Heirs at War (The Marmoros Trilogy Book 2)

by Peter Kenson

  There was a concentrated silence as hands flashed over the control panels, trying desperately to bring systems back on-line. An insistent beeping began, followed by a shout of disbelief.

  “Sir, she’s behind us.”

  “Evasive action. Alpha Six pattern,” Mikael ordered.

  “We’re pulling away from her,” Frank reported. “She’s down to one quarter power and she’s turning away. It looks as if she’s breaking off the attack, sir.”

  “Cancel evasive action,” Mikael ordered as he raised his hand to silence the cheers that were ringing round the bridge. “We may have damaged her,” he said, “but she has killed the Cleo. In less than two hours we have to abandon ship. That’s a high price to pay for damaging a frigate.

  “So unless you fancy floating around in a spacesuit until the Jupiter arrives, I suggest we look for a new home. Comms, what’s the situation on the two freighters?”

  “Both still on their original course, sir. They’ve crossed and they’re now diverging. The Monteparnassus still appears to have all systems down... She’s only moving under her own momentum. The Arctic Fox has power to her engines but does not appear to have any navigational controls, sir. And we can’t raise her... The comms are still down at her end.”

  “Helm, can we overtake either of them before we run out of air?”

  “Not the Arctic Fox, sir. Not unless she slows down for us... And we can’t contact her to ask her. The pirate is a possibility, although it would be awfully close. And if she regains systems control within the next two hours, then she can pull away again and we wouldn’t catch her in time.”

  Mikael looked across to Suzanne. “Can you contact the Arctic Fox?”

  She shook her head. “The ship’s crew are non-telepaths. I can contact Rachel or the ambassadors but I doubt they’d be much help in this situation.”

  “Well contact Rachel anyway and let her know what’s going on.

  “Now Helm, where’s that frigate heading?”

  “Back into the asteroid cluster, sir. My guess would be that she’ll have to make some emergency repairs before she tries to go any distance.”

  “My thoughts also. Number One, put the smallest stealth probe we’ve got on her tail. I want to know her exact position at all times. Meanwhile bring the Cleo round and set course after the Arctic Fox. One quarter speed.”

  “Why not just follow the frigate ourselves, sir?” The query came from the helm.

  “We’ve only damaged her engines, Ensign, not her weapons systems. She obviously outguns us and she carries more crew than the Cleo. Taking her by surprise is our only chance. We need to make it look as though we’re limping away. We’ll maintain course until the frigate disappears among the asteroids and then double back.”

  “Aye aye, sir.”

  Mikael looked around the bridge. “The Cleopatra is a good little ship. She has a good heart and she’s done her best for us. And I’ll be dammed if I’m going to let that frigate get away with killing her. We’re going to show them what a corvette of the Imperial Navy is really made of. Now jump to it. The clock is running and we’ve got less than two hours left.”

  Chapter 7 – Cleopatra

  “The frigate is right behind this asteroid, sir. The probe indicates that her engines are completely shut down and she has crew outside working on the manifolds.”

  “Kind of them to pick the biggest lump of rock in the entire cluster,” Mikael commented. “Helm, ease us into the lee of that rock. Make sure you keep it between us and them at all times.”

  “Aye aye, sir.”

  “How much longer will the air hold out, Number One?”

  “It’s getting pretty thick already, sir. CO2 levels are up to 13 and climbing. We’re losing operating efficiency already. By the time it reaches 15 we’ll start to see blackouts among the crew. Radiation levels are also increasing as the screens are breaking down. I estimate no more than 12 to 15 minutes, sir.”

  “Tell the crew to buddy-up, Number One. Two men to every job. I don’t want to leave anybody behind when we go.”

  Mikael walked to the back of the bridge to look at the tank. The two freighters were still moving apart along the trade route although the Monteparnassus had visibly slowed, the dot flashing red to reflect the changed status of the pirate. He used the controls to zoom in on the area immediately surrounding the Cleopatra. Dozens of white dots sprang into definition representing the asteroids in the cluster with the largest of them separating the green dot of the Cleo from the red dot of the unknown frigate.

  “Comms, have we still got a visual from the probe?”

  “Yes sir, probe is holding at maximum visual range.”

  Mikael sat down at the command console. “Put it up on the main screen again. Let’s have another look at her.”

  The screen cleared to show the stricken frigate with the main airlock and one of the cargo bays wide open and dozens of tiny ant-like figures clambering around the rear engine manifolds. Of more immediate concern to Mikael, however, was the hemisphere of sensors bulging away from the asteroid and completely surrounding the frigate. The captain of the frigate was obviously taking no chances.

  “It looks as though she’s launched every probe she had on board,” Mikael said bitterly. “Have the Tactical Analysis computers come up with an approach yet?”

  “No sir.” Frank looked up from the TacAn screen. “There’s no way we can slip even a ship’s boat through that sensor field without being spotted. And she’s kept her weapons systems on-line. If we try to make a dash for it, we’ll been blown out of space before we even get halfway.”

  “So, from the point of initial detection, we cannot reach that invitingly open cargo bay without being blown away?”

  “No sir.”

  “Then the obvious solution is to start from somewhere nearer. Engineering, can we rig the ship’s jump field to centre on a point external to the Cleopatra?”

  “Aye sir, we can.”

  “And can we wrap that field around an object say the size of one of the ship’s boats and use the Cleo’s power to jump that object away from the Cleo?”

  “Aye, that’s technically possible sir. But the energy gradient would be so steep that power loss would severely limit the size of the jump, probably no more than one or two light-years at best.”

  “It won’t need to be anywhere near that distance, Chief. No more than a few klicks. Set the field up and shape it to fit the gig.”

  “Aye sir.”

  “You’re going to push the gig through a subspace jump to materialise inside the ring of sensors?” Frank asked with more than a trace of disbelief in his voice.

  “That’s right,” Mikael replied. “Start nearer. Bring the point of initial detection so close that she doesn’t have time to react.”

  “But she still might have a laser bank covering the sector where the gig materialises,” Frank objected.

  “Not if the Cleo comes round the side of the asteroid directly in front of her. She’ll be so busy pointing everything she can at the Cleo that we can drop the gig in behind her and run straight in. Two boarding parties on the gig; Number One, you take the Alpha team in through the cargo bay and secure the engine room and the power supply. I’ll take Bravo team in through the main airlock and head straight for the bridge.”

  “That’s got possibilities,” Frank admitted. “But we’ll have to be very precise with the jump coordinates.”

  “I’ll do the calculations myself.” Mikael looked round at the assembled officers. “I want you to organise the men, Number One. Put the surgeon and the wounded in the jolly boat with a skeleton crew. All other crew are to draw small arms and report to the Captain’s gig. Any questions?”

  “Who’s going to manoeuvre the Cleo into position and initiate the jump, sir?” Ensign Targa asked.

  “Chief, can we rig some controls and do it on remote from inside the gig?”

  “Canna guarantee that, sir. We can ju
ry rig some remotes aye, but there isna time to properly check them out. The only way to be certain is to operate the controls from the bridge.”

  “Then I’ll do it myself. Number One, you take command of Bravo team and go for the bridge; Guns, you lead Alpha team to engineering.”

  “No sir.”

  “I beg your pardon, Number One.”

  “It’s more important that you lead the men and take the bridge of the frigate, sir. Once you’re in there, you’re in charge of the situation. If you stay here, you’re out of the game. I’ll take the Cleopatra on her last attack, sir.”

  Mikael looked steadily at the determined expression on his Exec’s face. “You know the risks, Number One. Once the Cleopatra comes into sensor range and the gig’s away, you’ll only have a matter of seconds to reach an escape pod and get out before the Cleo gets spread over half the surrounding asteroids.”

  “I understand, sir. I’ll have an escape pod open and waiting. I’ll be out of here before they can bring those phasors to bear.”

  “All right then. Guns, you still take command of Alpha team. Chief, you go with him. I want all power inside the frigate shut down as soon as possible and not restored until we’ve taken the bridge. Any further questions?”

  No one spoke.

  “Right then. Let’s do it.”

  As the officers dispersed to their various posts, Mikael spotted Suzanne standing quietly at the back of the bridge and waved her across.

  “What can I do to help, Mikael?”

  “I want you to go with Tony in the jolly boat. He’s already got casualties to deal with and there will be more. He needs the help, and I want you as safe as I can make you.”

  Saying that, he put both arms around her and drew her into a hug. Suzanne returned the hug for a second before pushing him away.

  “You take care of yourself too, you big oaf,” she said, kissing him on the cheek. “I’ll see you on the frigate.”

  Mikael watched her leave the bridge before touching the tannoy switch on the arm of his chair. “Attention all hands, this is the Captain speaking. Stand by to abandon ship. I repeat, stand by to abandon ship.”

  Having given the order that would prematurely terminate his first and possibly his last command, Mikael busied himself with calculating the coordinates for the subspace jump that would place the ship’s gig within striking distance of the frigate.

  The science of subspace jumps was still not perfectly understood. In basic terms, normal space was ‘folded’ so that two points many light-years apart were touching each other. A tiny movement within subspace then meant that when the normal space was unfolded again, the ship had jumped to the new position. The ‘folding’ of space required vast amounts of energy and the more power a ship could generate, the more space could be folded and the further a ship could jump. Under normal circumstances, a C class corvette had a maximum jump range of 45 - 50 light-years.

  The problem arose in the calculation of the arrival point. This not only required an exact knowledge of the start coordinates for the jump but also a very precise control of the amount of power fed into the ‘folding’ process. The power requirements were affected by proximity to stellar or planetary masses at either end of the jump and even large ships could distort the amount of energy required to fold the local space. Typically a jump error of one part per million was regarded as acceptable which, over the full 50 light-year range, could mean missing the target coordinates by up to two light-minutes.

  The distances Mikael was working with in this case were much shorter but the mass of the asteroid was an enormous complication and the target area he was trying to hit was a sphere no more than a kilometre across. The quality of the air on the bridge was now seriously affecting concentration and several times he had to shake his head to clear the fog before double checking his figures. He completed the checks and uploaded the settings just as Frank reported back to the bridge.

  “The jolly boat is loaded and ready to launch, sir. All systems are closed up and switched to automatic. Except for the bridge crew, all hands are suited up and waiting at the gig.”

  “Thank you, Number One. Clear the bridge and signal the jolly boat away.”

  As the bridge crew closed up their stations and headed for the suit locker, Mikael and Frank went over the final arrangements. They suited up and the switch to tanked air brought an immediate relief to both men. Then they jointly initiated the automatic detonation procedure in the event that the frigate attempted to disable and capture the Cleopatra instead of simply destroying her. Finally, and for Mikael the hardest part of all, was the formal transfer of command.

  “Open Captain’s log.”

  “RECORDING”

  “This is Lt. Cmdr. Mikael Boronin formally relinquishing command of His Imperial Majesty’s corvette Cleopatra to Lt. Frank Bennetton. Close log and download copies to both ship’s boats.”

  “ACKNOWLEDGED.”

  “She’s all yours, Number One,” Mikael said. “Jump the gig into position as soon as you’re sure you’ve got their attention and then get the hell out of here. Good luck Captain.”

  ***

  On board the gig, they held station in the lee of the asteroid and waited as the Cleopatra nosed round the rim and into view of the sensors. Suddenly there was the familiar feeling of disorientation and the view of a large lump of rock out of the open airlock was replaced by a short stretch of open space and the rear end of the frigate. There had not been the usual warning in advance of the subspace jump and there was no time afterwards for the normal positional checks. Ensign Marisse, who as Cleopatra’s navigation officer was piloting the gig, kicked it into motion and headed on visual only towards the first drop-off point at the open cargo bay.

  This was the easier of the two entry points as the cargo bay had no fixed defences. The main airlock, where Mikael’s party would board, was likely to be a different proposition. On most warships, as on the Cleopatra, the main airlock was defended by at least one short range laser, precisely to protect against boarding actions. However, some of the more inventive members of the crew had placed a liberal interpretation on Mikael’s order regarding ‘small arms’ and had removed and brought along the short range lasers from the Cleopatra’s own airlocks. One of these was currently mounted in the open airlock of the gig while the other, with even more initiative, had been mounted on a gravsled ready to be taken inside the frigate.

  It was crowded in the gig as virtually the entire crew of the Cleopatra was crammed into a space designed for no more than half that number. Not all of the 30 men in Lt. D’Mina’s group could stand in the tiny airlock at the same time, so the inner airlock door had been wedged open to allow the remainder of the group to make a fast exit. Final checks were made on each other’s weapons and backpacks as they waited for the word to go.

  The pilot slowed the gig as it approached the cargo bay but did not waste time trying to bring it to a complete stop relative to the frigate. It was still moving as the stream of men poured out of the airlock and headed for the open bay. The gunner manning the hastily rigged laser spotted one of the frigate’s crew with a laser rifle and fired off a blast before his view was obscured by the boarding party. This group had commandeered all of the Cleopatra’s supply of jetpacks, but even so, some of the more experienced hands were having to make the jump ‘free’; judging the relative motion of the target and launching themselves towards it as a kind of human missile.

  Mikael watched as the form of Lt. D’Mina, wearing the commanders bars on his helmet for recognition, reached the edge of the cargo bay and disappeared inside. Pausing only briefly to cut the tether lines of the frigate’s unfortunate working party, the rest of the boarding party followed him. The stranded working party could be rounded up later together with those few Cleopatrans who had missed their target.

  The gig was now approaching the second entry point at the open airlock and Ensign Marisse was furiously juggling the controls to kill the velocit
y of the gig relative to the frigate and allow the airlocks to link up. Two flashes of light erupted from the frigate’s airlock indicating that her defences were manned and operational. The gig rocked as the pulses of energy hit the hull evoking a response from Fleurie Marisse that was typically naval but quite unladylike.

  One of the energy pulses had discharged partially into the gig’s airlock and Mikael worked with the others to pull the casualties back into the interior of the gig. Another gunner took over the controls of the mounted laser and a way was cleared to allow the mobile laser to be pushed into the airlock. Both gunners concentrated their fire on one of the frigate’s defensive positions and were rewarded by the sight of it glowing cherry red before an internal explosion took it out of commission.

  The other laser meanwhile had been directing its fire at the gig’s miniature bridge and was in imminent danger of breaking through the hull at that point. One blast inside the bridge would fry all of the equipment and effectively prevent any chance of a successful dock. The gig was still rocking under the blasts of energy as Fleurie fought to bring the ships together, but it was looking increasingly unlikely that the ships would dock before the laser broke through the shielding around the bridge.

  The visor on Mikael’s helmet darkened automatically as a brilliant explosion on the far side of the frigate marked the demise of the Cleopatra. He looked around the airlock at the anxious faces watching him and found at his shoulder the solid figure of the bosun. To avoid using the suit radio which would almost certainly be monitored by the frigate’s comms, he touched helmets with the bosun and spoke normally.

  “We have to deal with that other laser.”

  Mikael pointed at the shaped explosive charges which several of the crew carried. These were designed to direct the main force of the blast into the hull of the frigate and had been hastily put together in the engineering workshops.

  “Get one of those charges and follow me,” he ordered.

  Mikael seized one of the charges and launched himself towards the frigates airlock. He grabbed the edge of the open door to brake himself and swung nimbly around the airlock until he could reach to place the charge at the base of the laser. Above him he could see the bosun placing another charge on the other side of the laser emplacement. The outer skin of the gig was starting to seriously blister under the laser assault as they swung back out of the way and Mikael triggered the charges.