by Saxon Andrew
Mike ran up to the two officers and said, “What do you think?”
Derek looked at Mike and shook his head, “Let’s make the long drop and then we’ll let you know. This one was easier than I expected and we arrived much faster than I thought.”
The technician walked up and read from a small hand unit, “Your approach speed was close to a hundred and fifty miles an hour. The drop from space can be done over the horizon from your target with the speed you’ll have acquired from the fall through vacuum.”
Derek looked at the technician and then looked at Mike, “The city we’ve selected is next to an ocean. Could we be dropped over the ocean and come in from that direction?”
“Our trials have shown that you could be dropped more than three hundred miles from the target and still have more than enough momentum to make the target coordinates.”
Derek’s eyes narrowed as he thought about the idea and said, “How long can one of these foils stay in the air?”
Halley turned to him, “What are you thinking?”
“If we have several hundred of our sharpshooters flying overhead, they could pick off any Gracken that are moving on the surface.”
Halley tilted her head and nodded as the technician said, “I’m not sure. I believe we could have the foils flex and keep the warrior flying but we’d need to trial it to see if it would work.”
Derek looked at Mike and he said, “Start the trial. If we have to delay another week, we’ll do it.” The carrier landed and Mike said, “Good luck.”
Halley smiled, “We didn’t have to do anything but just go along for the ride. The new chip handled everything and all we have to focus on is getting ready to fire when we land.”
Derek nodded, “Drop us three hundred miles from the X. I want to see how fast we can arrive from space.”
The carrier pilot looked at Mike, who nodded. Derek and Halley boarded the carrier and Mike watched it rise and head toward the Q ship waiting in low orbit.
Chapter Nine
Jesse looked at Adams and Jeanette on his display, “Ten hours until we launch; are you ready?”
“The cannons are active and we’ve lined up the warship we’ve been assigned. We’ll see if these guns are all they’re advertised shortly. What about the Raptors?”
“They’ll come in on the transport as soon as we open fire on the two warships. This is going to be a learning experience for all of us.”
Adams pressed his collar, “Mike, is the Regiment ready to drop?”
“They are on board the transport but will be held until you’ve cleared the Gracken Starships from around the planet. You need to let us know as soon as you’ve achieved that goal.”
Adams looked at Jeanette, “You were at the trials; do you think these guns will do the job?”
Jeanette tilted her head, “The shells do make a big impression on anything they hit. If the Gracken follow their normal pattern of moving out to fire on us, we should be able to hit them before they could start jumping.”
Adams looked at the huge dark brown starship on his monitor and shook his head, “That thing is a monster.”
“Yeah, but about every inch of it is critical to its ability to function. If one of the 120 Sliver Shells hits it, I suspect it will suffer massive damage.”
Adams nodded and then shook his head, “Tuffy, get the guns trained on it as quickly as possible.”
“I suspect we could hit it at ten miles out but we’ve been instructed to wait until it’s four miles from us.”
“WHAT!!”
“I’ll be safe for a minute until they move inside two miles. At that range, my field will be blown away by the multiple blasters on the enemy’s hull. However, I do think we can get some shots off before it comes that close.”
“What if they send reinforcements?”
“So far, whenever we’ve shown up, they announce our presence and then run us away. I suspect they won’t get another message out if we hit the bridges on the three ships with one of our first shots.”
“Do you think the Raptors can take out the transport’s bridge before they can communicate?”
“The twenty mm shells will blow a huge hole in the hull and decompress the bridge. They’ll be jumping in a mile from the transport and firing less than three seconds later. They’ll then jump out and come back after the decks housing the reactors. If we’re successful, we’ll join them attacking the transport.”
Jesse and Elle were listening in and Elle said, “The Gracken on the ground will be able to communicate. Our Regiment won’t have long before other Gracken ships arrive.”
“This mission is for the purpose of seeing if we’re capable of removing Gracken warriors from a city without doing massive damage to the local inhabitants. They should be in and out quickly.” Jesse stared at Adams and he saw his concern. “I know; that’s if everything goes to plan. The transport will be launching the carriers to lift the troops as soon as the surface is under control.”
Jesse shook his head, “I really wish the Regiment had air support.”
Adams nodded, “They’re just not ready yet. Besides, this mission is not to engage a major Gracken force; the Warthogs will be needed when we have to face them in large numbers. According to the Assembly, there are about fifteen hundred Gracken warriors in the city. Once we take out the four heavy blasters in the central plaza, it should be a fight between equal numbers on each side.” Adams looked over at his panel, “The transport has jumped out to its point of departure. I’m going to do a final check on the cannons.” Jesse nodded and the display went dark.
• • •
Major Rizzo made his final inspection of his battalion and saw Captain Bolton checking the helmet of one of his Lieutenants. Rizzo smiled and shook his head at Bolton’s two hand blasters belted around his midsection. He was the only warrior in the regiment capable of handling two hand blasters simultaneously. He was ambidextrous and also had an amazing skill at aiming at a target without using the sights. He pointed the handgun and fired; he seldom missed. Bolton saw Rizzo looking at him and turned back to the Lieutenant, “Go to the armory and get a new helmet. This one’s communication chip is damaged. Hustle so you’ll be ready in time.” The Lieutenant rushed out of the drop room and Bolton walked over to Rizzo, “What’s on your mind?”
“I’ve been watching the records we’ve made of Gracken attacks and I’ve seen some of them jump more than fifty yards over their ranks. I’m concerned that they may be capable of jumping over our lines and attacking us from the rear. I want all the officers at the rear of their units to be prepared to take out any leapers that come over the top.”
“You don’t think we can hit them as they jump?”
“None of us have seen a Gracken really moving at their top speed. They have met no resistance during all of the attacks we’ve recorded and they really didn’t have to extend themselves. I’m concerned that we really don’t know their true speed.”
Bolton nodded slowly and said, “I’ll let my officers know. If none make it over, I’ll order them into the ranks of their units.”
“I really suspect this is going to break down into one-on-one confrontations rather quickly. Just make sure someone is assigned to cover your rear.”
“Yes Sir, I’ll get it handled.”
“Are the three Alliance Engineers ready?”
“They’re with my first platoon and will be arriving right behind us.”
Rizzo’s eyes narrowed, “Are you going with them?”
“That force field is critical. Our probes show about fifteen Gracken guarding it most of the time. I’ll rejoin my unit once they get it up and running. Besides, it’s bad manners to allow guests to be killed.”
Rizzo smiled, “You’re right. See you on the ground.” Bolton saluted and Rizzo returned it and walked to another company commander.
• • •
Derek listened in on the communications taking place in the regiment and looked at Halley standing beside him, “You’ve g
ot a good group here, Colonel.”
Halley nodded as she also listened to the exchanges taking place over the frequency, “I’ve pretty much done all I can; at this point, I need to stand back and let them do their jobs.” Halley changed channels and after a moment said, “Excuse me, Sir. I have an issue with the mortar platoon.”
“I’m surprised you’ve brought them along on this mission. We’ll be involved in suburban fighting; where do you see us needing mortars?”
“I’m putting them with the tanks on the outskirts of the city. I know we’ll get a response from the other Gracken on the planet and I want to have every possible advantage if they arrive before we can lift.”
Derek nodded and watched her walk away. He knew she was right and playing it safe…but…if a force large enough to threaten the tanks arrived and his troops were still on the surface… He shook his head and ordered his headquarters platoon to arrive at the tanks drop coordinates. He was going to stay in the air as long as possible to see what was happening in the city. His platoon also had mortars and the targeting systems needed to make them useful. He looked at the seventeen hundred soldiers and shook his head. This could still be a huge waste of time if the Q ships weren’t able to remove the Gracken warships in orbit…but somehow, he knew it was going to happen. He hoped they were ready.
• • •
Mike looked at Jeanette and Eric and saw out of the corner of his eye the huge display on the wall suddenly turn on showing the three Gracken warships in orbit above Fippen. Eric adjusted the view and said, “Why did you select this planet for the first drop, Sir?”
Mike turned back to Eric, “The bulk of that city’s population has been moved to work in a mining operation several hundred miles away. Most of those left behind are elderly or incapable of doing physical labor. They’re used to operate the food processing facilities to feed those working at the mine. If we really make a mess of things, the numbers killed will be limited. We need to see what happens when thousands of slivers are fired inside a city.” Mike turned back to the display and shook his head, “I don’t think we’ll do excessive damage but we just don’t know.”
Eric nodded, “The closest Gracken Military forces are more than five hundred miles away. It will take some time for them to be able to organize and respond.”
“That’s the other reason. I’m planning on having our troops out before they can respond.”
Tilly walked over to Mike’s chair and sat down beside him. She saw his concern and she reached over and squeezed his hand, “Everything will be fine. Our warriors are ready.”
Mike looked at her and said, “There’s just so much we don’t know about their capabilities. I’m concerned about what could happen that we’ve not planned to counter.” Tilly nodded and continued to hold his hand.
• • •
Adams looked at his display and said, “Jump in one minute. Tuffy, do you have the location of our target locked in?”
“I do.”
Jeanette activated her combat helmet and watched the aiming circuitry synchronize with Tuffy’s system, “Tuffy, there appears to be a delay in the cursor transition.”
“It will disappear momentarily. My systems are doing a final check. It should be ready…now.”
“It is; I’m arming the cannons and powering the belt feeds.”
“First 120’s are now in the barrels. The spread has been set for a distance of four miles.”
Jeanette nodded and looked over at Adams, “Get us in where I have a good target.”
“I’m going in and turn to the right. If they give chase and cut the corner, I’ll reverse course and try to give you a shot at their broadside.”
Jeanette nodded, “Tuffy, if we miss, get us out before we move inside three miles and come back for another pass.”
I will, but I suspect the Gracken will start jumping if we miss the first shot.”
Jeanette shrugged, “That’s what we’re here to find out; we can only do what we can.”
Adams looked over and saw Jesse’s ship’s field activate and said, “Jumping in five, four, three, two, one…”
• • •
The Q ship appeared thirty miles from the huge Gracken Warship and began moving toward it at high speed. Ten miles away, Adams turned and began veering away. The Gracken’s thrusters activated and the huge ship turned toward the small Alliance Vessel. It began picking up speed and started to close the gap.
• • •
The Gracken Commander saw the small ship appear and hit a button sending his ship into battle readiness. The pilot activated the thrusters and began moving toward the ship. He saw a second small ship moving toward the other warship but forgot it as he plugged into the ships central computer. He lifted his communicator and said, “I have two enemy starships jumping into my zone. We are giving chase and they are turning away.”
“Let us know what happens.”
“I will.”
• • •
The huge Gracken began turning into the course of the small intruder and began firing its forward blasters. The field around the small ship changed color to white and the Gracken Commander saw the small ship suddenly stop and what looked like small sparks coming from its bow. He saw a bright flash on one of his displays and saw the other Gracken Warship was on fire. He jumped up to order a change in course but never got the words out before he was blown apart and sucked out into the vacuum of space.
• • •
Adams saw the pursuer begin cutting the corner and he brought the Q ship to a sudden stop. He turned the bow toward it and yelled, “NOW, JEANIE, NOW!!”
Jeanette lined up the cursor in her helmet on the huge ship and saw the distance was down to four miles. She had a clear view of the bow and a section of the portside of the giant moving in on them. “I’m receiving fire from three of the Gracken’s heavy blasters. Six more will be able to hit us in another three seconds.” The cursor in Jeanette’s helmet illuminated and went from red to green and she pulled the trigger on her panel. The six 120 mm cannons began firing and a hundred rounds left the Q ship traveling two miles a second.
Adams twisted the ship and went to hit the thrusters when the huge Gracken Warship exploded in eight places and blew apart. Adams was stunned by how fast the giant ship had blown up. “Tuffy, what happened?”
“It appears the Gracken ship isn’t armored. The shells that hit it blew into the ship and out the other side. The eight hits blew it apart into eight pieces.”
“Why would they not armor their ships?”
“It makes sense when you realize that they’ve never had to deal with projectiles; they only arm to handle energy beams. Jesse and Elle killed the other ship much faster than we did.”
Jeanette turned around and said, “Just how were they able to manage that?”
“They went straight in and fired on the bow. Only three shells hit but they burned all the way back to the stern.”
“Get us to the transport, Tuffy.”
“The Raptors and Jessie have obliterated it. It appears they are not going to be able to withstand our armament if we can get close enough to hit them.” Tuffy paused and said, “The First Regiment’s transport has arrived and they’ve begun drop operations.”
Adams and Jeanette watched the giant ship appear in low orbit above the planet and Adams said, “Keep your scanners active; we can’t allow more Gracken Warships to arrive and open fire on our transport.”
“I believe we have some time. I didn’t detect any transmissions from the three ships we destroyed.”
“All the same, keep a look out.”
“You know I will.”
• • •
Halley was buckled into her drop harness next to Derek and she saw something was wrong. She activated the command channel in her helmet and activated his private frequency, “What’s wrong?”
Derek suddenly looked at her and then turned back to the monitor counting down the drop. “What makes you think something’s wrong?”
Derek sighed and slowly shook his head. He turned to Halley and said, “I’m not sure about this.”
“What do you mean by this?”
Derek paused a moment, looked at the monitor, and turned back to Halley, “I have this vivid memory of my father in his Marine uniform when I was a little boy. I thought he was the most handsome man on the entire planet and I longed to grow up to be just like him. He taught me about being willing to die to defend the United States against its enemies and ensure freedom would continue in the world. He meant every word of it and would have given his life to defend his country and his family.” Derek paused and took a breath, “Then the aliens arrived and there were no more Marines. They forced us to disarm at the point of a gun; do it or they’d destroy the planet. Now, I’m about to drop on a planet to defend the ones that took away Earth’s freedom. I can’t say I’m willing to die to save them.”
Halley looked at Derek and said, “We’re actually fighting to defend Earth as well as the aliens.”
Derek scowled, “I hate to admit it, but I don’t know that I’m that interested in defending Earth either. They kicked us off the planet and sent us out here to be fodder for the Gracken.” Derek looked back at the monitor and then turned back to Halley, “I guess if I had to say, you’re the only one I’m willing to die to protect.”
Halley smiled and stared at Derek. Finally, she said softly, “You’re not fighting for a country or a cause.”
“I’m not?”
“No, you’re fighting for the survival of our species. If the Gracken win, not only will Earth be ravaged, but Sparta will as well. Humans will become little more than a footnote in the history of the universe. We’re fighting them here, not so much to protect the aliens, but to delay their attack against us. I’m not so enamored with Earth either, but I know you are a product of two wonderful humans; that’s what I’m fighting to defend. I’m also fighting to have a place for my children to live in peace and grow up to become all they’re capable of being.”