by Martin Durst
Now, enjoy your evening! It’ll be awhile before we see home again!’ He raised his glass in salute. ‘To Earth, may we defend her to the end!’
Commander Kyle McConnel looked with wonder around the table he was sitting at. If someone had told him that he’d be commanding a starship by now, he’d have told them they were crazy! The idea still intimidated him a little, but he was determined to not let his father or his planet down.
Beside him was the one person in the world he was most grateful for. ‘Are you going to eat or what?’ he asked with a hint of humorous sarcasm. Rachel Belk, the long-time girlfriend and now Chief Medical officer aboard the Stargazer, the very ship he commanded, looked at him with her knowing look. ‘I’ll let you know when there are leftovers! You’re like a ravenous dog,’ she said with a giggle. ‘Honestly, I don’t know where you put it!’
‘Several of the primates from our home planet had multiple stomachs. Is it possible that Commander McConnel has developed a mutation?’ Everyone looked at Shi’la. She had asked the question so seriously, that there was a pause for several seconds. ‘It was a joke,’ she added. ‘Did I not get the punch line across correctly?’ Everyone laughed simultaneously. Matheus was the first to speak as he wiped the tears from his eyes. ‘At first we thought you were completely serious, but you still managed to make it funny. Next time try it with a smile! We’ll at least know that you’re probably joking!’
She grinned and took the jab without resentment. ‘I’ll have to keep working on it!’
Shi’la unconsciously took the hand of Commander Stone. He was sure that she didn’t realize it, but he held her hand gently as they rested their arms on the table. If she didn’t mind showing a little affection in public, then he didn’t either. It was no secret that he and Matheus had feelings for the Shu’kan females. Oddly enough, no one in Earth Fleet seemed to mind either. It was going to be a nice evening. He tried to relax and enjoy the moment. It’ll be business as usual soon enough,’ he thought.
He smiled as he watched Shi’la poke her food. ‘It’s venison. From a four legged animal on Earth called Deer. You’ll probably love it!’ He couldn’t help but grin in satisfaction as she eagerly savored the rich taste. He suspected she’d like to have this meal again. Well, as soon as we return to Earth, that is. He tried again to shake the ominous feeling. ‘We’ll make it back. We have to.’ He settled in to eating his own food pushing the thought far from his mind.
Commander Stone stared at his four section officers and five operations officers. Each of them had expressions of trust that indicated they thought he knew what he was doing. He wished that he felt the same. He’d never been in command before, and now he was in the hot seat; of a starship no less. Talk about initiation by fire!
The FTL drives were working perfectly. All five ships now flew in tandem and were due to drop from FTL in less than 24 hours. For three days they’ve been traveling from Earth to the Alpha Centauri System. Every human being on the mission was writing history, and soon, they’d be tested like never before. He’d been getting to know every officer around the table since they’d left. Each of them was competent. He’d chosen wisely. Prior to departure, he’d spent two days reviewing officers, mostly cadets, to serve under his command, and once he’d chosen, he had them field promoted to lieutenant and assigned to the Destiny. He was eager to see them in action once the fighting began.
‘Each of you was hand-picked by me to be part of the Earth offensive against the Hiver’s. It’s been long known that a colony has been thriving at Alpha Centauri. We now get to verify its existence firsthand. And with a little luck, give a little payback!’ He paused while his officers gave a hearty cheer. ‘All of you have reported ready. Every section officer is status green, and the command team is ready to take any action ordered by me. There is little else to do except one thing.’ He waited for the anticipation to build a little while leaning a little further on the table causing his knuckles to whiten. ‘Have a toast!’
He pulled a bottle of wine from under the table and presented it. ‘What we have here is a genuine bottle of Bernardo wine! The winery has been in operation for almost six hundred years, and today we celebrate all those who have gone before. We celebrate the continued human spirit of resistance.’ He silently filled each of them a glass then raised his in salute. Each of them sipped then waited for their Commander to speak. ‘We’ve only known each other for a brief period of time, but we are all of the same family. –The human family. I asked you all here to share my intent of this mission. I’ve spoken at length with Admiral Cook, and he is in agreement. This is not a suicide mission. Under no circumstances will this ship or any ship for that matter place itself in jeopardy. We are here to send a message, and only a message. After that, we return to Earth. –No casualties! Is everyone clear?’ Every head nodded in agreement. ‘Good. Then let’s prepare for battle. Have every hand but critical stations stand down for eight hours. Give them rest. We will soon be at the enemy’s stoop. Enjoy the boredom while it lasts.’
Commander Stone stared at his equal on the com screen. Commander McConnel, Commander of the Stargazer, looked to fit the part. Like his father, he was born to command. Not like me, he thought wistfully. But, if I get every one of my men home alive, that’s a good enough job for me.
‘Commander McConnel,’ he acknowledged.
‘Commander Stone,’ he returned.
‘It appears that you and I are about to start what we came here to do. ‘Have the other ship Commanders all signaled their status to the Old Man?’ Commander McConnel grinned at the reference. It was an inside joke about how young the Fleet was. Admiral Cook was only fifty-one. –Traditionally young for an Admiral, but compared to most of the Fleet, he looked like a grandpa.
Commander McConnel nodded in reply.
‘Then I’ll signal our readiness,’ Stone replied. He nodded to his com officer to change the view to split screen, then chipped an all call to ship personnel. ‘All hands, standby for an address by the Admiral.’
Admiral Cook appeared in the upper left corner of the com screen and was forwarded to all com screens throughout the ship.
‘Soldiers of the Fleet, we’ve finally arrived. In-’ he leaned slightly to his left and then looked back to the com screen ‘-fifteen minutes, we will drop from FTL just outside the jump limit of Alpha Centauri Prime, the only planet in the system. This will give us the strongest possible surprise advantage. From there, we will make a hasty assessment then begin to assign targets if necessary. Normally, full reconnaissance is warranted, but with five ships, we’ll take no chances separating; and doing reconnaissance jointly could alert the enemy to our presence. Though we’re not completely certain, we believe the Hiver’s have some type of sensory capability. One ship may be able to observe from a distance, but more than that could certainly alert them to our presence. Once we have completed any initial strike, I’ll make the decision as to when to execute our retreat. There will be no ship, I repeat, no ship authorized to remain any longer than the allowed time. No matter the target, you will cease fire and jump to FTL along our pre-determined coordinates.’
Commander McConnel sat in his command chair as he worked hard to control his excitement. He knew his crew was always observing, so outwardly, he tried to be a stoic picture of calm. Commanding the Stargazer was the opportunity of a lifetime. Even his father hadn’t fast-tracked like this. It was an opportunity he wouldn’t squander. He’d make his father proud. ‘Navigation, how long till we drop from FTL?’ He’d muted his com system as the Admiral continued to speak.
‘Just under eight minutes, Sir.’
‘Good. I’m ready to do this, as I’m sure the rest of you are!’ Commander McConnel looked around his bridge and knew that he wasn’t misreading his crew. All of them were grinning widely. ‘We’ve waited a long time for this. Let’s kick some Hiver butt!’
He turned his attention to the Admiral once again and un-muted the com system.
‘…and after we’ve comple
ted our task,’ the Admiral continued, ‘we’ll hopefully go home with a small victory under our belts!’
The bridge crew applauded cordially as the Admiral waited. ‘All ships stand by for synch drop from FTL.’ The Admiral disappeared as the fleet counted down. The navigation officer picked up where he left off.
‘…in five, four, three, two, one, initiating FTL drop!’
As with the test jumps, a momentary blur filled Commander McConnel’s vision, then his screen filled with what he could only describe as a nightmare. The Fleet had emerged from FTL at the jump limit as planned only to discover a fierce battle was already underway. Hundreds of Hiver ships were locked in mortal combat with ships he’d never seen before. His com’s were already screaming.
‘All ships, this the Admiral! Reverse course immediately and move at maximum thrust back to the jump limit!’
Admiral Cook knew instantly that the Fleet was in trouble, but he quickly assessed that, whoever the Hiver’s were fighting, outnumbered them at least two to one.
‘Tactical, give me a count of how many ships are out there!’ He’d already lock-synched his tactical and navigation to the other Fleet ships, so he knew they were listening.
‘Sir, there are almost three thousand ships here, and judging from how things are going, the Hiver’s are probably going to win this one! I count … only eight hundred twelve of the unknown vessels!’
Admiral Cook mentally calmed himself. His troops depended on it. ‘Have they noticed our presence?’
‘Yes, Sir,’ his tactical officer replied. ‘The Shadrach is already taking fire from the Hiver ships! The Negrav Screens are holding, but they’re reporting that their power drain is enormous! –Now the Terra Firma is taking fire!’
A violent shudder rippled through the Carthaginian.
‘Correction, Sir! All ships are taking fire!’
‘All ships engage evasive maneuvers! Fire on the Hiver ships at will! Repeat fire at the Hiver ships at will!’
Admiral McConnel needed information, and quickly. Who were these new beings that were battling the Hiver’s? ‘Destiny, this is flag ship, I need to talk to Lieutenant Shi’la. Patch her through.’
Commander Stone was about to respond when the coms squawked, ‘Sir, this is Lieutenant Shi’la. I’m here on the bridge with Commander Stone. What is it you require?’
Commander Stone looked closely at Shi’la. In spite of the urgency of their situation, she appeared calm.
‘Lieutenant Shi’la,’ the Admiral continued, ‘do you recognize these other ships? Who are they? Has the Shu’kan encountered them before?’
‘I’ve already accessed all archives that the Shu’kan databases contained that have been uploaded to the ship’s data core. We have nothing on record. I’m sorry that I don’t have more.’
‘Thank you. Stand by. Tactical, are the other ships firing on any of ours?’
‘No Sir. But they’re still engaging the Hiver ships.’
‘Sir,’ the comms officer hailed, ‘Captain Gruesen requests to speak to you.’
‘Patch him through.’
‘Sir, this is Captain Gruesen! There are just too many! Our screens won’t last much longer!’
Admiral McConnel hated to gamble. –Probably because all his life he’d been a military man and risk was part of the job. He was used to making split-second decisions. He’d done it thousands of times before. Now was no different. ‘Navigation, how long till we cross the jump limit?’
‘We still have four minutes, thirty-five seconds until we cross the threshold, Sir!’
Admiral McConnel made his decision. He just hoped he was right.
‘Confirmed, Sir. The Admiral wants you to turn and engage hostile targets until they cross the jump limit.’ He looked across his bridge and could see the gloom build in his crew. They knew that they were being asked to fend for the rest of the ships. To their credit, none of them objected. It made him proud to lead them.
Commander Stone was many things, but a coward wasn’t one of them. He’d been the first out of FTL and now he was the last in line heading back towards the jump limit. Because of this, he was being attacked the most. So, it was time to turn and fight anyway. If any of the ships were going to make it, someone had to provide the distraction.
‘Tactical, give me full power to shields and energize all weapons. How are our batteries?’
‘Sir, engineering reports all magazines full.’
‘Good. Turn this thing around.’
Stress on the Negrav shields increased three-fold, but they were holding. ‘Tactical, target at will any Hiver vessel within kill range. Let’s see what these new weapons can do at close range.’
He monitored his tactical officer’s fire capability from the main comm screen. The new Negrav missiles were working beautifully. For every salvo launched, a Hiver ship exploded. He was impressed with the laser cannons as well. Each fire, though not always a kill shot, penetrated the Hiver radiation shields as if they weren’t even there. A heavy shudder rippled through the Destiny.
‘Sir, we’re taking heavy fire on our port side. The shields are weakening.’
‘Navigation, compensate. Keep our movement consistent with our shield requirements. –Tactical, direct your fire at the Hiver ships that are attacking in groups. They’re trying to overload our shields.’ Sure to his word, his checked his shield display. They were at thirty percent capacity. –Not good. He gripped the arm rests of his command chair and allowed his officers to do their jobs. Evasive maneuvers were keeping them alive so far, but time was running out. Looking at Shi’la, he noticed that she was working diligently at the sensor console collecting data. Ever the scientist, he thought. She must have realized he was looking at her and glanced his way. They only looked at each other for a moment, but that was all they needed. She knew for certain now that he loved her, and she could tell the same from her. Now, if only they could survive this battle!
He watched with satisfaction as the other four Human ships flashed out of existence. They’d crossed the jump limit. Now it was their turn to make a run for it. ‘Navigation, turn this boat around and give us max thrust. It’s our turn to leave!’ He felt a slight tug as the ship accelerated hard. The new Negrav drives were compensating even better than the older models against the inertia. He didn’t want to think about what he’d look like if they weren’t. Earth Fleet ships could now reach incredible speeds just using their thrust engines.
The Destiny weaved in and out of fire as the navigation officer worked desperately to avoid being hit. But there were just as many Hiver’s in front of them as there were behind them.
‘Sir, the unknown vessels just jumped to FTL! We’re alone now!’
He didn’t respond but knew they were running out of time.
‘Sir,’ tactical yelled. ‘Our shields are down to ten percent!’
‘Exhaust all batteries forward and aft!’ he ordered. ‘Continue laser cannon fire at all acquired targets that are firing at our shielding!’
He viewed the monitor and gratefully saw that he’d bought them a few more minutes. If he was going to do something it had to be quick. The Hiver’s were swarming around the Destiny eager for a kill. He shot a glance at his comm display. At their velocity they’d need two more minutes to get across the jump limit. It didn’t look like they were going to make it.
‘Sir,’ his tactical officer said so calmly it nerved him. ‘We just lost shields.’ Suddenly, an explosion somewhere in the ship threw the entire bridge to the floor.
‘Damage report! All section officers report!’ He punched his comm panel in frustration. Ship communications were down, and smoke was starting to come out of the ventilation system. It was time to leave. The escape pods were their only chance. ‘Tactical, sound the alarm to abandon ship, and then get the bridge clear of all personnel.’
He waited until his bridge crew had moved towards the pod tubes, and then moved to lead Shi’la to one. He was already feeling liked he’d failed his crew, but knew
he’d done the best he could. More explosions vibrated the ship. He could see on the comm screen that the Hiver’s were still firing on the Destiny’s hull. Then it too went to static as it lost its visual feed.
‘C’mon. It’s time to go,’ Shi’la said quietly. ‘The ship is lost.’
Chapter Fourteen
The new queen had been careless. She’d been followed by the Dark Ones. Fatigue was starting to take its toll. She’d been battling continuously. With the Dark Ones, it was always a fight for survival. Long ago, her race had tried to use them as a food source, but had failed. The Dark Ones have relentlessly pursued them ever since. They were the only race she feared, and now they were here at the edge of the galaxy. It was fortunate that more or her species were coming. She could see that now. Already she could feel the minds of hundreds of other queens. They would be here soon.
The battle raging high above her was beginning to take shape. The outcome was predictable. She outnumbered them almost two to one. She was just about to push her advance when five unknown vessels appeared between her ships and those of the Dark Ones. It caused momentary confusion as the Dark Ones turned hard to avoid colliding into them. After a few moments, she realized they were ships from the species she now knew as humans. –No doubt here to attack as well. For the moment, it provided a much needed distraction to reorganize her offensive.