Shortly after the George Washington settled into a position near the Voyager, Admiral Halsey came over in one of her shuttlecraft. When she arrived in the starboard flight deck of the ship, Admiral Hunt and Admiral Bailey were there to greet her. They welcomed her aboard the Republic’s newest warship and then proceeded to guide her up to the large boardroom near the bridge to meet with the President.
Once they were all in the same room, President Luca shook Admiral Halsey’s hand. “Thank you, Admiral, for your hard work and efforts in the Rhea system,” she said. Then she presented Admiral Halsey with a small box. Opening it, Halsey saw a set of three stars for her collar, to replace the set of two stars she currently wore. The President also awarded her the second-highest military award, the Navy Cross, for her gallantry in the face of the enemy during the battle to take New Eden from the Zodarks.
As the formalities of her award and promotion ceremony concluded, the senior officers of Space Command and the civilian leadership took their seats to have a long-awaited meeting of the minds and strategy discussion about the future.
President Luca led off the conversation. “Admiral Halsey, you’ve been in this system now for more than a year. What do you feel you need to get a working shipyard going that will handle the necessary repairs? And what about a series of defensive bases built to protect the system?”
Admiral Halsey leaned forward. “Resources, Madam President. We need people, and we need resources to get this all done.” Halsey paused for a second as she looked off in the distance before returning her gaze to the President. “As you can see firsthand, Madam President, space is a big place. Trying to build an orbital station for our space elevator is proving to be challenging as it is. Building a colony on the planet, building a planetary defensive system around New Eden and the two neighboring moons—these are very resource-intensive activities. We need hundreds of construction tugs, tens of thousands of 3-D printers, an army of synthetics, agriculture, food stocks, and farm animals. I mean, the list is practically endless, Madam President.”
President Luca shared a nervous look with Admiral Bailey. The two of them had known Admiral Halsey’s fleet was stretched pretty thin, but they clearly hadn’t fully understood the gravity of the situation.
President Luca turned to Governor Crawley. “David, it looks like you’re going to have your work cut out for you,” she remarked.
Not missing a beat, the up-and-coming young politician replied, “I look forward to the challenge, Madam President. What Admiral Halsey has done up to this point is nothing short of incredible, and it really speaks to her leadership abilities.”
Crawley turned to Halsey. “Admiral, I’m here to help you. I’ll be taking many of the administrative duties off your shoulders and will largely handle the civilian development of the planet and the system. We’ve heard your requests for help, and it has arrived.”
Admiral Halsey smiled, and she let out a deep sigh of relief. “I look forward to working with you, Governor. This place has enormous potential, but I won’t lie—it’s going to be tough getting this place built up. We need an enormous amount of supplies brought to us from Sol, and I don’t mean one or two Ark transports. I mean we need a continual gravy train of supplies and people if we’re to get this place up and running.”
The President turned to her military chief. “Admiral Bailey, is there any way we can speed up the transportation of supplies to assist Admiral Halsey and Governor Crawley?”
The fleet admiral scratched his head for a moment. “Not right away, Madam President,” he replied with a sigh. “We’re in a bit of a bind when it comes to our logistics and ship production right now. With the Zodark threat, we’ve gone all-in on warships. We had originally planned on building six Ark-class transports, but we only completed two of them. A third Ark was converted to become the George Washington, another shell has been slated to build another dreadnought, and the other two shells are still in the shipyard, incomplete. Our smaller transports were put on hold in favor of constructing a much larger fleet of frigates, battleships, and orbital assault ships. It’s just going to take time to build up the navy we need.”
President Luca blew some air out of her lips. She clearly wasn’t exactly happy with that answer. She turned to her newly minted admiral and posed the same question.
Hunt didn’t want to contradict his boss, but he was hoping he could thread the needle. “Madam President, we have limited transport capability; no one is going to sugarcoat or deny that. While we can’t correct that problem right away, we can leverage what we have more efficiently.
“The Arks are massive. They can comfortably transport up to thirty thousand people for long distances. What we can do is have one of these transports focus on bringing materials, livestock, and necessary equipment from Sol directly to New Eden. As they offload their supplies, they can be loaded with materials to bring back to Sol. The trick to making the transports we have more efficient is going to be our ability to load and offload them swiftly in both Sol and here in New Eden. If we can solve that part of the equation, we’ll be able to move twice as many goods and people in the same amount of time.”
As the group continued their discussions, a lieutenant walked in with an urgent message for Admiral Hunt. He leaned over and spoke softly in his ear, and Hunt’s eyebrows rose.
“We’ll be up there momentarily,” he responded.
“What is it, Hunt?” Bailey asked, a bit unnerved by the sudden interruption.
Hunt looked at Luca and Bailey as he explained, “One of our first scout ships, a Viper, detected a convoy of Zodark ships headed toward the stargates that lead to our system. They sent a com drone back through the gate, letting us know the size and composition of the enemy fleet before they swooped in to engage them with their plasma torpedoes.”
President Luca’s eyes went wide as saucers at the mention of the Zodarks. “They’re headed here? When? How soon will they arrive?” she demanded.
Hunt held up a hand to stop her from asking more questions. “We need to go to the bridge, Madam President. I’ll know more once we get up there. But before we do, I need to ask that you please remain calm and steady. I suspect we’ll have several days before the enemy is here, so there’s no need to panic. We’re not under direct threat as of right now.”
Bailey nodded as he made eye contact with the President, and the two of them got up to follow him out to the bridge. When they entered the massive command center, they saw officers and enlisted personnel working quietly and smoothly, running through their standard procedures and routines like nothing was out of the ordinary.
President Luca seemed to calm down at the sight. Perhaps she realized that if these professionals were not alarmed, then she shouldn’t be either.
Upon entering the bridge, Hunt walked over to the tactical officer. “What’s the situation with that Viper? What do we know so far?”
When the officer manning the tactical station turned around and saw the admiral followed by the fleet admiral and the President right behind him, he clearly felt a bit awkward. “Sir, um…we just received a com drone message fifteen minutes ago,” he stammered. “It popped through the stargate and started transmitting. Commander Dobbs, the captain, said they had spotted a convoy of Zodark ships heading toward the stargate that would lead them to the system next door to us.”
That’s my son’s ship, Hunt thought nervously. He did his best to conceal his emotions, but he knew the Viper was a recon ship that wasn’t meant for battle against the Zodarks.
“So they’re at least two stargate jumps away from reaching Rhea?” Hunt clarified.
The tactical officer nodded. “Exactly, sir. At currently estimated speeds, it places them around three or four days away from us.”
“OK, this is good information to know. What’s the ship composition?” Hunt asked next, trying to drill down into exactly what they were facing.
“We’re still a little sketchy on their ship types, but what we do know is at least two of them
appear to be just like that carrier we captured,” the tactical officer explained, reading through the contents of the message again. “Four others looked like the battleship that had been escorting the carrier. Three other ships resemble the smaller type of Zodark vessel you first encountered. And there appear to be six ships that are likely transport ships. We’re guessing those are probably troop transports.”
Admiral Halsey let out a soft whistle. “That’s a lot of ships heading our way.”
Hunt chuckled. “It is, but I’m confident we can handle them,” he countered. “As a matter of fact, I think this may work to our benefit.”
“How so?” she replied skeptically.
“We know they’re coming, and we know they’ll have to jump through a specific stargate. We can move our ships over to that location and be camped out, waiting for them to arrive. When they jump through, then we spring our trap and pulverize their fleet before they even know what happened.”
“Do you think your fleet is strong enough to take them on?” Admiral Bailey pressed.
Hunt nodded confidently. “I do,” he said. “It looks like they have eight warships. I’ve got the George Washington, six battleships, eight TPA cruisers, and eighteen frigates. The volume of firepower we’ll be able to unleash when they jump into the system will wipe them out. Once we’ve defeated their fleet, then we’ll be in a position to launch our invasion of their space and move to liberate the Sumerian home world.”
Admiral Halsey smiled. “I like this plan, Hunt. It’s our turn to get some payback.”
“Sir, we’re receiving another message from the Viper,” announced the coms officer a couple of stations over.
“What’s it say?” Hunt asked.
“Commander Dobbs says she’s retreating to Rhea to join us,” the coms officer explained. “She’s attached a video and some initial analysis her crew ran. It looks like they ambushed the Zodarks at one of the gates and scored a few hits. I’m sending the message and video over to the CIC to have them look it over.”
Nodding in approval, Hunt pulled up the message on the command tablet he always kept on him. He briefly looked at the video and the initial notes that came along with it. The first thing he noticed was how the Zodark ships that had just jumped through the gate were virtually helpless for about sixty seconds. It confirmed his suspicions. The Zodark ships took some time after a jump to recalibrate their sensors before they could defend themselves or attack anyone. It supported his plan to gate camp the enemy fleet and destroy them as they jumped through.
He turned to Admiral Bailey. “Admiral, I’m going to move my fleet to the gate and prepare our ambush. You are more than welcome to stay on the GW and observe firsthand if you’d like, but I can’t guarantee we won’t take any hits during this battle. I think it’s highly unlikely they’ll destroy the GW, but I need to make you aware that it could happen.”
“Thank you, Admiral Hunt. I think it may be best if President Luca and I transfer over to the Voyager and monitor the battle from a distance,” Admiral Bailey announced. The President was visibly relieved by this decision.
Over the next couple of hours, the two Republic leaders hurriedly packed their belongings and transferred on a shuttlecraft to the Voyager nearby. Governor Crawley and his people were transported down to the main RA base on New Eden. They’d hunker down with the Army while they began the process of getting the first colony up and running and dealing with all the other civilian functions they’d been sent to handle. Meanwhile, the rest of Admiral Hunt’s fleet got ready to jump to the stargate.
Chapter Twelve
Emerald City
New Eden
Victory Base Complex
The Osprey flew over Victory Base Complex, what the soldiers called the VBC, as President Luca looked out the window and saw the alien planet, New Eden, for the first time. It was beautiful beyond anything she had imagined. The videos and pictures she’d seen over the years couldn’t compare to seeing it firsthand. She now understood what everyone meant when they described the planet’s unmatched beauty.
The sprawling military bases below appeared to be scattered across several large hills and ridges. Part of one of the bases looked like it had seen better days.
“That used to be a Zodark military base before the invasion,” one of the crew chiefs explained. “It’s actually a conglomeration of several military bases all strung together for added protection. Each base had its own separate function.”
Along one of the flat areas was a series of runways and parking ramps chock-full of Ospreys, VACs for the infantry, and several other transport craft. “The base we’re headed to handles the air operations and transportation for the bases,” said the crew chief.
President Luca spotted another facility being built along the ridge that seemed to be protecting the airport-spaceport facility. It was ringed with artillery pieces, fortifications, and other facilities whose functions she had no idea of. What amazed her most was how quickly all of this had been built. In fifteen months, the Army had built this massive base that was home to some fifty-two thousand soldiers.
She’d already been told by one of the generals that the army had three such facilities built in strategic locations around the planet. They had a smattering of forty-two smaller firebases in other strategic positions as well, which were more closely linked to the mining operations.
As they approached the airstrip, a massive plot of land a dozen miles from the base caught her eye. It connected directly to the ocean, and it was gorgeous. She wagered this was the location where they’d build the first human city.
“It’s quite a view, isn’t it, Madam President?” asked Governor David Crawley as they both looked out the window.
She smiled, turning her head slightly. “I’m envious of you, David. You get to stay and build a city from scratch on a new planet.”
Crawley nodded. “I’m eternally grateful that you selected me to be the governor, Madam President. We’re going to build an incredible city for our people, one that will stand the test of time.”
One of the crew chiefs walked over to them. “I’m going to need you both to strap in,” he interjected. “We’re coming in on final approach.”
President Luca reattached her harness. The time to gawk out the windows at this new world was done for the time being.
The Osprey flew over the airstrip and settled down near one of the large hangars. As its engines wound down, a large group of soldiers and a marching band moved into position outside the Osprey doors to welcome the President.
While that was happening, the crew chiefs and pilot came over to welcome Luca to New Eden and the base. They then opened the rear hatch, the warm air rushing in to greet them.
When President Luca walked near the rear ramp, she held her hand up to shield her eyes from the sunlight. They had told her it was a bit brighter on the surface of New Eden than Earth, and they were right. The Rhea system did, after all, have three suns.
The first sound she heard, aside from that of engines from various military vehicles, was a band starting up. She realized they were playing “Hail to the Chief” as she walked off the Osprey.
Several military officers stepped forward to greet her. “Hello, Madam President, I’m Major General Ross McGinnis. It’s a real pleasure to see you here,” the ground commander of the Republic Forces said as they shook hands.
President Luca smiled. “Thank you, General, for the warm reception,” she replied. Her hand swept to her left. “This is Governor David Crawley, the new governor of New Eden and the head of the civilian government. He and his people will help alleviate a lot of the challenges you’ve been facing here.”
“Thank you, Madam President, and it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Governor Crawley. We’re incredibly glad you are here and for the staff you’ve brought with you. If you’d like to follow me, I’ll take you on a short tour of some of the areas before we head back to my headquarters building.”
The three of them walked p
ast several rows of soldiers standing in formation, their M85 rifles held at attention. President Luca stopped a couple of times to say something to one of the soldiers and then continued on. When they neared the front of the hangar, there was an armored vehicle waiting for them.
The group climbed in, and a couple of her Secret Service agents settled in near the rear hatches. The vehicle drove away from the hangar, and they began their tour.
For the next hour, General McGinnis told President Luca and Governor Crawley about each of the bases and what their functions were. He informed them about life on the bases, and what the soldiers did to pass the time, and some of the things they had learned and discovered about New Eden. It was a lot of information to take in, but Luca was glad she had opted to come down to the planet and see this place for herself, even if it was only going to be a short trip.
The vehicle eventually came to a halt in front of a heavily fortified building. “We’re here,” said McGinnis. “If you’ll follow me, we’ll head inside. You can meet a few more soldiers before we go into the bunker to give you a more thorough briefing.”
Luca was impressed with how rapidly things had been built up here on the surface. This military base was less than two years old, and it already looked like it had been here for decades. Sometimes she had wondered where all the money being spent on defense was going—now she knew.
When they entered the bunker, Luca and Crawley were led over to a large conference room with a massive table. Everyone took their seats. Refreshments were brought in as the briefers prepared to share their information.
For the next two hours, they went over the details of New Eden and some of the major finds they’d made thus far. They also gave a good overview of their military operations to finish rooting out the remaining Zodark soldiers on the planet. According to their best intelligence, there weren’t many left at this point—however, the ones that were still around continued to cause enough problems that it was forcing General McGinnis to keep a large number of units out on daily and nightly patrols.
Into the Battle Page 18