“Simple instincts, Captain. The Admiral was prepared to use nukes in Earth atmosphere during the initial attack. If she knew the Catter fleet was in Jupiter she would have launched a final solution of the missile stores on Mars.”
“Why is that bad?” Lindsay asked.
“It’s a giant gas planet and those are nuclear missiles. I don’t mean to sound condescending, Private Brooks, but lighting a big match in a gas-filled room is never a good idea,” Benjamin said. “And to be honest, I have no clue what would actually happen in an explosion of that size within a compacted gas sphere. It could cause a wave that spans hundreds of millions of miles. And if that wave hits Earth, we’d be causing the very thing we’re trying to prevent.”
Irons stood silent, deep in thought about the new revelation. Would Mona have really had that knee jerk reaction? Was Benjamin’s speculation correct? But more than any of that, what in the world was one ship— an older ship like the Lucky Liberty— going to do against another fleet? Especially when it only had one gun.
“Why the game?” Syracuse asked. “They had us dead to rights. And we know their fleet is bigger than that. Why make us go through all of this?”
“The chatter we’ve heard so far,” Benjamin said. “I don’t think extermination and take over is the end scheme. I think the Catters intend to take over and enslave.”
“Not while I’m breathing,” Irons said. “Hannah, you got an answer for me?”
“Still working on it, Captain.”
“Work faster. These Catters wanna blow up the Earth, that’s one thing. They wanna put a muzzle on me, they better think again.”
“I’m glad to hear it, Captain Albatross.” Benjamin’s voice took on that giddy school boy tone. “I realize that we don’t have much time but if this is going to work, the Lucky Liberty is going to need a lot more than the one gun.”
“You sending a re-supply ship?” Syracuse asked.
“Well, it’s not exactly a ship.”
Irons watched the display screen for any kind of space vessel. What he got, instead, was most unexpected.
An area of the moon started to move—giant doors started to open. The entry gates sank into the surface before parting from each other. A strange, translucent wave rippled out as the doors opened.
“FACs?” Hannah asked.
“What’s that?” Durham watched the energy wave where the moon doors opened.
“Force Atmosphere Containers,” Syracuse answered.
The Force Atmosphere Container or FAC for short was a wall of electromagnetism. As thin as a bed sheet but stronger than the hexagonal diamond mineral, lonsdaleite. Perfect for mining without the use of a suit or for being a temporary wall to keep the vacuum of space from pulling everything into it.
“Why does that not surprise me?” Irons said.
“What, that the moon is hollow or that it’s a Wartech property?” Syracuse asked.
“Well, it’s off the books either way,” Benjamin said through a smile that everyone could hear. “Welcome to Wartech’s restock station. For all of your long distance needs.” He said it like he was trying to make a dollar, knowing full well this was a pro-bono arrangement.
Irons lightly nudged the throttle up.
The ship slowly lumbered toward the moon entrance.
“We’re going to make sure the Lucky Liberty is fully armed and ready for whatever the Catters can dish out,” Benjamin said. “She’ll be just like her old self. Well…Old but new and improved.”
“Can we pass through an FAC?” Durham asked.
“Don’t worry. That FAC—“
“Sir!” Lindsay yelled. “Enemy ships approaching from dark side of the moon!”
The Iron Albatross’s eye darted to the upper right section of the moon and widened at the sight of two Catter tanks coming around the curve of the Earth’s neighbor satellite.
Twelve
Hurdles in the Void
“Sir, they’ve locked onto us,” Lindsay said as she dropped the AR visor down over her eyes.
“Give them a smaller target,” Syracuse said.
Irons turned the wheel of the ship starboard and nudged the throttle upwards a centimeter. Any more and the Lucky Liberty would blast toward the moon— and a crash landing.
Lindsay’s field of view showed nothing but the surface of the moon passing by as the Lucky Liberty maneuvered to face the approaching enemy head on.
“We got one gun without a full load and two of those tanks coming at us,” Durham said to Lindsay. “I don’t think they’ll be charmed by your looks when we run out of ammo.”
“Captain?” Lindsay shook her head.
“Let her do her job, Durham,” Irons said. “Brooks, make sure your shots are strategic. Don’t waste anything on the hulls.”
“Feel free to unleash the full load, Private Brooks,” Benjamin said.
“You overriding me, Stevens?”
“No, sir. It’s just that when you’re done with those tanks, you’ll be restocked, fully armed and fueled so don’t worry about waste. Plus, you’re not alone.”
XO Hill’s eyes darted to another transmission feed on the display. Five ships with the Wartech logo, a simple W with an older model AK-47 across it, were painted on their tails burst out from the door of the moon. Shooting upward, they curved around toward the Catter tanks.
“I appreciate the assist, Stevens, but those things will be torn to shreds by those tanks,” Irons said.
“You’re about to get a first hand demonstration of our latest product, Captain,” Benjamin told him. Again, the whole crew could hear the smile on the CEOs face. “We had to leave these out of the conference because— well, just watch.”
* * *
The Wartech ships flew straight for the Catter tanks, blasting rapid fire bullets at the deck armaments. Not a particularly spectacular feat, the smaller ships did what any ship of their class would do, dodging Catter fire while returning their own. They veered left then right before zooming up then down while firing at the enemy in between evasive actions.
* * *
“In my sights, Captain!” Lindsay shouted.
“Fire at will!” Irons ordered.
* * *
Giant muzzle bursts shot out from the main cannon of the Lucky Liberty, spewing rapid fire rounds toward the enemy while the Wartech ships acted as an offensive distraction.
* * *
“It ain’t gonna be enough,” Irons said.
“Worst case, those company flies get wrecked and we run out of bullets,” Syracuse started. “We still got the Bull Head.”
“Those things shoot back,” Durham complained.
“Act like a soldier!” Lindsay barked.
“Sorry if I’m a little anxious, hot stuff. I’m into small arms tactical. Not big ship tactical.”
“Shut it, Durham!” Irons ordered. “Just keep your eyes on those things and give Brooks a hard target so we can end this quick!”
Several Catter blasts hit the Bull Head of the ship, rocking everyone on the bridge.
“I’m not impressed so far, Stevens. You got something up your sleeve, let’s see it.” Irons kept the ship steady.
“Of course, Captain.”
* * *
Suddenly, a light projection shot out several yards from each of the Wartech ships. At the end of the projection was a, blurry, but exact copy of each ship. Every movement the main ships made, the projections followed.
* * *
“Neat trick if I wanna scare off mountain lions,” Irons said.
* * *
One of the ships shot upward and arched back down. Gun fire emanated from its weapons. The projected ship mirrored the shots. At first it looked like double the gun bursts— a basic military light show— until closer inspection.
* * *
“You have hard light projectors?” Hannah voice rose an octave.
“We have hard light projectors,” Benjamin told her.
* * *
Twice the bullets
ripped into the Catter tanks. What started as four small ships became eight ships against two larger ones.
The maneuverability of the Wartech ships made it difficult for the Catter tanks to follow. Each tank had eight turrets and one main cannon, much like the Lucky Liberty’s. Despite having twice as many guns as there were small ships, the tanks should have had little trouble removing them from the battle but the Wartech ships had no trouble outmaneuvering the enemy fire. Not to mention, the hard light projected ships were immune to return fire. For all intents and purposes, the Catters had eight ships attacking them but only four targets.
Two large explosions burst from the guns of the nearest tank, rendering them useless. Six guns remained on that ship and although that certainly improved the odds of the Earth vessels, the Catter tanks still outgunned the smaller ships and the Lucky Liberty.
* * *
“There!” Durham shouted. “The domes on top. That’s got to be the bridge for those things.”
“Why would they expose their central command that way?” Syracuse asked.
“I agree. That ain’t real tactical,” Irons said.
“I’m sure that’s it, Boss. It’s the only component that has nothing leading to it,” Durham explained. “That means everything under that dome is an output of some sort.”
“The Catter’s have made improvements to their fleet since the war,” Benjamin said. “Judging by these readings, the tanks are far more advanced than they’ve ever been. The amount of tech inside must have been too much for the bridge to be better positioned. A dome is structurally sound. Better than a vertical wall.”
“Sir!” Lindsay yelled. “One of the Wartech ships just blew up.”
“They’ve probably figured out the flight and attack patterns,” Syracuse said.
“That’s affirmative, sir,” Hannah chimed in. “The enemy will be able to predict the movements of the ships, soon.”
“They’re just gonna take us one by one.” Syracuse looked over at Irons.
“They can afford it.” Durham watched the screen as another Wartech ship, along with its hard light projection, exploded in a fireball. “Another Wartech ship down.”
“Hold your fire, Brooks,” Irons ordered. “We’re gonna take out those bridges.”
“I can’t get a clear shot from this angle, sir.”
“I am well aware of the limitations, Private. Just keep a calm finger over that trigger and fire when target is in sight.”
Irons hit a button, lighting up the readouts for the hull thrusters. He nudged the throttle and brought it right back down.
* * *
The Lucky Liberty moved upward, rising above the Catter tanks while the remaining two Wartech ships continued to take out more of the guns.
The rear hull thrusters burst once, raising the stern so its bow pointed down.
* * *
“Fire when ready, Brooks,” Syracuse ordered.
* * *
Two bursts fired from the main cannon. The large projectiles shot through the vacuum of space and into the dome of one of the tanks.
* * *
Everyone on the Lucky Liberty watched as both shells cracked the dome. Pieces of it broke off then floated up and out.
“Give it one more for good measure,” Irons said.
* * *
One more burst from the main cannon sent another bullet racing toward the dome on top of the Catter tank.
The projectile ripped through it and shattered the rest of the structure. The gun fire from the deck guns stopped immediately.
“I think that did it,” Syracuse smiled.
“Good call, Durham. Let’s move onto that other one,” Irons ordered. “Stevens, tell your people to concentrate their fire on the dome sitting on that thing’s deck.”
“Right away, Captain Irons.”
“Um, sir?” Lindsay said with hesitation in her voice.
The rest of the crew re-focused on the display screen as a giant cannon rose from the shattered dome and turned to the first Wartech ship.
A charging light spiraled at the barrel of the cannon as though drawing something in before it finally launched a beam at one of the smaller ships.
The Wartech ship veered out of the main blast line but was destroyed soon after.
“Sir!” Hannah yelled. “I’m getting radial heat readings ten yards off that blast. Even if the main beam doesn’t strike, anything it shoots at has to be at least ten yards away or the radiant heat will make it like they just sat there.”
“A gun with a blast radius?” Irons asked, worried.
Thirteen
Have Gun Will Travel
The last two Wartech ships launched a barrage assault as the Catter’s beam cannon recharged. The smaller caliber guns did little to damage the new weapon while the tank’s other guns fired at the ships.
“We need to get outta firing radius!” Durham yelled.
“Activating port side thrusters.” Irons grabbed the throttle.
Hannah finished running a calculation. “Sir, recharge time on a shot like that is thirty seconds,”
“So what?”
“We have twenty more until they can fire again. If Lindsay can put one right in—”
“Understood. Captain, get me on its port side,” Lindsay said.
Irons gritted his teeth and hit the throttle, moving the Lucky Liberty to the right just as the tank cannon reached its full charge.
“Eleven yards. We’re clear!” Hannah shouted.
The beam projectile burst from the Catter’s gun, passing safely by the Lucky Liberty.
“Gimme a rear view,” Irons ordered.
Hannah’s fingers danced across her console and a view from the stern of the ship appeared on the screen. The beam continued on into space before dissipating.
“Ok, that shot has a limited reach but I still don’t want to get caught in it,” Irons said. “What’s the plan, Brooks?”
“Sir, just line me up with that gun. I’ll take care of it.”
* * *
The beam weapon swiveled on its turret, lining back up with the Lucky Liberty as it repositioned itself on the other side of the tank. The yellow swirl of energy began again, like a small whirlpool that steadily grew larger until the vortex was swallowed up by a miniature sun.
* * *
“Brooks, if you’re gonna do something…” Irons started.
“Almost there,” Lindsay muttered.
Her vision filled with the yellow charge of the beam cannon as it came to a stop, aimed dead at her. The light was terribly bright. Lindsay worried it would throw off her aim but she trusted her Captain’s ability just as he trusted hers.
She squinted her eyes, trying to keep sight of her target.
Through the harsh glow, Lindsay finally caught a glimpse of the little whirlpool in the center.
“We’re off center,” she said to herself. “One burst, bow side up.”
“Copy that.” Irons tapped commands on his console and he hit the throttle, launching the front end of the ship up as he did on Earth.
Lindsay’s visor finally met with the center of the beam cannon just as the glow faded. “Now!” She pulled the trigger of the main cannon.
* * *
The single bullet fired and entered the beam cannon just as the same glow burst out.
The glow dissipated and the the Catter tank was still. Suddenly an explosion erupted from the cannon and created a domino effect throughout the rest of the Catter tank. Fiery bursts blasted out like cascading rings from the enemy cruiser, separating entire sections of the ship from one another. The ensuing flames were extinguished almost as fast as they occurred as the vacuum of space sucked them out into the void.
The Wartech ships blew out two more guns from the second Catter tank as the dome slowly opened. The charging glow was already at its highest phase as another beam cannon rose from the enemy ship.
* * *
“Good shot, Brooks,” Irons said. “Think you got another one in ya?
”
“Not from this vantage, sir.”
“Changing course.” Irons turned the wheel, maneuvering the ship to face the enemy cruiser.
* * *
One of the Wartech ships and its projection flew into the path of the beam, firing round after round into the cannon’s opening. The energy from the charging beam distorted the hard light copy, rendering it useless. Only the single ship continued its assault on the beam cannon.
* * *
“Stevens, tell that idiot to get clear,” Irons said.
“They’re drone ships, Captain,” Benjamin said. “Programmed to take the most efficient courses of action. Apparently this one has calculated that—”
* * *
With no warning, the single ship blasted forward, right into the beam cannon just as it fired.
The explosive blast was instant.
The beam cannon was ripped from its place as the center of the Catter tank burst out like a soda can exploding from the inside. Small flashes of purple lights sparkled outside of the destroyed cruiser. Twinkling on and off. As soon as they were there, they were gone.
* * *
“What are those star bursts?” Syracuse asked.
“Don’t know. Don’t care,” Irons answered.
The Iron Albatross was rarely one to question a good thing. And the destruction of those two Catter tanks was definitely a good thing.
“Permission for R&R, Boss?” Durham asked.
IRON SPEAR Page 6