by Doug Farren
Mernaga had come to the conclusion that neither of the supporting attack groups actually existed at the same time the science station began to make his report. It was also at that same precise moment that the Humans fired their now fully charged sledgehammers. Three people tried to talk at once.
Science station: “Commander, analysis of the EM field…”
Mernaga: “Tactical, shutdown inter-ship link with…”
Tactical: “Multiple incoming! High energy…”
WHAM! The bridge went dark and the entire ship shook with the force of a terrific explosion.
The view from space was spectacular. Dozens of sparkling, glowing, balls of hyper-charged electromagnetic vortices raced through space from the surface of Olympus base. Traveling at nearly three percent the speed of light they took only seconds to cross the gulf of space and impact on the shields of their designated targets. The tactical computers on Olympus had redirected most of the planetary lasers toward one of the battleships a few microseconds before the sledgehammers struck.
The shield of one battleship briefly flared into incredible incandescence as the laser energy pouring into it doubled. At the same time, six crackling balls of pure energy smashed into the shield, broke apart, and spilled a mix of accelerated protons and anti-protons into the shield. The protons found their anti-matter counterpart and instantly annihilated each other converting themselves into pure energy.
The Tholtaran shield failed in multiple locations. Jets of accelerated particles, annihilation energy, and focused coherent laser energy blasted their way through the failing shield and struck armor. So great was the amount of energy striking the armor that the alloy didn’t even have time to glow. Its molecular structure was disrupted to the point of disassociation causing it to explode in all directions.
Inside the ship, the hot cloud of ionized gas that was once the ship’s protective armor plating burned and melted everything in its path. One of the Tholtaran’s incredibly powerful main guns suddenly found nowhere to discharge the energy it was being fed as the gun’s focusing mechanism was turned into a fused mass of useless metal. The gun exploded with the force of a nuclear detonation. The force of the explosion was channeled into the heart of the battleship by the surrounding armor.
Unable to take the strain of so much internal pressure, the once mighty Tholtaran battleship’s armored hull split lengthwise like the shell of an egg. The now superheated atmosphere vented itself into space carrying with it chunks of hull, the contents of storage rooms, destroyed equipment, and the burnt remains of most of the crew.
Mernaga’s battleship was more fortunate. When the sledgehammers struck its shield had been under attack by four Human heavy cruisers instead of the far more formidable surface-based weapons. The Olympus tactical computer had compensated for this lack of firepower by directing ten sledgehammers against it. As with the other battleship, the sledgehammers stuck the shield and released a devastating torrent of energy against it.
One of the spitting balls of electromagnetic energy arrived a few microseconds after the others and found a very much weakened shield. It penetrated the shield intact and struck the unprotected armor plating. Strong as it was, it was no match for the energy contained within the vortex. The armor vaporized almost instantly. The now dissipating vortex dumped its entire contents of protons and anti-protons into the interior of the battleship.
Due to a fluke in the orientation of the decaying magnetic vortex, the streams of protons and anti-protons came together in the form of a beam directed into the heart of the doomed Tholtaran ship. A beam of almost indescribable energy punched a hole clear through the ship vaporizing everything in its path including most of the engineering section. The secondary radiation caused by the annihilation of matter and anti-matter spread throughout the ship at the speed of light disrupting sensitive electronics and bathing some of the crew with a lethal dose of radiation. The collapsing electromagnetic field of the sledgehammer's soliton overloaded electrical circuits throughout the ship.
Those Human ships which were armed with the sledgehammer (gunboats and larger) had targeted the remainder of the Tholtaran fleet. It didn’t take long before the Humans had destroyed or disabled every one of the attacking ships. When it was over, one battleship, two heavy cruisers and one light cruiser from the Tholtaran fleet lay inert, drifting aimlessly in space. The others had been completely destroyed. The Humans had lost 41 fighters, 23 gunboats, 8 cruisers and 2 battleships.
* * * * *
The bridge remained in blackness for only a few seconds before the emergency lights flickered on. The artificial gravity had failed and things were starting to float around the bridge as Mernaga looked around in utter disbelief. The ship’s electrical systems automatically reset themselves and the emergency lights were replaced by normal lighting. Gravity was slowly restored as the warships independent backup power systems came online.
An acrid odor burned Mernaga’s nostrils as he tried to calm his rapid breathing. The bridge was in chaos as the crew struggled to restore some functionality to the crippled ship. Mernaga looked toward the engineering station and noted that most of the console was either dark or flashing red alarms. “Engineering, what is our status?”
The engineer was still trying to make sense of his readings. Giving up on his computer console, he flipped a few switches on the emergency section of his control board, got no response and replied, “We have multiple hull breaches scattered all over the ship. Most, if not all, of main engineering has been destroyed. We are running on only two auxiliary reactors. All propulsion systems are down.”
“Tactical, what happened and what is our status?”
“We were struck multiple times by some type of extremely high energy electromagnetic weapon which overwhelmed our shield. At this time, all weapons are inoperative and the shield fails to respond.”
“Sensors?”
“None at the moment sir but systems are still coming back online.”
“What kind of weapon have the Humans developed?” Mernaga thought with one part of his mind while the other contemplated their present situation. “And what was going on with the nonexistent support fleets? The orders had clearly stated that two additional fleets would be involved in the attack on the Human base. Third fleet had shown up on their intership comlink even though it was clearly evident that they never existed! How could this have happened?”
Mernaga’s console was operational. He entered a few commands and looked at the display. The self destruct system was still intact. He entered a few more commands activating the system and putting it into a standby mode. From now on, the computer would ask him for a passphrase every ten minutes. If he failed to respond, the system would begin a ten minute countdown. If the countdown was not countermanded before the time ran out the ship would be vaporized by a thermonuclear explosion.
“Group Commander?” This had come from the communications operator.
“Report,” Mernaga replied as he confirmed that the self destruct system was set.
“I am receiving a transmission from the Human base commander.”
“On speaker.”
“Attention Tholtaran ships. My name is Admiral Stockman. I am in command of the Olympus base which you have, for some unknown reason, attacked. Your ships are disabled, some are loosing life support. I do not wish to inflict any further casualties upon you. Please allow us to rescue your survivors and provide medical assistance. You have my word that you will be treated with respect. I await your response.”
Mernaga sank into his command chair. Defeated! By Humans! How could this possibly have happened? Mernaga now had a dilemma to solve. He could not allow the Humans to have access to the technology contained within his ship; it must be destroyed. On the other hand, Tholtarans were not in the habit of blindly ending their lives and the Humans were known to be a relatively reasonable race. After a few moments thought he asked, “Can we reply? Are communications working?”
The communications operator check
ed his status board and replied, “We can reply. Only long range communications are down.”
“Open a channel. Rebroadcast the conversation on the emergency channel. I want our entire fleet to hear what is being said.”
Mernaga waited while the communications operator complied with his order. After a moment, the operator indicated that the channel was open. “Admiral Stockman—I am Group Commander Mernaga tey Tantaga. Are you reading my transmission?”
“I am.”
“You have given me your word that my people will be treated with dignity and respect. Why would you do this given the fact that we have just attacked your base?”
“It is not my policy nor is it the policy of my government to mistreat prisoners of war. You were, no doubt, following the orders of your government. I will defend this base using all means necessary, but once an enemy has been defeated, there is no need to butcher the survivors. You and your crew will be held prisoner and anyone requiring medical treatment will receive it. I give you my word as a fellow officer that your people will not be mistreated.”
“You realize, of course, that I cannot allow you to have access to my ship. I would rather destroy it, along with everyone aboard, than to allow you to seize this ship.”
“Commander, I appreciate your position,” the Admiral replied. “I would do the same if our positions were reversed. I am assuming that your ships are equipped with a self destruct system. What are you proposing?”
Despite the fact that they were now enemies, Mernaga couldn’t help but like this Human admiral. “All of our ships are indeed equipped with a self destruct. The devices are now armed and will detonate shortly after our departure. We will abandon our ships using our shuttles. Those ships which have no operational shuttles will signal your fleet so they can be evacuated by you. Once the last crewman is gone, the ships will automatically self destruct. Is this acceptable?”
The admiral agreed to Mernaga’s plan and the rescue operations were commenced. Mernaga’s only hope was that the survivors aboard the other ships in his fleet had heard the conversation and had set their self destruct systems appropriately. Some amount of cooperation between the Tholtarans and the Humans was required. The entire evacuation took nearly two hours.
“Olympus command to all remaining rescue craft. Begin final evacuation now.” Throughout what was left of the Tholtaran fleet the last remaining Tholtaran left his station and ran toward a rescue craft. Mernaga entered a final command into his console and ran. Two minutes later he was aboard one of his shuttles. It quickly dropped through the open hanger door and into space. Ten minutes later space was illuminated by four brilliant flashes of light.
Mernaga’s shuttle was brought aboard one of the Human battleships. At the end of the ramp, he and the men with him were met by a squad of armed Humans. They were searched by hand and with portable scanning devices. Those requiring medical attention were taken to sick bay while the others were escorted to an emptied cargo hold.
In space, the salvage operations were just beginning. Not all of the Tholtaran warships had been completely destroyed. Their remains were being picked over by a small horde of Human engineers.
* * * * *
The World President was in conference with his senior advisory staff as they tried figure out how to defuse the growing hostilities between the three major powers on Earth. Suddenly, without even the courtesy of a knock, the door was flung open and the senior aid to Admiral Hunt, commander of the Earth Defense Ministry, rushed into the room.
The aid stopped beside the admiral’s chair and held out a memory stick. “You need to see this—Now.” The aid looked around the room and for the first time the President saw the fear in his face. “All of you do.” He then spun around and walked at a fast pace back out of the room. The door slowly clicked shut behind him.
The admiral looked at the memory stick as if it might explode. “What the h…”
“Play it,” the President ordered.
The admiral placed the stick into the slot on his terminal and entered a few commands. The screen at the front of the room come to life. The face of Admiral Stockman appeared. The senior advisory staff sat in stunned silence after the admiral’s report had played.
The World President looked Admiral Hunt square in the eye and said, “How soon can your fleet at Olympus be ready to strike the Tholtaran base?”
“The fleet is always ready to respond with only a moments notice,” Admiral Hunt replied.
The President looked around the room as he said, “This unprovoked attack by an alien race upon Humans will not go unanswered. It is quite clear to me that the Tholtarans have been planning this attack for some time. We must strike back to show them that we will not only defend ourselves but that we are willing to take the war to them as well.”
The President stood up as he continued. “Gentlemen, Earth now faces the threat of an alien attack. Perhaps this will at last give us a reason to put aside our differences and unite as a single species. An emergency session of the World Council will be called. I will present Admiral Stockman’s report to them and tell them that a retaliatory strike is already on its way. Humans will no longer make war with Humans. Admiral! Dispatch whatever ships you deem necessary to destroy the Tholtaran base which launched the attack. Do so as soon as you can. We are dismissed.”
The meeting ended and orders were quickly drawn up. A week after the attack on Olympus, two battle groups from that very same base slipped out of normal space and set course for outpost 418.
The Human – Tholtaran interstellar war had begun.
37
United We Stand
Jay Kauffman felt as if he was living in a dream. The World Government had just announced the end of hostilities between the United Arab Nations and the Chinese. Not only had these two super-powers put aside their differences, but they had, apparently, also agreed to the complete unification of the Human race. According to the news report, the World Council had, in a marathon session lasting nearly 28 hours, secured the agreement of all the nations of Earth toward the creation of a single, all encompassing, World Government.
This announcement was quickly followed by another, even more shocking piece of news; The Tholtarans had apparently declared war upon Earth. This declaration of war was what had prompted the nations of the world to ban together. One of the hardest to believe statements was that the technological superiority of the American Alliance would soon disappear as it shared its military secrets with the nations of the world. Instead of fighting each other, Humans now had a much more ominous threat to deal with and the only way to survive was to put aside their differences and work together as a unified race.
Anita was in London and it didn’t take long for her to call her husband to see if he had seen the news. “I saw it. I just don’t believe it. Why would the Tholtarans attack us?”
“I don’t really know honey,” his wife, so far away, yet so close to him in his heart, replied. “Perhaps they somehow found out about the sledgehammer and considered us a threat because of its potential.”
“But they didn’t need to attack us,” Jay replied. “Even with the sledgehammer, their ships are still better than ours.”
“I don’t know what to say love.”
“I miss you. When are you coming home?”
“Soon. I’ve almost reached a deal with…Hold on a moment honey—got an urgent call on the other line.” There was a short beep and Jay listened to music for a few minutes. He was just about ready to hang up when the music ended and Anita said, “Well, that call just changed everything. I’ll be on my way home as soon as I can get to the airport.”
“What’s happened?”
“The government has put us on a war footing. All of our military orders have just been quadrupled. We are going to start building warships like there’s no tomorrow.”
“You realize that there is no way we can defeat the Tholtarans? We can’t match their technology.”
“Don’t be too sure about that my bri
lliant husband. I’ll tell you all about it when I’m home. I’ve got to run to make arrangements to get my hopper ready. I love you.”
“I love you too. See you when you get home.”
The line went dead. Jay sat staring at the television not comprehending what was playing on the screen. His mind was numb. Eventually, he turned it off and just sat in the dark thinking.
* * * * *
“Admiral, we are approaching one light-year from the target,” the Yamato’s captain said over the intercom.
In his stateroom, Admiral Stockman set his book down and depressed the intercom’s send button. “Place the fleet at battle alert. Keep a close eye on all long-range sensors. Go to general quarters the moment you see anything out of the ordinary. Continue toward the target as planned.”
“Aye sir!” Captain Hiroshi Nagasaki ran his hand through his almost nonexistent hair, took a deep breath, and then depressed a button on his command console. A series of tones sounded throughout the entire bulk of the command carrier announcing the fact that an important message was about to be delivered.
“Attention all hands! This is the captain. The fleet is now one light year from the Tholtaran base. Set condition yellow throughout the ship. All fighter crews to the briefing rooms for final instructions.” Upon making this announcement, the captain depressed another button causing a louder tone to sound.
As his ship prepared for battle, the captain turned his attention to his bridge crew. “Communications, order the rest of the fleet to set condition yellow. Navigator, report best estimate as to when we will be within weapons range.”
Captain Hiroshi was Japanese by birth. His family had a long and distinguished history of military service. He had joined the Navy as soon as his educational studies had been completed and had quickly proven himself to be a fine officer. He had attained the rank of captain at a relatively young age of thirty-six. Now, four years later, he found himself in command of one of Earth’s most impressive warships.