by B. V. Larson
“No, not yet,” she said.
Taking a deep breath, I swallowed my protests and turned an automatic frown into a smile. Play it cool, a voice kept saying in my head. I listened to that voice.
I stood up. “Are you hungry? I’m hungry.”
Adrienne blinked at me in surprise. “Giving up so soon?”
“You said ‘not yet.’”
“Yeah, but…” she looked disappointed, which was exactly how I was feeling.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I just don’t want our first time to feel rushed. You have to deal with the Raptors in a few hours. You’ll need some rest and a clear head. I wanted to help not muck things up for you.”
“No problem.” I forced myself to smile. “We’ll start over later, when we have lots of time.” If there was a later. The grandest irony would be getting one or both of us killed just before we consummated our passion.
“Very well, then,” she said. She stood and kissed me once more before slipping out of the cabin.
I was left with a thudding heartbeat and a raging libido. Foremost in my mind was the unarguable fact that I wasn’t as good at this sex stuff as my father had been. I’d heard plenty of stories about Dad’s younger days, and Mom had always sourly hinted they were true. Somehow, he would have managed to get himself laid in this situation. I felt sure of it. I’d done my damnedest and failed.
My sigh turned into a growl of frustration. Adrienne’s intention had been to help clear my head, but she’d failed spectacularly. Still, when in life does anything ever go the way we plan?
A long cool shower and a beer—okay, two—relaxed me some, and I was able to catch a couple of hours of sleep before I had to be ready. When I awoke without the distraction of hormones, I found I felt fine.
After a quick meal, I headed back to the bridge. The holotank showed no change. We remained on course and Kleed’s ships were braking for rendezvous in about an hour.
If I wanted to fight, now was the time to decide. We could pour on the speed in order to blast through them as fast as possible, taking several out with our heavy weapons, but then we’d be the quarry in a chase against fast ships. They’d catch up with us according to Hansen’s calculations. We’d kill a few more of them, and then they would take us apart. They would do it slowly in hopes of getting our technology intact.
No, this was to be a poker game, one in which both sides had advantages. They had more chips and better cards. On the other hand, I didn’t have to win this one. I just had to limit our losses and leave the table alive. If we were lucky, I’d lose a couple hands, push my chips across the table and get out of the casino.
If I couldn’t get away, they would demand we play for keeps. I wasn’t sure what the human equivalent of tail-eating would be, but I was sure I didn’t want to find out.
“Steady as she goes,” I told Hansen. “There’s no need to make it easy for them. Just keep heading for Orn Six. Incidentally, have we found the ring yet?”
“I believe so, sir. It appears to be lying flat on the surface of the planet.” Hansen put up a fuzzy, long-range image of a circle against a gray background. It was impossible to tell the scale.
Ring orientations seemed mysterious when they intersected planetary bodies. Sometimes they buried themselves on end, forming vast archways. Sometimes we found them far below ground and even underwater. I’d never heard of one lying flat on the surface. That implied it had been placed there, or excavated. If it had fallen into the gravity well from orbit that would have caused a significant impact, and there was no crater around it.
“Got something else for you, sir. We found this exactly, precisely, on the other side of the planet.”
“What’s that?” I said, looking at the perfect square he indicated on the still image.
“Some kind of surface installation. Maybe a science lab or a defensive fortification, we’re too far away to tell.”
I couldn’t do anything about it, so I grunted and put it out of my mind. “Valiant, hail Marvin. Be sure to encrypt the transmission.”
“Channel encrypted and open. No immediate response.”
“Keep trying.” I sat down and spent some time strategizing while gazing into the holotank.
“Yes, Captain Riggs?” came Marvin’s voice several minutes later.
I was about to chide him about not calling me “Commodore,” when I realized I only commanded one ship again. “Captain Marvin, where are you?”
Again I waited through the long delay. “I am on my way to Orn Six as you suggested.”
Had I suggested he go there? I was pretty sure I’d told him to stay near enough to help us, but if he was light-minutes away it would take several hours for even Greyhound to reverse course and get here. To do that he was going to have to light his engines and become easily visible. I decided a distant, unknown ace in the hole was better than none at all.
“Valiant, begin a continuous encrypted broadcast of all ship’s data including video and audio feed. Whatever happens, I want Marvin to have a record of it. Captain Marvin, remember your orders are to get back home and pass on all data about this expedition if something happens to us. Also, Valiant,” I said, struck by a sudden inspiration, “configure our antennas to broadcast full audio and video in Raptor format with beamcast boosting toward the three planets. I want every Raptor to see what goes on here. I’ll let you know when to start transmitting.”
“Scripting done,” said the ship. “Channels opened and reconfigured.”
“Captain Riggs,” Marvin said, “we don’t have the time for an extended conversation, therefore I need to point out something you may not have noticed. Please load the file I have transmitted to the holotank and follow along.”
“Go ahead, Valiant, do it.”
Marvin continued as the presentation came up, showing the situation at the end of the first battle with the Lithos right after we’d entered this system.
“Based on a great number of observations,” he explained, “I’ve calculated the exact capabilities of the various Raptor ship types. You will note that the relief fleet is accelerating at a very conservative rate, stressing neither machine nor biotic component.”
“What you mean is, the enemy commander isn’t hurrying,” I said.
“Correct,” Marvin said. “One would expect a commander of reinforcements to push his ships to the limit in order to try to save his homeworld. I calculate he could have had a third to a half of his fleet join in the battle with the Lithos even if only for one high-speed pass. More to the point, he could have fired over a thousand missiles that would have easily reached and targeted the enemy in plenty of time.”
“Holy shit. That might have done it.”
Kleed had been willing to risk a whole planet so he could pick up the pieces. What a bastard. With the biggest fleet and just colony governments to deal with, he might be setting himself up as a new dictator.
“Hopefully this information hasn’t disconcerted you in any way, but I thought you should know. Captain Marvin out.”
He’d given me a lot to think about, that was for sure, but by this time we had less than twenty minutes until the Raptors matched course with us. I turned to Hansen. “Sound battle stations. I want everyone in suits, armed and ready to fight like hell. Hansen, you have the bridge. If Kleed calls, put him through to my battlesuit.”
“Battlesuit?”
“Yup.”
I didn’t explain, but hurried down to the marine deck. No one was there. All the marines were already at their stations in anti-boarding teams. Most of them were placed near airlocks and the pinnace launch bay—or anywhere else an enemy was likely to enter.
I palmed the lock open, and my huge battlesuit opened for me to climb in. Over three tons of armor, weapons and survival systems were wrapped around me. Without servos, smart-muscles and built-in repellers, even I wouldn’t be able to move in it. A moment later I had the HUD up and was linked in to the ship systems and the other marines. “Hansen, anything?”
“Pass the word to our beam and missile gunners. No one is to fire on Raptor ships until fired upon. Keep them locked-on and ready. If they send something innocent over, like a pinnace, for God’s sake don’t shoot it down. But if they send marines to assault, you’re free to fire—but on the boarding forces only, do you understand?”
“I understand what you’re saying, but not why,” he said.
“Look, as soon as it becomes a ship-to-ship action, all bets are off. They would have to respond, and they’ll tear us apart and hope to get what they want from the wreckage. No, we have to play by their rules. Limiting our response to boarding defenses just might force them to stick to some kind of honorable rules.”
As Hansen passed the orders, I clomped down to the launch bay deck. There I found Kwon and nine other marines. When it came to boarding, this was the weakest spot. The big space-doors were camouflaged and we’d slathered more smart metal over them, but they could not really be armored. If the Raptors located them and did try a storm assault, this was the easiest way in.
“Good to see you, sir,” Kwon roared. “Just like old times.”
“Right,” I said. “Listen—”
Before I could finish my sentence, Hansen broke in. “Kleed’s hailing us, sir.”
I hardly cared what the backstabbing alien had to say, but I opened the channel anyway out of sheer curiosity.
-40-
Senior Field Director Kleed appeared much as Klak had. Perhaps he had a few extra decorations on his uniform, and I thought maybe he was bigger. When you’re not used to them, aliens of a given race tended to look the same.
“Senior Kleed, this is Commodore Riggs. What can I do for you?”
“Commodore Riggs, you are a war criminal. You will surrender yourself and your technology to me.”
I twisted my face into an expression of annoyance. This guy didn’t beat around the bush. With an effort, I managed to keep my tone pleasant. “That’s preposterous, Senior Kleed. My crew and I fought hard to save your planet.”
“You interfered with our internal politics and incited an honorable officer to usurp lawful authority. The reasons behind these acts and their outcomes are immaterial. The law is the law. You will be tried, convicted and executed in accordance with our laws.”
I smiled, although I was unsure if my expression would be interpreted properly. “How about we set that point aside for a moment. You said you want our technology. As a gift to your people, I’ve prepared a blueprint and a list of the components required to construct a fully functioning nano-factory. With your first factory, you can replicate more factories. Within a decade the production capacity of your planet could be multiplied tenfold. You will be a savior to your people. The name of Kleed will echo throughout history as the warrior who brought your people back from the brink of ruin.”
Kleed’s eyes shifted left and right in his head as if he was thinking. I got the impression he was concerned about what those around him would say.
“That is a noble gesture, Commodore Riggs. It may be that I can negotiate a reduction of your sentence. Perhaps mere life imprisonment in a labor camp can be achieved.”
As far as I was concerned, Kleed had spoken the magic word: negotiate. So there was some wiggle room in the old buzzard after all.
“Would you consider a sentence of exile, for me and my crew?” I asked. “We’ll pass beyond the borders of your system through the ring on the sixth planet. You can rightfully claim justice was done.”
Kleed thought about that again. “No. That is no penalty at all. My people demand punishment for the billions of lives lost.”
Starting to get angry, I said, “We saved billions, Kleed! Without us your home planet would be a smoking crater with nothing larger than a microbe living on it.”
“I disagree. If you hadn’t convinced Klak to mount your weapons, the Lithos would not have clung stubbornly to their massed ship. Instead, they would have followed their normal tactics and broken up. We would have defeated them, as usual.”
“I don’t believe that. The Lithos came in with a plan. They joined into their mass ship long before the new weapons fired upon them. Genocide was always their intention.”
Kleed stood stoically, unmoved. “That cannot be proven, and my people will accept my interpretation.”
“Well how about this, smartass,” I said, opening the transmission feed to the general channel. “Valiant, translate and broadcast Marvin’s findings about Kleed’s fleet speed and lack of missile launches on every Raptor channel. Let’s show his people what he really is.”
Once his buddies saw what he’d done, I figured he had nothing to compel us but naked force. Unfortunately, revealing the truth might not be enough depending on the reaction of his troops.
“These allegations are lies and misunderstandings,” Kleed blustered. “We didn’t have the fuel to hurry to the battle and then brake afterward. Had we done so, the entire fleet would have been lost in space. Also, we left the majority of our missiles behind with a skeleton crew to guard the ring against attack, and the few we kept had to be used judiciously.” I realized Kleed was speaking for the benefit of his subordinates and might be broadcasting to everyone else as well.
“Riggs,” Hansen broke in, “we’ve got incoming assault troops. You’ve got two minutes left for chatter, tops.”
I pulled up Valiant’s tactical display on my HUD and swore. “Valiant, close the channel to Kleed. Kwon, prepare to repel boarders! Hansen, pass the word to the auxiliary defense teams. Make sure those anti-snowflake guns are operating, and no firing at the Raptor warships!”
When we’d welded the frigates to Valiant, we’d left all the anti-Litho APs intact. These stubby towers had the ability to sweep along the hulls of the ships. Hopefully, they would give the Raptor marines a nasty surprise.
“Hansen, you have the watch!”
“Yes, sir.”
I went below decks to meet up with Kwon at the hold bay doors. Kwon made sure his troops were set to cover the outer doors, then dragged me behind the cover of a stack of constructive nanite barrels. I checked my laser rifle and readied myself.
With one minute to go, every light in my helmet was green. As the seconds ticked off, I reviewed the tactical feed.
“Hansen,” I said, “it looks like our broadcast did some good. Did you notice not every Raptor warship launched troops? Some haven’t sent out any boarders. Maybe not everyone is behind him on this.”
“Either that, or they don’t put marines on every ship. Or maybe Kleed’s honor demands a fair fight.”
“Maybe. What matters is that we’ve got about one hundred Raptors inbound. I think we can hold.”
“Good luck.”
On the HUD, I saw the Raptor marines landing on the hull. Our hull defense APs, originally made for snowflakes, immediately began to cut them down. A third of the enemy died before they were able to get into crevices and low spots to avoid the beams, which were programmed not to hit our own hull.
“They’re on the hull,” I said over the ship-wide channel. “They’ll breach soon. Get ready!”
Before I’d finished speaking, a white-hot line appeared over the launch bay doors and what little air remained inside puffed out. Several objects sailed in through the orange melted metal, and Kwon yelled, “COVER!”
I ducked with everyone else as the enemy grenades blew, creating a storm of plasma that washed over us and ignited everything flammable. Fortunately, our armor was far too tough to yield to mere high heat.
“GO, GO, GO!” Kwon roared, and we opened fire into the smoke-filled hole. Several Raptors in armor fought their way in and died in our crossing beams. A handful of survivors got through the death funnel at the breach.
Up close and in battle, they moved with sudden leaps and more grace than a man would display. They sailed across the floor directly at us when they were close enough. They didn’t seem to have beam weapons, just huge axes and those tails of th
eirs, which were encased in flexible articulated armor. Sharp flanges protruded at right angles and between the blades on the axes and the blades in the tail. The Raptors hit us hard.
One came straight for me, and my beam slashed across him reflexively, but the glancing burn hardly slowed him down. His huge space-axe, with a blade two feet wide from tip-to-tip, came slashing down in an enormous overhand blow that would have cleaved me from crown to crotch if I’d stuck around.
I leaped back as the axe flashed toward me while trying to keep my laser in play. The Raptor missed and buried his axe in the smart metal floor. I couldn’t get a bead on him before he let go of the melee weapon and leaped again, swinging his bladed tail in a roundhouse sweep this time.
Reflexively, I blocked the spiked ball with my rifle. The tail flanges cut the weapon nearly in half. I realized in surprise the blades must have been enhanced. Maybe they had a molecular edge. The Raptor sailed over my head on his next bound, bounced off the wall above, and came back down toward me.
I ducked under the swinging tail and grabbed the abandoned axe handle. Roaring with effort, I pulled it from the resisting floor, ignoring my destroyed rifle, which now flopped, dangling from its power cable.
Taking a wild swing with the axe, I got lucky. The Raptor’s tail was sliced clean off. Raptor blood spewed into the vacuum and began to boil in the low pressure. My opponent crashed into the far wall and flopped on the deck. He was out of action and dying fast due to shock and asphyxiation.
“Valiant,” I gasped, “increase gravity to three Gs everywhere there are Raptors.” Almost immediately, the floor pulled me toward it. I almost slipped and fell on my face. All around me others felt the same tug, and they staggered under their own tripled weight. I smiled grimly, as the Raptors were no longer flying around and leaping like berserkers. I was pretty sure my trick would hamper them more than us, especially since my marines wore powered battlesuits that assisted us automatically in every movement.
Now that the Raptors weren’t hopping around like demented grasshoppers, I stepped forward to do battle with more confidence. Their armor didn’t appear to have nearly as much power-assist as ours did. Soon, we’d dispatched the dozen or so that had invaded the launch bay. Out of eleven of us, seven were still on our feet. The others were too wounded to fight.