go, Nado, go!” Trace watched as the kid’s gunship pulled a high, fast tactical ascent and took off.
Nado grinned and gunned his gunship in pursuit. He imitated the kid’s move and followed him, pulling up in his propulsion wake. The kid suddenly dove and then looped, coming around on their tail as Captain Callum pulled up the gunship’s shields in case the kid decided to get squirrely on them and take a few shots. The two ships danced back and forth, intertwining in a maddening duel, each trying to outmaneuver the other.
“That kid can fly!” Trace’s electronic warfare officer was grinning in admiration until the captain shot him a look and he suddenly realized how busy he was at his holoscreen.
Nado pushed into a figure eight with a double loop and then spiraled out, holding even with Seth’s ship. He inched closer and glanced at the captain, who nodded. Just as he got ready to launch a net, the kid pulled a flip and then disappeared.
“I need a scan, Jake!”
The electronic warfare board was spiking as Jake ran several scans at once and then swore eloquently.
“Sir, the kid spiked us and bailed. He’s gone, and he blocked his journey. I got nothing.”
Trace slammed his hand on the console. “Damn it!”
He stared into the star field, wondering how the Commander would take the news and how much shit he would catch off the other crews when they learned that he had been shown up by a kid.
—————
Crazy Ray felt like he had been hit by a TORR. His hearing was distorted and his vision blurry as he began to pull himself forward. Blood flowed sluggishly from a gash in his head, forming a sticky, congealed pool on the floor around his face. Something heavy lay across his legs and lower back. He could smell acrid smoke from metal melted by laser blasts and high explosives. He finally crawled free of the debris and used a piece of railing to help him to his feet. Smoke and small fires burned everywhere as he leaned, taking it all in. His eyes shone with a crazed light as he found his handheld and immediately sent out several messages to his staff. Then, picking his way back to where he had fallen, he searched the debris, looking for Captain Campbell or the bounty hunter. If Campbell was dead, fine. Strangely, he found himself still hoping that his mystery woman had survived, that she would find him again. They had only just begun to explore the possibilities when Welch had interrupted them. The first woman in a decade to captivate him, and now she was gone.
He wandered back until he reached the corridor entrance where Campbell had held a knife to her throat. A trail of blood droplets mixed with dust on the floor as he knelt down and ran his fingers through it, then held them up, the dark red of the congealed mess making the lines in his skin stand out. He could smell it though, the blood was hers, it carried that same scent that she did. Carefully, he pulled out a silk handkerchief and let the blood soak into it, then gently folded it and put it into his pocket. He looked up to find Jamie watching him through the smoke.
“Jamie, what did you see, my boy?”
Jamie giggled and pointed. “They left. Your lady and the other one.”
Crazy Ray’s eyes narrowed as he looked in the direction that Jamie had pointed. Towards Welch’s cruiser.
Jamie pointed at Crazy Ray’s bloody handkerchief. “You’re keeping it?”
Crazy Ray smiled. “Of course. Something to remember her by until I see her again.”
Jamie put his head down shyly. “She did smell nice. I’m glad she’s coming back.”
He walked over and let Crazy Ray lean on him as he limped down the hallway. When they reached the end of the corridor, Crazy Ray sealed the bay and opened the shields. Everything was pulled into the void. He left it open and they continued on towards his suite. Welch surely thought he was dead by now and was moving ahead without him. He couldn’t wait to show up and prove him wrong.
“Jamie, how many others survived in my detainment wing?”
“Most.” The boy giggled again. “Just stunned. Nothing like what happened over here!”
Crazy Ray smiled. Good, at least he wouldn’t have to train new detainers. He stumbled briefly as the station tilted further to one side and then grinned his normal evil grin. He looked at Jamie.
“And do you think they would like to travel a bit?” he asked, thinking of Welch and all that was owed.
Jamie smiled his best boyish smile. “Oh yes! Think of all the new people we can meet…and make beautiful!”
Crazy Ray patted him on the shoulder affectionately. “Yes, yes. You certainly do know how to make them beautiful for me. Let the others know to pack, and then you come up to my room.”
He waved Jamie off to the detainment wing and began to limp towards his suite as his security team ran up to fall in step with their boss. Each of them was armed and wired to explode.
Another team had also been sent aboard Welch’s cruiser and was awaiting Crazy Ray’s orders. It was time to negotiate for his new position in government, and this time Welch would give him everything he wanted. Of course, if he didn’t, then that would be fine too. Crazy Ray tilted his head and pulled out one of his blasters as they entered the lift. Time to play!
—————
Duv was running out of space and options. Even with the two fighters and the gunships jumping in and out, the AOC fleet had more ships and fire power. It was only a matter of time until they were trapped. Already several ships were flanking their position as Duv winged his way around debris and asteroids, firing the rail guns to blast an opening when things got too tight. The guns on the space station were still operational, as they had discovered earlier while trying to negotiate a quick turn to get behind a group of fighters. A few errant blasts by the fighters pursuing them had gone into the bays, and the space station had responded in kind, catching the gunship in a hail of high-explosive metal. The shields were holding so far, but if any of the larger guns from the st
ation or the cruisers landed direct hits, they would be in trouble.
“Captain, we need to find a hole, and fast. It looks like they are trying to force us in between the station and the cruisers. If that happens, we’re going to be trapped in their crossfire. We won’t last even a few seconds in there.”
Reilly looked around as she blasted another fighter from their path. There had to be a way out.
“Duv—what if we try for a blind jump using one of the other gunship’s coordinates?”
“That could work.” Duv banked the gunship hard and came back around as Chang and Marek plied the guns to mow down several more fighters. Laser scores created a series of streaks along the hull, and a couple of spots were starting to glow from the repeated hits. “Risky as hell, but there is a lot more space out there than stars and planets. So statistically, our chances of surviving would be better than what we got going for us in here!”
“Tiny, can you see if you can reach one of the gunships the next time it jumps in? See if you can get them to share some safe coordinates in an open area of space,” Reilly ordered as she flipped her ship around to clear their tail.
“Roger—let me see who I can get.” Tiny began channel hopping as the next gunship popped in. “Any ISU gunship, this is starfighter Bravo One Three Seven. I am requesting coordinates for a blind jump for us and gunship X-ray Delta Niner Seven Foxtrot Whiskey One. Standing by to copy.”
She recorded and sent the message on all of the likely gunship frequencies. A response came back immediately, and she opened a channel.
“Gunship Echo Joliet Twelve, this is starfighter Bravo One Three Seven. Do you copy?”
“Hey Tiny. Yeah, I can hear you just fine.”
Tiny slid her fighter sideways and pulled up in shock. “Seth? Is that you? What the hell are you doing here?”
“Looks like saving your lives,” Seth replied in a cheerful tone as he took out a shuttle, preparing to fire missiles on them. “No need to alert the others as to me being here and all, it’d just get them worried.”
“Did Zain send you?” Tiny asked, still in disbelief.
“Uh, something like that. He kinda filled me in that you all might need some help.”
The warning bells Tiny had heard at the base were ringing even louder in her head now. Only the situation prevented her from asking him more.
“We need to get them out of here, Seth. You have those coordinates?”
“Yes. There is an empty patch of space a few clicks from here, but make sure that once they hit it, Duv goes into stealth and jumps again to the additional coordinates I’m passing you. The AOC has this entire area locked down and has ringed it pretty good. They are planning to try to follow you back to the base if they can. If not, Welch has given them orders to capture and hold you or kill you. I think they are leaning towards the kill option right now,” Seth noted as he swung his gunship in a graceful arc and shot down a missile that was homing in on him. Tiny watched as the coordinates came up. She passed them to Duv to input. The cruisers were coming around. A large group of fighters had assembled behind them and had begun to slowly drive them into the range of the station guns again.
“I got the coordinates,” Duv confirmed. “I hope this guy knows what he’s doing!”
Tiny blasted at the nearest shuttle while Reilly picked off another fighter. “I’m pretty sure he does,” she said through gritted teeth. “Now go, and keep going until you hit the last coordinates. The Captain and I will see you there!”
The cruisers had finished their turn and were preparing to fire their main guns. At the same time, the station guns were pointing at them and charging. Duv punched the journey in and initiated. The gunship shimmered for a minute as the stealth system kicked on and then disappeared.
“Captain, they’re away! Go! I’m right behind you!” Tiny yanked hard on the stick as she and Reilly rolled in opposite directions to avoid the cruiser’s fire. A moment later, Reilly’s ship was gone too.
“Seth, we need to go! Now!” Tiny launched into a steep dive as the station added its guns to the mix.
“I’ll follow you and cover our tracks. I’m right behind you!” Seth returned fire and damaged part of one of the station guns, buying them both some time.
“No hero stuff, Seth. Let’s go!” Tiny turned the fighter and jumped away as well.
Seth fired again at the station, taking down the gun completely. He grinned and flung the gunship up steeply, flipping it around to jump. Suddenly a battle cruiser jumped into his path. He grabbed the yoke and dove as the collision alarms rang out. The cruiser’s defense guns trained on the gunship and sent a rain of tantalum rounds down on his position. The gunship heaved to one side, flipping and jerking as the starboard steering control went offline. He fought to keep the ship level and tried to return fire. Two AOC gunships appeared and fired electronic nets over his ship, frying the systems and killing the engine. The gunship sputtered and died. As the emergency power kicked in, Seth picked himself up off the floor.
The blue emergency lights flickered on as he ran towards the bay. Already he could hear them hooking to his hull. Seth pulled open the door to the armory and grabbed two battle rifles and a bandolier of grenades and ammo. He set up on the catwalk, watching as the plasma cutters began to cut into the hull to create a breach for the boarders. The first hatch appeared as an AOC soldier kicked it in, leading with his rifle. Seth began to calmly shoot them as they came through the hatch. He might be dead in the water, but he wasn’t about to go down without a fight.
—————
Duv completed the third journey, jumping into a quiet piece of space near a planet. “Where are they?” he muttered, watching the space around them.
Another flash and Reilly’s fighter appeared. She swung around and formed up next to them.
“Duv any sign of Tiny yet? Or any of the other gunships?” Reilly asked.
Just then another gunship came into view out of the shadow of the planet. Tiny jumped in a moment later as the crew breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“It is really good to see you, Captain! You too, Tiny!” The relief in Duv’s voice echoed the relief they all felt. Chang and Marek stretched and climbed up from the gunner pods to join Duv on the bridge.
“Good to be seen, Duv.” Reilly swung her ship around and brought it in tight under the gunship’s belly. “Gunny, you mind giving me a hookup? I’d like to come aboard and see my sergeant.”
Chang nodded and headed for the bay to let the fighter dock. Marek went with him. The fighter slid up into the small ship bay and settled as Chang closed the doors and then brought the deck up into the main bay. He jogged over as Reilly popped the canopy and climbed down the side gingerly. A moment later, Tiny’s fighter appeared as Marek brought it up into the bay. The Gaiden jumped down and joined them as Chang took them over to the gurney where Ty lay. Tiny pulled up his eyelids and then leaned over and listened to his breathing. The others watched her reactions.
“He’s pretty bad. I need to get him into a medical chamber now.”
Tiny turned to help Reilly up the catwalk, but the Captain waved her off.
“Go help Ty. I’ll be up in a minute and then you can take a look at me.”
Tiny nodded as Chang and Marek hooked the gurney into a lift and sent Ty up to the second level. Tiny jogged up the catwalk, still looking ready to fight, even with the dust and burns covering her and her armor. Marek followed her, while Chang hung back to walk with Reilly.
“So I take it Crazy Ray didn’t like your music?” Chang joked, pointing at Reilly’s bloody head.
She grinned, then grimaced. “No, that was Welch. And it was just me he didn’t like.”
“Marek mentioned that there were a few extra surprises on board. Sounds like getting back off was really exciting.”
“You have no idea,” Reilly said as she let him help her up the stairs.
“I always miss all the fun,” Chang said as he took
her weight and led her to the medical center.
—————
“So how are they, Doctor?” Chang asked in mock seriousness.
He handed a plate of food to Tiny as she turned to greet him, still wearing her armor. She smiled her thanks and then gestured to an extra chair. Chang sat as she grabbed a couple mouthfuls of food before answering.
“The Captain will be fine. She had a concussion from being struck in the head and some light shrapnel from the explosions in the bay. I was able to get most of it out, and there was no permanent damage. She needs to rest, though.”
Chang snorted. “Good luck, then. I would be surprised if she isn’t back up in a few hours trying to work.”
Tiny smiled a knowing smile. “She won’t be. When I gave her the painkillers and some nanobiotics, I slipped her a tranquilizer too. She’ll be out until tomorrow.”
Chang shook his head in admiration. The Captain would’ve caught on to him in a minute if he had tried to do that. He sobered as he looked over at his scout sniper friend. “And Ty?”
Tiny didn’t answer right away. The sergeant was pretty resilient; even so, she was unsure of what the outcome would be for him. He had severe head trauma and had lost a lot of blood. Hanging in the shaft hadn’t helped, as his body temperature had dropped several degrees and he had gone into shock. When they got back to the ship, she had done everything she could for him with the technology she had. She just hoped it would be enough.
“He’s tough. Looking at his records, he’s survived some pretty serious run-ins and come through fine.” Tiny raised her eyes to see Chang looking at her. “I don’t know, Gunny. They beat him badly. The skull fractures caused swelling in the brain and along the optic nerve where they fractured the orbital bones around his eye. I was able to mend the break to his nose, but there was some severe damage to the tissues. He must have caught a direct blow to the face with something heavy. It could’ve killed him. He’s lucky to still be alive.”