Irons steered the ship back toward the fortress, maneuvering to the other side of it. Firing off counter thrusters, he put the Lucky Liberty well away from the Hypergate entrance with enough room for the fortress to land between them.
“Just keep a hold of something. No Repulser this time,” Irons said.
One of the turrets finally ran out of bullets as more of the LAVs made their way to the Lucky Liberty. Inside, everyone was knocked around in their seat as the ship took on enemy fire. The single auto turret was unable to keep up before Catter gunfire ripped into it. The Lucky Liberty was weaponless, except for the single Wartech ship, still trying to take out as many more LAVs as it could.
The crew watched as the fortress made its way between them and the Hypergate.
“Wait…” Irons said.
“Captain,” Hannah said.
“Not yet…”
“As your second, I strongly suggest—” Syracuse started.
“Not yet…”
“Boss!” Durham yelled.
The center of the fortress finally started to pass.
“Now!” Irons threw the throttle up to max thrust.
* * *
The ship blasted toward the Catter fortress. The Bull Head deflected bullets and knocked away all LAVs in its path. The other attack ships surrounded it like a tunnel of gunfire. So many bullets hit the Earth cruiser, it was impossible to count which ones actually put holes in the old girl’s hull.
The USS Lucky Liberty finally smashed into the fortress, shoving it toward the Hypergate as the Bull Head crunched the fortress’s hull.
* * *
“Full speed!” Irons said.
Hannah punched in commands on her console. “Full speed, Aye, sir!”
* * *
The other side of the fortress slammed into the stationary gate. The Hypergate did not move. But what happened to the one piece of the fortress that was shoved through the gate was incredible and, in some ways, a grotesque sign of things to come.
* * *
“Sir,” Lindsay said. “It looks like the rest are retreating.”
Purple wormholes opened up all around them and the LAV’s flew straight into them before the portals blinked out as quickly as they’d opened.
Irons finally throttled down and maneuvered away from the fortress.
Getting far enough away from it took some time due to its size but when the ship finally swung around to get a look at the damage, the sight they took in was almost unbelievable.
The entry side of the Hypergate sucked the fortress in piece by piece. The metal exterior of the massive vessel bent, crunched, and twisted on itself like an aluminum can in the pull of the gate. But rather than crushing and pulling the whole thing through, it was ripping it apart and flinging the pieces on to the next gate.
Another wormhole, much larger than the others, opened directly between the Hypergate and the fortress. And then things got extremely interesting. The pieces of the fortress continued to break off and pass through the gate along with the energy of the portal. Whatever technology the Catters were using to open up the holes in space, it couldn’t stand up to the pull of the Hypergate.
Hannah stared. “How is that possible?”
“Wartech keeps its secrets,” Syracuse told her.
The purple of the wormhole looked like wind as it’s pulled into vacuum cleaner. On the other side of the gate, it appeared like crumpled leaves in the middle of fall being carried off by another passing wind. Or in the case of the Hypergates, a tornado.
The Catter fortress shook and shuddered as it was pulled against the entry side of the gate as if it was being devoured by some enormous creature on the other side off the Hypergate. The crew of the Lucky Liberty could only stare at the carnage and the power of Wartech’s Hypergate in awe and fearful respect.
Syracuse turned to Irons. “Don’t hit one of those things sideways.”
Unable to turn away, the crew watched until the fortress was small enough to be pulled in the rest of the way. The energy of the portal stayed a few seconds longer. Even though it was being sucked into the Hypergate, it seemed to have an infinite reserve as it never lost its size, however ineffective it became in its strange tug of war. Finally it blinked out of existence, leaving only the Hypergate and the Lucky Liberty, scarred but still able.
Durham leaned forward and kissed his control console. “You are the greatest ship ever, and I am sorry for my past and future spills on your wonderful steel floors.”
“Good shooting, Brooks,” Irons complimented.
“Thank you, sir.”
“Twenty-seven thousand miles,” Syracuse said. “Better get moving.”
“Right. We’ll come in the gate. Get a good head start. Then we’ll hit that gravity well and be back on track. Anything from Mars?”
Hannah pressed her headphones closer to her ears. “It’s faint.”
Everyone on the bridge held their breath to avoid any errant sounds while their Specialist tried to decipher the communication on the other side.
“Safe…few left…” Hannah said, repeating what she could make out. “…Out of nowhere? More Catter— Sir, it’s a distress call. SOS from Mars base!”
Twenty-One
Race to Ruin
The Lucky Liberty jerked as it was sucked through the Hypergate. Captain Irons narrowed the regulator and threw the throttle up to max, speeding the ship toward Mars.
No one said a word as Hannah tried to boost the communications signal.
“It’s coming in clearer, sir,” Hannah said. “Something about Catters being everywhere.”
Lindsay glanced in the AR visor. “Sir, we’re out of ammunition,”
“Don’t tell me the odds, Private,” Irons told her. “Hannah, can you get a call to them?”
“I’ll try, sir,” Hannah pressed. “Mars base this is USS Lucky Liberty. What’s your status? Over.”
The crew watched her with bated breath, hoping for some sign that those on Mars were ok.
“Mars base, this is Specialist Hannah Xuyen of Earth Fleet aboard the USS Lucky Liberty. Come back. Over.”
“What’s going on down there?” Syracuse asked.
Hannah turned to Irons. “Sir, it’s the same message.”
“Could it be a recording?” Durham asked.
“We’ll find out soon.” Irons pointed at the blue reticle on the display.
The blue circle spun and shrank, revealing the red planet it surrounded. Purple twinkling was going off above one specific area of the planet. It was plain to see the LAVs and Catter tanks flying into the wormholes. Irons instantly slowed the Lucky Liberty down.
“We can’t let them get away,” Lindsay said.
“We can’t fight’em either,” Irons told her.
The last of the Catter wormholes blinked out of existence, leaving the Lucky Liberty as the only working ship in orbit around Mars.
Other military cruisers floated aimlessly, cracked, broken and blown up. Devoid of any life aboard the space leviathans, the Mars Fleet ships drifted into the void. A few of the ships were locked in orbit with the red planet.
Syracuse shook his head. “This was a bloodbath,”
“We couldn’t have launched nukes anyway,” Irons added. “Not without boots on the ground.”
Durham frowned. “You think anyone survived this?”
“Mars Fleet is tougher than Earth Fleet,” Lindsay told him. “They have to be to live out here. For all we know the Catters were retreating.”
Irons and Syracuse had the same look. Lindsay was right, living this far from home took a different kind of soldier. Not just because of the distance but the gravity on Mars was less than that of Earth. That meant muscles developed differently. The Mars Fleet had to construct new regimens to maintain muscle development and stamina. The good news was that they could lift objects that would have been too heavy on Earth, with less effort on Mars. Strength and speed were such that each soldier on Mars was worth almost three on Earth. Sadly,
that meant little in the line of enemy gunfire.
Irons wanted to share Lindsay’s optimism but the evidence floating around the planet pointed to the opposite.
“I need to know what’s going on down there.”
“I’m sorry, Captain,” Hannah said. “It’s the same message, over and over. It must be a recording.”
“That’s one planet out of two,” Syracuse said. “We can’t let this happen to Earth.”
“What if they weren’t killed?” Durham tried to lighten the mood. “What if the Catters just took them?”
“Kid’s got a point.” Syracuse glanced at Irons. “No way to tell from up here.”
“Sir, the deadline,” Hannah said.
“I know. Set a course for the docks,” Irons told her.
“We’ll never make it in time.”
“That’s a risk we’ll have to take. Besides, we’re out of ammo and, after all these detours, lower on fuel. I doubt that extra bit in the bay is gonna be enough to get us home when this is over. And that don’t sit well with me.”
“Maybe we can get a call out to the Admiral down there,” Syracuse suggested.
“Probably a good idea.” Irons throttled up and steered the ship toward Mars, careful to avoid any of the debris. But that was more out of respect than worry.
* * *
The Lucky Liberty dropped below the thin, wispy white clouds of the Martian sky. Short bursts from the thrusters of the hull shot out at ten second intervals, slowing the ship as it descended straight down. The lower gravity kept the massive ship from falling too fast.
The display screen showed only passing sky as they dropped lower and lower.
“Running thermal scans.” Hannah looked down at her console and shook her head. “Multiple heat signatures. None of them human.”
“More Catters?” Durham asked.
Irons only pointed at the screen.
The crew watched heat waves ripple upwards on the display screen as the ship slowed its descent toward the ground.
Durham watched as burning buildings came into view. “Catters didn’t do this to Earth.”
“First, they took Earth’s fleet then Mars’s,” Irons said. “I gotta give’em credit. They didn’t just stunt us. They paralyzed us.”
* * *
The gangplank of the USS Lucky Liberty lowered and the crew stepped out onto it before it touched the ground. It was plain to see the destruction before they even had a full view of it.
Fires spread out from the Mars base docks all the way out toward the horizon.
Durham looked through the scope of his rifle and got a closer view of the destruction. “Well, they put up a fight. There’s a couple of burned out LAVs up on that ridge over there. Blood splatter on the cockpit window.”
“They were ambushed,” Lindsay said. “They had to be.”
“Just like us.” Irons stepped forward.
The crew stepped down onto the Martian soil and took note of their surroundings. Soldiers and Catters lay strewn around the base. Mars’s own jets littered the terrain. It was hard to tell what was Mars Fleet and what was Catter amidst the wreckage.
“They weren’t taking prisoners here, Boss,” Durham whispered.
“No, they weren’t.”
Each member of the Lucky Liberty kept their eyes sighted down the barrels of their guns, ready for any potential ground attacks.
“Let’s just hope there’s someone left,” Syracuse said.
“Let’s just hope a Catter airstrike doesn’t come down on us,” Irons replied.
A crash from inside the dock echoed outside and each crew member swung their weapons to face front. Their training kept them from shooting before they knew what they were up against but even Lindsay Brooks’s trigger finger was shaking.
Twenty-Two
Changing the Game
The sheer carnage that befell the Mars base had the entire crew on edge.
“Everyone take it easy,” Syracuse cautioned. “Steady, deliberate movements. We don’t want anyone running into any walls.”
The Earth-accustomed muscles of the crew were much more powerful in the lower gravity of Mars. Maintaining a tight formation was difficult. The stronger you were on Earth, the stronger you were on Mars. But that meant far more on the red planet. Even a person of fairly weak Earth stature could lift nearly three times the weight on Mars. These highly trained crew members were accustomed to intense training regiments. The past few years of mining work did little to change that as long as they crewed for James Irons. They had to be careful here where their strength counted for so much more than they were used to. On Earth, they were normal soldiers. On Mars, they were practically super soldiers.
“That sound came from inside the dock,” Durham said.
“Yup. Exactly where we’re going,” Irons replied.
Their boots stepped heavily on the terrain, each soldier making sure of secure contact before continuing with the next step. Durham watched their rear. Each crew member kept one hand on another’s shoulder to maintain their formation and keep up. Only Irons, taking point, kept both hands on his rifle. If whatever made that sound in the dock decided to attack them, Irons would be the first to identify and fire if necessary.
The red dirt gave way to steel flooring as they made their way closer to the mouth of the dock.
“You see anything ain’t human you fire at will,” Irons ordered.
“That include Nordics, sir?” Lindsay Lindsay swept her gun left to right.
“No Nordics on Mars base,” Syracuse said. “At least not last time I was here. They don’t have a military anyway. No reason for them to be here.”
* * *
The sight inside the dock was even worse than outside. Machinery and transport vehicles burned. Jets that hadn’t made it out were wrecked nearly beyond recognition. Most were empty but those that did have pilots in them were now coffins. Grisly was the sight of the Mars base.
Syracuse kicked a nearby supply crate, sending it flying out of the dock much farther than he anticipated. “Earth Grav Conductors must have been hit. No normal movements, kiddos.”
“Hey, Boss,” Durham started. “Bet I can beat you at arm wrestling now.”
“Shut it, Durham,” Irons said, surveying the carnage.
“At least they put up a fight.” Lindsay noted the number of dead Catters in the dock.
“Mars base builds’em tough,” Irons replied.
“Still, I wouldn’t want to fight a Catter in this gravity. Those things will knock you clear off the planet,” Syracuse said.
Durham chuckled at the remark. “That’s an exaggeration, right?”
No one answered his question.
“Right, XO?”
“Xuyen, on me,” Irons said. “We find the control center. The rest of you keep an eye out. Stick together and find supplies for our girl. I want her re-stocked in fifteen.”
“Sir, we don’t have an extra fifteen,” Hannah reminded him.
“We also don’t have a choice. We’ll figure it out. Any survivors come with us.”
The others nodded and broke formation.
* * *
Irons and Xuyen stepped cautiously over the bodies of friend and foe alike. To their eyes it looked as if there were as many fallen Catters as there were Mars Fleet soldiers. Maybe even more.
“Wow,” Hannah said. “Mars really gave them a fight, sir.”
“That they did. They don’t train’em like this on Earth. You wouldn’t catch me fighting a Mars Fleet soldier.”
“But aren’t Earth Fleet stronger out here?”
“That don’t mean nothing if you can’t even hit your opponent. The muscle control these guys have is incredible. It’s no wonder the Catters have such high casualties.”
“They had the numbers, too.” Hannah’s voice had a twinge of sorrow.
“That they did.”
* * *
“Are we supposed to find actual Wartech rounds here?” Durham smashed a wooden crate wi
th his fist. “I could get used to this.”
“Keep it up, Durham and you’re coming back to clean this whole place by yourself,” Syracuse scolded.
“Sorry, sir.”
“The ammunition for the turrets is standard issue. The guns are what’s special.” Lindsay pried off the top of a crate labeled H4. The nails caused some effort but under the circumstances it wasn’t much. The lid flew off of the crate and smashed into a wall. “Sorry sir.”
“Anything useful?” Syracuse asked.
“These are the right rounds.”
“We’re gonna need a lot more than that.” Durham scanned the dock.
“I want every box with that label on the ship,” Syracuse ordered.
“Shouldn’t take long in this gravity.” Lindsay hoisted the crate with minimal effort.
“I’m gonna find a fuel hose,” Syracuse said.
* * *
“Sir, this area looks clean,” Hannah said.
She and Irons walked slowly through a hallway. The overhead lights flickered, giving the whole corridor an ominous feel, as if something was hiding in the shadows, waiting to strike at any moment. One of the bulbs from behind them shattered. The sound startled Hannah and she spun around but went too far in the lower gravity.
She kept spinning until she finally hit the wall.
“You ok?” Irons asked.
She steadied herself. “I’m fine. Just lost control.”
“Deliberate movements.”
Hannah frowned. “We can’t control motions. If a Catter gets the jump on us, there’s no way we can fight back like this.”
“I’m betting we hear something that big move before it gets the drop on us. As much trouble as we’re having, I promise the Catters had even more.” Irons forced a smile.
“Yes sir,” Hannah responded uncertainly.
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