Mark nodded, "we'll see. The practical side is that whatever equipment we send cuts down the number of people. I don't know if we can do it.”
After several more minutes of general status information, Kevin excused himself, commenting, "I'd better leave if I expect to make it during daylight."
Mark nodded, "they have a plane ready for you at the airport. It's a normal plane; we can't spare the VLVs from the island shuttle."
As he was leaving Takai commented, "make sure Annette and your family are on one of the evacuation shuttles; there may not be much time. We won't be sending ships to New Athens anymore; it's too exposed."
Kevin glanced back, but made no comment.
June 6, Year 35 . . .
Shortly after sunrise the Gath began to bombard the planet; humans, Torgai, and Kraa indiscriminately. Bombardment of New Athens, New Orleans, San Diego Rivera, and Atlantia was almost constant, but less populated areas were also included.
Initially ground fire was very effective against the orbiting ships, but in spite of the Gath losses, the laser cannon sites were slowly destroyed until, within 48 hours, ground fire largely ceased. Nearly all above-ground buildings in all four cities were leveled within the first hours as expected, but little damage was done to the bunkers scattered in the surrounding countryside; most of which remained undetected.
The ocean going ships and the VLVs shuttling back and forth between the mainland and the islands were ignored by the Gath. The Gath hadn't developed plans to attack such objects, and lacked the flexibility to make such changes without consultation. But even as the humans huddled in their bunkers events were unfolding on the eastern side of the continent that would have a profound impact.
June 10, Year 35
Kraa-Ki listened carefully as the pack leaders of the scout packs moved forward one by one and gave their reports. Scattered around among the trees her own pack lounged at ease, paying little attention. The picture was clear. While the Kraa had honored their agreement with the flat-faces, the flat-faces had now broken it. The lightning from the sky had started again, causing heavy losses among the Kraa. This time there would be no agreement. The packs would be given their orders to prepare for a campaign to wipe out the flat-faces. She was ready, and had many times more Kraa packs than she had ever had before. And over the years she had developed new tactics as well.
June 15, Year 35
Kraa-Kuk-T trotted along with his pack, his spear thrower at the alert position. This foothill area was rich in game, and the small, fleet antelopes were much easier for him to kill with his spear than for the pack to run down. But now he and the pack largely ignored the antelopes, continuing their rapid pace to the assembly area. Kraa-Ki had issued orders for all the packs to assemble in various locations high in the western foothills in preparation for an attack on the flat-faces.
Over the years, and particularly in recent months, Kraa-Kuk-T's feeling of incompleteness had grown. The Kraa were his people, but more and more he sensed his difference. This feeling of difference was greater with him than it was with either of his two wives or with the other Kraa-Torgai he occasionally had contact with; rare and limited contact since they belonged to different packs. He had seen and lived with the Torgai, and during that time had learned what companionship with other Torgai was, and he missed it.
"Maybe," he thought, "I shouldn't have returned."
When Kraa-Kuk-T had returned from the flat-faces he had been given a wife, and then, two years later, a second wife. Both lived in the compound where the Kraa-Torgai females raised their young, and they had given him 14 children. However, he felt few ties to his family since he rarely saw them. His ties had always been to his pack. It was Kraa-Kuk, his pack-mother, and his pack sisters, to whom he felt loyalty. They had raised him and had been there when he was growing up. But now that didn’t seem to be enough..
Now Kraa Ki had ordered destruction of all flat-faces, which meant destruction of all Torgai as well. Kraa-Kuk-T increased his pace and soon outdistanced his pack, which stopped and watched him as he disappeared out of sight.
Several days later . . . .
Kraa-Kuk-T continued his pace unaltered until within a few meters of the three Torgai blocking the path, then he stopped, identified himself, and made the appropriate greeting. The Torgai listened carefully as he explained his need to reach Hath to warn of the coming of the Kraa. The three Torgai had been in the area scouting for Kraa, and a flat-face was only a few hours away.
After a brief discussion among themselves, the leader of the Torgai patrol told Kraa-Kuk-T to follow, as he started down the path at a rapid pace, followed by the other two Torgai and then Kraa-Kuk-T. That flat-face could send a message to the Torgai villages and the flat-face cities as well.
June 18, Year 35
The engines of the two VLVs were kept running as the loading of the Torgai continued. Capacity was limited, and there was room only for the Torgai children and those too old or infirm to escape by land. Eric, Margie, and Jeff would also be evacuated since they were too slow to keep up with the fleet Torgai. The adult Torgai and older children were gathered in groups watching the eastern approaches to the meadow for any sign of Kraa.
Because of the critical need for the VLVs to evacuate people and equipment to the islands, however, the bulk of the Torgai would be left to make it to the colonist lines by themselves; with many armed with laser rifles their chances were good. Others would head for safety in the mountains. As soon as the loading was completed they would attempt to make it cross country to safety, depending on their superior speed.
Kraa-Kuk-T's warning had come in time for Hath's village, and they had immediately evacuated and headed west. But it was too late for the Village of Ta, which had been caught by surprise, with only a few of the hunters managing to escape. The rest were either slaughtered, or captured and herded back into Kraa territory.
June 22, Year 35
Gath-Tuk-13 switched off the message screen, turning to the scanning screens displaying the scene on the planet surface. He couldn't help but marvel at his rapid rise in the Gath hierarchy over the last several months. Several months ago his and his mate's success in leading the attack on the enemy spaceship had gotten them promoted from command of their squadron of 20 ships, to command of one of the three attack wings of 120 ships. Now, just last week when the fleet commander had been killed, they had been promoted again to command the entire fleet. No one in his clan had ever achieved a ranking that high, and he had reason to be proud.
Gath-Tuk-13 put his attention back on the display screen, switching from one area to another. As commander he was able to pick up the displays from any of the remaining 115 vessels in his defense fleet and project them on his own screen, effectively giving him a view of a large part of the planet. Losses had been heavy, with nearly two thirds of their attack fleet of 360 vessels destroyed by weapons fire from the surface. But now any fire opposing a landing had largely stopped, and it had been two days since their last loss. He had just been notified the troop carriers were now on the way.
When the pack creatures from beyond the mountains had swarmed to the eastern side and attacked the defenders it had come as a total surprise to the Gath. They had fired on them in the early days simply because they were concentrated in fairly large numbers, and in the long-term they would have to be eliminated anyway; but the creatures had raised havoc with the defenders, driving many out of hiding. They were, however, a minor concern to the Gath; lacking weapons they would be little threat to the well armed and well armored Gath troops.
Still, since the plan was to sanitize the planet for later colonization, when the troops landed they would wipe out the pack creatures as well as the two primary species. And now the landing was about to begin; the fleet of troop ships were on their way and would be in orbit shortly. Then, within days, he expected Gath-Tuk-1 to order the landing.
Several days later near New Orleans . . . .
The landrover careened into the small clearing that ha
d been carefully camouflaged with netting. Jumping out, Kevin rushed to the opening into the small mound and hurried down the steps to the operations bunker. He had just completed the eleven hour nighttime drive down the darkened highway from their last northern stronghold south of New Athens, constantly on the lookout for Kraa packs. Without headlights it was a nerve racking trip, even though most of the time moonlight from one or both of the moons had allowed the highway to be visible for a long distance; but the last two hours it was only the skill of the driver that kept them on the road.
Mark, Takai, Sophie, Colonel Kelso and several others were gathered in the operations center when Kevin entered, and greeted him with relief.
"We thought you were lost," Sophie remarked, "how is it up north?"
"Bad," Kevin responded, "the entire area is overrun with Kraa. Most of our people are, well, just gone. I'm close to the last one out, although hopefully some more might straggle in."
Mark shook his head, "how many were caught?"
"Most had already been evacuated," Kevin responded, "either to here or the islands; but there were still about 800 in the area. When the Kraa hit maybe half of those got away; no more. It could have been worse if we hadn't had an early warning.”
“What was left of New Athens was overrun almost immediately, then they just searched out our people's bunkers in the countryside and forced their way in. We killed hundreds, but they just kept coming. Both Torgai villages are also long-gone, and the Kraa got most of those from Ta's village. Unfortunately," Kevin continued, "many of those that made it to the New Athens area got caught later."
Takai looked at Kevin for a moment, “did Annette and the kids make it out?”
Kevin nodded, “we sent the kids ahead earlier, but Annette wouldn’t leave until the last moment. So, if the VLVs made it, so did they; at least to the refueling stop.”
Colonel Kelso asked, "what's the situation between here and New Athens? Our information is spotty and contradictory."
"The savanna is saturated; we saw packs on the road on the way down here, but we drove right through them. But, they appear to be moving into the periphery of the forest belt. I'd expect them here in a matter of days at the most."
The room was quiet when Mark made his next statement, "it's worse, Kevin," he said. "The Gath started to land yesterday afternoon. We used the mobile laser cannons we had in reserve, but they came down in such a dispersed landing pattern and in such numbers that it was only marginally successful. Most of our radars have been knocked out, but we think there were several hundred troop ships supported by the attack ships, with more on the way.”
“Something we didn't know, but suspected, was that their attack ships can operate in the atmosphere as well as in space. We may have knocked down a few dozen at the most. Unfortunately, most of the mobile crews further north, at least those that hadn't been recalled, were caught by the Kraa."
Kevin asked, "have we made contact? What are they like?"
Colonel Kelso answered, "a little. Bipedal, shorter than the typical human but very stocky; although part of that could be the body armor. We've had only one direct contact; we caught a group of about 20 in the open and killed about half of them. Their armor isn't good enough to withstand a direct, full power laser blast. Unfortunately, what was left of our patrol had to retreat and couldn't recover a Gath body."
"How are the Kraa reacting?" Kevin asked, "are they attacking the Gath?"
Colonel Kelso shook his head, "we don't know. But we do know they continue to move on us in force. The numbers are so high they just swarm over our defensive perimeters, ignoring their own losses. Frankly, we haven't had time to even address the Gath threat properly."
Leaning forward, "if it weren't for the Kraa we might stand a chance against the Gath. We could set up ambushes and hold parts of the forest area, at least for some time; time enough to complete the evacuation. But with the Kraa in the area it's not possible."
Sophie commented, “one thing could work in our favor. The Kraa will almost certainly attack the Gath, which will divide the attention of the Gath forces. That could slow them both down.”
Takai shook his head, “at the rate the Gath are coming down I suspect they’ll pretty much just brush the Kraa aside.”
After a few moments Mark said, "I'd like to have a meeting in the conference room with Takai, Sophie, Kevin, Kelso, and Bert. There's something else we need to discuss. But not out here."
Once in the conference room Mark motioned the others to sit, "we have to decide on a final course of action, time's running out. We’re down to a matter of days to complete any evacuation, and with the Kraa closing in we can't hope to oppose the Gath. I think," he continued, "it's time for the final run of the Sea Witch and the Arrianne."
Glancing at Kevin, "we lost the Cosmos to Gath fire yesterday."
Continuing, "the Sea Witch and the Arrianne can, at the most, handle 600 refugees, and I've issued orders for the designated people to board. Tomorrow night they cast off, which should put them on the open sea by sunrise. It's wishful thinking to plan for a return trip; in the two weeks or more it would take it's unlikely there would be anyone left."
"The six remaining VLVs are still operable and will continue their shuttle operation. That gives us capacity for 180 more people every two days if the VLVs hold up; they're very in need of maintenance. We can do a little better if we drop the evacuees at the second refueling stop and bring the VLVs back for more loads; we’ve asked Jose if he could ferry them to the archipelago from there. He’ll try, but if the Gath attack his small boats they won’t stand a chance. We can use the ceremonial island off the delta as a staging area also, which should be safe from the Kraa at least. But if the Gath attempt to land troops there it’s pretty much indefensible."
“One bright spot,” Mark continued, “so far at least the Gath have pretty much left the ships and boats alone, except for the Cosmos of course. They apparently see them as too small to bother with. At least that’s been the case up to now.”
"There is one other thing we can do to give us more time," Mark said, looking around the room. "At the moment the pressure is mostly from the Kraa, with the Gath not likely to be here near the river for some time. If we can stop the Kraa we may have time to complete the evacuation. And that is exactly what I propose to do, stop the Kraa."
The room remained silent, everyone's eyes on Mark.
After several moments of silence, Mark said, "I plan to release the caninus virus. Colonel Kelso and Bert Miller assure me that we have enough in stock, and enough scoutplanes left to handle the release."
Takai stood up slowly, "that's genocide. You can't be serious."
"Dead serious," Mark responded, calmly, "we'll start by spraying the savanna-forest boundary, and with the prevailing winds it'll clear out any Kraa in that area in 24 hours and keep it clear. It'll give us a barrier the Kraa can't cross without becoming infected. I've issued orders to start release tomorrow."
Takai just stared at Mark, "Mark, do you understand what you’re doing? Once released the virus won't die out, but will spread across the continent. Not only all the Kraa, but all canines, including the Torgai, will be affected. And as you well know the virus is subject to rapid mutation; it could contaminate the entire planet. The virus is just too virulent and robust to risk. "
Mark just stared back, "it's a risk, but the only way to give us time to complete the evacuation. It's my decision to make, and it's made."
Takai said nothing for a moment, "yes, it's your decision. But it's the wrong decision, and I'll have nothing to do with it."
Mark and Takai just stared silently at each other for several seconds, both clearly upset, before Takai added, "as of now I resign," before walking out of the room, slamming the door. No one else said anything as Mark looked at the others in the room, gauging their reaction. Most were silent, although there was considerable sign of discomfort.
In the ensuing silence Kevin raised his eyes to Mark’s, “there’s a point
, Mark, where the end doesn’t justify the means. This goes over the line.” Rising from the table, Kevin followed Takai out of the room.
Mark watched Kevin as he left, then again turned his attention to the others around the table. When no one else said anything, he stood and, motioning for Colonel Kelso to follow, left the conference room. The rest slowly got up and also left, going their own ways, largely silent.
Sophie walked rapidly out of the bunker and caught up with Kevin before he left the parking area. Getting his attention, she signaling for him to follow her.
That evening, at Takai Masaeka's Home . . . .
Takai and Kevin sat in Takai's garden in silence, the garden illuminated only by the two moons, both of which stood high in the sky, nearly full. Kevin was gazing over the small pond while Takai sat slowly swirling the ice in his glass. For now, even isolated as it was, the area around Takai's home was safe; the Kraa hadn't yet arrived near here, although it would be different in two to three days. Plus, the nearly dozen guards patrolling the estate provided at least modest protection. It was after midnight and they had been here since late afternoon when Kevin arrived. Occasionally one of them would leave to replenish their drinks. Neither had much to say, Kevin leaving Takai to his thoughts. The events in the bunker that morning had hit Takai hard; Kevin had never seen him so withdrawn. As if he could hardly comprehend what had happened.
Kevin’s absence from New Orleans at this critical time was bound to be noticed by Mark, and they would rapidly find out where he was. During the meeting his disapproval of Mark’s plan had been apparent, and now his leaving effectively severed his relationship. The question was what would Mark do about it? He couldn’t let such opposition as Takai and Kevin had shown go without reacting in some way. If he were in Mark’s place he would place both Takai and himself, if not under arrest, at least in isolation.
Resurrection: Book II: Settlement Chronicals Page 22