Retreat and Adapt

by Thomas DePrima

  "It sure doesn't like Hudeera. It never stopped growling and snapping at the Hudeera cargo handlers. But as soon as they were out of sight, it calmed right down. Even when our people moved it into this hold, it just sat quietly in the cage."

  "It must have been abused on the planet. Perhaps the zookeepers who were injured were responsible. It doesn't matter now. I could never send it back to that situation."

  "Two jumakas was stretching things a bit. Can you really go about with three?"

  "No, that would be too difficult. I'll have to figure out how to deal with the situation."

  "Then you're definitely keeping it?"

  "Definitely."

  "Very well. I'll take the ship out of orbit and head us back towards Region Two. Uh— it's five now. Dinner at six?"

  "You're on. Tell my steward, please. I want to stay here for a few minutes."

  As Gavin left the hold, Jenetta walked to the cage. The large jumaka looked up and mewled at her approach. Cayla and Tayna were pressing their muzzles against the cage and mewling also. Jenetta knelt with her cats and the bonding began in earnest.

  Jenetta remained in the hold for half an hour, then had to leave for her dinner appointment with Gavin. Cayla and Tayna seemed reluctant to go, but she told them they'd come back later and bring food for the newest member of the family. That mollified them, and after a few more mewling sounds, Cayla and Tayna accompanied her to their quarters. She fed the cats first, then washed up for dinner. Her steward told her that dinner would be ready at six, so she relaxed in her sitting room until Gavin arrived. It was a few minutes before six, so they went to the dining room and took their usual seats.

  "Everything go okay in the hold?" Gavin asked.

  "Fine. My girls were a little reluctant to leave the new jumaka alone down there at first, but I told them we'd go back down after dinner."

  "I've always been amazed that you can talk to them like you would another person, and they always seem to understand you."

  "I wish I knew more about them, but there's almost nothing in the various databases. All they talk about is the basic physical attributes, such as length, height, and weight, and mention that they're used as guard animals. I suppose that Taurentlus-Thur is so far from Earth— and as you mentioned, it only recently became part of GA space— that no zoological parties have gotten to that area yet."

  I've never seen any, apart from your two pets and now this new one."

  "I've never even heard of anyone having one. And the new one is the first I'd ever heard of being in a zoo. I'm glad the Hudeerac King gave it to me. It's too intelligent an animal to be in a zoo. It would be like putting Terrans on exhibit behind bars. We'd react badly as well."

  "Have you decided what you'll do with it?"

  "I know Christa or Eliza would love to have one. The problem is deciding who gets it. I'm sure all of my brothers would love to have one as well."

  "You might have hit on a solution earlier when we were down in the hold."

  "Did I?"

  "You suggested that a trader might have been breeding them. The large one in the hold looks like a male, and you already have two females. If the new one is healthy, you can have two litters in no time. What's the gestation period for jumakas?"

  "I have no idea. I remember reading once that it's about one hundred days for jaguars."

  "There you go. In about three to four months you could be up to your eyebrows in kittens."

  "Just what I need right now. But I'm glad we discussed this. Somehow I'll have to figure out if my girls are in heat and keep them away from the male until they're past it. I'd hate to keep him locked in the cage all the time."

  Gavin smiled and said, "If anybody ever says parenthood is easy, they're either crazy or lying."

  With furrowed brow, Jenetta lowered her head and gave Gavin a hairy eyebrow stare.

  * * *

  "That was an interesting report you sent me," Gavin said the next day. "When did you receive it?"

  "It arrived yesterday while I was with the Hudeerac King."

  "What are you going to do about it?"

  "Nothing."

  "Nothing? We may be putting our people in danger."

  "And then again, we may not. I believe our captains know their ship must not make contact with any other ship in the same envelope mode, whether single or double, but we can warn them again. As to whether they're in danger when passing through a ship that has an envelope in place— well, we'll leave that issue unstated for now. The physicists are divided, so there's no sense placing additional worries on the shoulders of our people until we know."

  "Is that fair to them?" Gavin asked.

  "Do you feel we should ignore an enemy ship traveling FTL because there might be a danger? Should we simply let the enemy ship get away? I don't have to warn you of the potential dangers these enemy ships represent."

  "What if we try to stop it first? If it stops and drops its envelope to fight, then we'll know we're safe."

  "There's one problem with that. The only way we'll know it hasn't cancelled an envelope is if it suddenly goes FTL. If it simply stops and doesn't cancel its envelope, we'll never know the envelope is still active."

  "Then let's assume that if it stops, the envelope is down."

  "I have no problem with that," Jenetta said, "but what if it won't stop?"

  "Then— we attack and pray that the physicists who believe the scout-destroyer will lose its double envelope and reintegrate inside the enemy ship are wrong."

  "Amen."

  * * *

  "Captain," the tac officer aboard the Nile said," I believe I saw something."

  "Something?"

  "I can't be any more definite than that. It was at maximum range and appeared only for an instant."

  "Helm, turn us around for another look. Tac, provide the coordinates."

  "Aye, sir," both officers said.

  Five minutes later the ship had turned around and returned to the possible sighting area.

  "Contact off the larboard side, sir," the tac officer said.

  "Do you have their course and speed?"

  Aye, sir. It's recorded, along with the sighting data from the DeTect system."

  Commander Soren Mojica called up the images from the appropriate DeTect sensor and verified the presence. "Com, notify the others that we've found them. We have five solid contacts. Send them our coordinates."

  "Aye, sir." A few seconds later the com chief said, "Message sent, sir."

  "Helm, let's park and wait for the others."

  * * *

  "We just received a message from the Nile," Gavin said after establishing a com signal with Jenetta. It was first watch and she was in her office on the Admiral's Bridge. "They've found the Denubbewa mother ships."

  "All of them?"

  "It appears so. They report having five solid contacts."

  "Five? Well, now we know what they were waiting for. I hope that's all of them. How long until we reach the Nile's location?"

  "Almost two days. I've notified the Ferdinand and other SD's to meet at the new RP location."

  Jenetta looked away from the com screen for a moment and said, "Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more."

  "Shakespeare?"

  Jenetta nodded. "Henry V, Act Three."

  "May we be as successful as King Henry was at Agincourt."

  "I refuse to contemplate any other outcome. We will never stop fighting while we live— or they do."

  * * *

  It had only taken a few days of gentle treatment to get the new jumaka to calm down completely. Jenetta knew that Cayla and Tayna were largely responsible for the attitude change. Their display of affection for— and protection of— Jenetta had made the large male see her as not as a threat but as a friend.

  "Good morning, Thor," Jenetta said as she entered the hold with the jumaka's breakfast. She opened the latch on the cage door and he jumped out and ran around the hold several times before returning to eat. She ret
rieved his water bowl from inside the cage and filled it to the brim, then put it back inside. She wished she didn't have to lock him in the cage when she wasn't there, but she was afraid to leave him loose so soon. The Marine sentries were still posted at the door to ensure no unauthorized person entered the hold, but Jenetta had to guarantee that no one would be injured. Thor, as she had named him, would be locked in the cage whenever she wasn't around until she was absolutely sure he wouldn't attack an innocent party. So far he had returned to the cage whenever she told him.

  When Thor finished his food, he bounded over to where Jenetta was sitting on the deck. As she began pulling the grooming brush through his thick fur, he mewled with pleasure. Jenetta didn't know if it was the grooming or simply the attention that he enjoyed so much. But it didn't really matter. He had to be groomed anyway, and it was a good way of bonding with the jumaka.

  After the brushing was finished, Jenetta ran laps around the hold. Thor enjoyed running alongside her, just as Cayla and Tayna did.

  At 0800, Jenetta told Thor it was time for her to go. Without even telling him, he returned to the cage. After she locked the door, she said, "I'll see you at dinnertime."

  Thor laid down quietly on the floor of the cage and watched her leave.

  * * *

  The Ares, along with the four SD's that had accompanied him into Ruwalchu space, finally arrived at the RP established by the Nile. The six ships involved in the search had been performing flybys of the Denubbewa mother ships every four hours while waiting for the Ares to arrive. The remainder of the bombers, targeting ships, and the Ferdinand, had arrived at the RP and were standing by ready for action.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, good job locating the mother ships," Jenetta said as the twenty-eight-ship teleconference began. "We're about to enter the final phase of this undeclared war and avenge the crews of the Yenisei, the Salado, and the crewmembers we lost from the Gambia and Vistula. Have we determined where the quintet of mother ships is headed?"

  "My navigator believes their destination is the planet Bludlow," Captain Zakir Singh of the Duluth said. "It was a vital part of the Milori Empire and is still an important trading partner with Milor."

  "I'm familiar with it. Their principal export is titanium and, of course, tritanium."

  "Yes, ma'am. According to reports, their ore deposits are enormous, and their foundries can turn out processed material almost faster than it can be prepared for shipment. If the Denubbewa are looking to build more mother ships, that's the place to go for raw materials."

  "Yes, Maxxiloth relied on it to provide the tritanium for his massive shipbuilding operations. It would seem that the Denubbewa intend to greatly expand their presence here. We're going to see that doesn't happen.

  "The ships engaged in searching for and then maintaining track of the mother ships have performed a great service to Space Command. Knowing that the Denubbewa hadn't begun open warfare against planets out here enabled those of us back at Quesann to concentrate our attentions on developing new weapons to use against this formidable enemy. Every scrap of information, including an analysis of the two destroyed hulls and the intact missile, has helped us develop our weapons and our plan of attack. I'm sure that, at times, you were frustrated with our non-action, but we needed that time to prepare. I know in my heart you've been anticipating the day when you could get some payback for what the Denubbewa have done, but most of you will have to take a backseat to other ships as we begin our efforts here today. The reason is simple. We're still too vulnerable to the missile barrages the Denubbewa are capable of launching. When we leave here to launch the attack, we will first travel to a new RP ten billion kilometers behind the position of the mother ships. Those not involved in the attack will remain there until they receive new orders.

  "Ten of the SD's I brought with me have been modified to perform as bombers. Our plan is to bomb the Denubbewa into oblivion. I know that sounds a bit crazy at first, but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense. We can use our TW envelope technology to actually drop our 'eggs' inside their ships."

  Jenetta paused as officers aboard the six ships on search-and-observe duty digested what she had said and had a few seconds to think about it.

  "The speed at which our ships travel in TW envelope mode," Jenetta continued, "means that no bomber can operate independently. A lead ship, that we refer to as the targeting ship, leads the way to the enemy and actually takes helm-control of the bomber. It's responsible for sending the signal to drop the bomb or bombs once the optimal drop point is established. The targeting ships have had special equipment and software installed to accomplish this, because in the last few seconds of the run, picoseconds are critical.

  "For our initial attack, it might improve targeting if we could halt the mother ships. The Nile will fly ahead and position itself directly in the path of the mother ships. It will not cancel its TW envelope, so there's almost no danger. If the mother ships halt to attack the Nile, the Nile will engage its drive and clear the area when ordered to do so by Captain Gavin. At that same instant, five of our bombing groups will start their run. All ships not part of the action will remain ten billion kilometers away to ensure that the Denubbewa DeTect screens remain perfectly clear."

  "Admiral," Captain Singh asked, "what's the accuracy of the bombs? At Light-9790, we're traveling almost three billion kilometers per second."

  "During testing, the minimum acceptable drop radius was established at fifteen meters. All ships achieved that mark with all bombs." When Jenetta saw several jaws drop slightly, she added, "You have to remember that this weapon was intended to also fight the support ships back when we only knew of one mother ship in GA space. Accuracy was and is paramount. Although the ships are traveling as fast as Captain Singh says, the bomb-release process actually begins when the ship is still billions of kilometers from the target. The timing sequence establishes precisely when the bomb will separate from the TW envelope. At that point, the bomb is instantly back in normal space while the ship continues on at Light-9790. It took a great deal of engineering effort to make the drops so precise.

  "All bombs in the bomb cradles of ships making the initial assault have WOLaR payloads. The other five ships have a combination of WOLaR and standard 'torpedo' payloads. The Ferdinand is carrying substantial replacement quantities of both types.

  "The size of the mother ships means that one WOLaR payload might be inadequate for causing crippling injuries, so the bombing teams will each drop three bombs on the initial run. The timing circuitry ensures they drop sufficiently distant from one another to achieve maximum damage.

  "The bombing teams participating in the first run are the Magdalena, Congo, Tigris, St. Lawrence, and Purus. The targeting ships are the Katanga, Murray, Ohio, Ottawa, and Rhine. These ships have trained together, so they operate in specific pairs.

  "At present, the Denubbewa mother ships are traveling in a 'V' formation. Numbering the ships from left to right, ship number three is out in front. The Tigris and its targeting ship, the Ohio, will take down mother ship number three. The St. Lawrence and the Murray drew number two, and number four goes to the Purus and the Rhine. The Magdalena and the Katanga will take down number one, while the Congo and the Ottawa are assigned to number five.

  "I'm sure you all know this, but let me remind everyone. While in a TW envelope, you can pass through any solid object in normal space. However, if you impact another ship enclosed in a TW envelope, it's as if both of you are in normal space. So keep to your lanes. When you prepare to attack, make sure your course will not cross that of another ship. After dropping your bombs, continue on in a straight line for sixty seconds, then stop for new orders.

  "Ten seconds after the bombing teams complete their run, the Mekong will perform a flyby of the area to give us an initial view of the damage. If the damage appears considerable, the Mekong should make a second pass, halt, cancel its envelope, drop a sensor buoy, create a new envelope and then return to the RP. We'll be able to determine w
hat additional action is required after we see the images."

  "What if the mother ships don't halt when I stop my ship in front of them?" Commander Soren Mojica asked.

  "Then you'll engage your drive and get out of the way to ensure you don't collide with the bombing teams. We can't cancel the operation if the mother ships don't stop, but there might be an additional danger, so only one ship will attempt the bomb run until we know. That ship must be crewed by volunteers."

  "What's the danger, Admiral?" Commander Dillon Wilder of the Tigris asked. "We've all made solo drops during testing."

  "Following my trip to the Ruwalchu home world, I received a report from Space Command that addressed the issue of a ship with a TW envelope in place passing through a ship with a single envelope. To the best of our knowledge, this has never been done before, and half the Space Command physicists participating in a discussion on the topic expressed concern that the TW envelope might be cancelled if this was attempted. If it did, the ship might reintegrate while inside the single-envelope ship."

  Two minutes passed before anyone spoke. Jenetta gave them time to consider the ramifications.

  "But only half believed that, Admiral?" Commander Shawn Fischer of the Yukon asked.

  "Yes, the other half believe there will be no effect. Space Command was preparing to conduct tests, but we won't have the report for probably a year. We can't wait."

  "I volunteer," Wilder said, "and I'm pretty sure every member of my crew will go also, but I'll put the question to them after the conference ends. We never expected to be totally safe during this attack."

  Wilder's comment drew a chorus of assent statements from the other officers who had been designated to participate in the attack.

  "Thank you, all. You make me proud to lead this fine group. If any member of your crew wishes not to participate, shuttle them to the Ares before we commence the operation. Their decision not to volunteer will not be held against them."

  "If the mother ships don't stop, and the Tigris and Ohio make it through successfully, do we then proceed as well, Admiral?" Commander Myles Barley of the St. Lawrence asked.