by Linn Schwab
“Well,” Cindy said with a sigh of regret, “it looks like we have our answer, Major. They aren’t interested in talking with us. I guess we’re gonna have to keep fighting.”
The major took one final look around, then sadly nodded her head in acceptance. “Take us back to Volaris,” she said. “There’s a lot of work that still needs to be done.”
Cindy fired up the engines and turned the shuttle back around toward the station. She had to force herself not to stare at the major’s face. It was the first time she’d ever seen a major shed tears.
* * * *
When Captain Hoile stepped onto the Alabama’s bridge, the fleet was already gearing up for an assault. The gunships were all lined up in formation, and the carriers were preparing to launch their fighters. He felt an enormous weight of pressure to provide some useful information. But he feared what little he’d actually recovered would leave the admiral’s questions unanswered.
Admiral Sands was waiting for him. Commander Ingman was there as well. He walked across the bridge to join the two officers and waited for the admiral to acknowledge his presence.
“So,” the admiral said to him, “were you able to determine where those fighters are coming from?”
“At least some of them,” he said. “There is at least one enemy carrier operating inside that wreckage field. As far as what’s behind the asteroid field, all I have to offer is this.” He slid a memory chip into a nearby console, and a blurry image flashed up on the screen. The left side of the image showed stars in the distance, against the normal backdrop of outer space. The right side was obscured by the partial silhouette of something that appeared to be mostly out of frame.
“What is that?” the admiral asked.
Captain Hoile shook his head. “We’re not really sure. We just happened to capture this image while we were turning tail to withdraw. It certainly looks like it could be a space station, but we have no idea how large it might be. If we assume it’s somewhat symmetrical in shape, more than half of it falls outside the picture. But we don’t have any telemetry that tells us how far it was from the camera.”
“It’s just as we suspected,” Commander Ingman said. “There is something hiding back there.”
“Yes,” the admiral agreed, “but we still don’t know what or exactly where. It looks like the only way we’re going to find out is to fight our way in there and have a look around.”
The commander stared at the object in the image, looking for signs of any hidden details. “If we do find that thing, is it your intention to attack it?”
Admiral Sands looked at the image again and nodded his head in confirmation. “Absolutely,” he said. “If that thing is blocking our path to the planet, we need to know what kind of defenses it has.” He turned to Captain Hoile. “Captain, are you familiar with the repair yard in sector Y–eleven?”
“Yes, I believe we towed a cruiser there a few months back.”
“Good. I want you to take your ship to that location, along with the Sacramento and the San Felipe. Tell the yard commander he has two weeks to get all three ships ready for combat. We’ll rendezvous back here in sixteen days. Got that?”
“Yes, Admiral. Sixteen days.”
“Head back to your ship now and get under way. I’ll instruct the other two captains to follow your lead. Oh, and make sure you keep an eye on the San Felipe. There’s a chance you may end up having to tow her.”
“Yes, Admiral.”
As Captain Hoile headed back to the shuttle, Admiral Sands looked out at the fleet again. “Start launching the fighters,” he said to Commander Ingman. “Let me know as soon as they’re ready to go.”
“Am I coming with you this time,” he asked, “or do you want me to stay behind with the carriers again?”
“Yes, you’re coming along this time. I want you to oversee fighter operations.”
“Do you think we have a chance of getting through this time?”
“I’m convinced we actually had a chance the first time. And I’m still kicking myself for not taking advantage of it then. If they haven’t brought in any reinforcements, we should easily be able to push our way through them.”
VULNERABILITIES 071
When the shuttle’s door opened, Major Richards walked down the boarding ramp and headed straight for the control room. Ariel, Lindsey, and Veronica all turned to face her with hopeful looks in their eyes.
“Well?” Commander Eldridge asked her.
“They didn’t show,” she answered.
The three controllers lowered their heads in dismay.
“That’s unfortunate,” the commander said. “We may have to consider abandoning this station. While you were away, the Calypso called in and informed us the Scorpion has been destroyed. Attempts to contact the Osprey have been unsuccessful. If we assume the Osprey is lost as well, that puts us down to six experienced destroyer crews here. If that fleet comes at us again, we won’t be able to turn them back.”
“We have more destroyers now,” the major reminded her.
“But who’s gonna fly them?” the commander argued. “The Second Battalion? They’re still wet behind the ears. Captain Starling may have shown an aptitude for combat, but she still hasn’t returned yet.”
“She hasn’t?”
The commander shook her head. “Apparently she ran into some trouble near Orion. She called for help, and that’s the last anyone’s heard from her. Right now, we’re assuming her crew was lost in action.”
Major Richards seemed deeply saddened by the news. “What about the guns?” she asked. “Were you able to get any of them working?”
“Before that derelict ship crashed into us, we managed to get three of them fully assembled. Whether they actually work or not remains to be seen.”
“Can’t we try to test fire them?”
Commander Eldridge crossed her arms and leaned against the back of Veronica’s chair. “I suppose we could,” she said. “But I think I understand now why you send your personnel to other stations for training. There’s a strong possibility that firing those guns might expose this station’s position to the enemy. The muzzle flashes would be fairly easy to detect. At this point, I’m convinced those guns should only be used as a last resort.”
“So you think we should leave, then?” the major asked.
“Not just yet. Let’s keep the repair crews working for now, but I want everyone else ready to leave at a moment’s notice.”
* * * *
When Captain Hoile returned to the Mona Lisa’s bridge, his officers greeted him with looks of uncertainty. It was obvious that another assault was imminent, and with the ship already weakened by torpedo damaged, they were fearful of being ordered into combat again.
“Let’s get under way,” the captain ordered. “Set a course for the repair yard in sector Y–eleven.”
“So we’re not taking part in this assault?” Derrick asked.
“No. Apparently we’ve done our part for now.”
“What a relief!” J Mac said. “My nerves are beyond shot already!”
“Enjoy the reprieve while it lasts,” the captain told him. “In sixteen days, we’re back at it again.”
“Back to collecting old wrecks again, I hope.”
The captain frowned and shook his head. “Something tells me that’s not what the admiral has in mind for us.”
* * * *
“We’re ready,” Commander Ingman announced. “All of our fighters are in position.”
Standing on the other side of the bridge, Admiral Sands turned to his radio operator. “Signal the fleet to advance,” he said. “Onward into the cauldron we go.”
The remaining cruisers began to move forward with the lone battleship at their midst again. They hugged the outer edge of the asteroid field until it brought them around to the same swath of space which had proven so costly for them before. The fighters formed a screen to the left of the fleet, to shield it from destroyers hiding among the rocks. The formation seeme
d to move with fierce determination and a stubborn will not to be deterred. Their menacing guns stood at the ready to carve a path through anything that got in their way.
“This time we have them,” the admiral said. “The pieces are all falling into place for us.”
* * * *
“We’re in trouble,” Delia said, observing the enemy advance on her scanner. “They’re coming at us faster this time, and their fighters are positioned to pin us in. I don’t think we can stop them. The question is, should we just let them go by, or throw ourselves in front of them and try to slow them down a little.”
She looked around at the faces of her crew. All of them showed her a steely resolve, and a will to go down fighting if they must. The only exception was Tabitha, who just stared at the console in front of her, resigned to the fact that she was likely going to die. Her concentration was suffering from lack of sleep, but she was cognizant enough to operate the smokescreen, and that was all she was really needed for.
“Alright,” Delia said, “here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna smash right through those fighters as if they aren’t even there. We’ll fire off as many torpedoes as we can and shove our smokescreen right in their faces. If we’re still in one piece after that, we’ll swing around and make another run at the fleet. We may not survive this battle, but hopefully we’ll be able to take some of them with us. Is everyone ready?” she asked, looking around at her crew once more. They all responded with somber nods. “Alright, Emily,” she said to her pilot. “Get ready to move on my order.”
* * * *
“Sixteen days,” J Mac mused, relaxing and settling back in his chair. “Sixteen days away from the combat zone. You know, when I was growing up, I never thought I’d actually be thankful for sixteen consecutive days of boredom.”
“And just as importantly, sixteen nights,” Derrick said.
“Oh yeah,” J Mac agreed, “sixteen nights of restful sleep, without having to worry about waking up with a torpedo detonating in your face. That is the UEF Fleet equivalent of sleeping on a peaceful hillside meadow.”
“That sounds very pleasant,” Captain Hoile said. “I think when this war is over, I’ll make a point of seeking out such a meadow to sleep in.”
“You and me both,” J Mac said. “I never want to see another metal wall again.”
An alarm suddenly shattered the peaceful conversation, sending the entire bridge crew into a frenzy.
“What is it?” the captain yelled.
One of his lieutenants pointed through the forward windows and shouted, “Enemy destroyer at eleven o’clock!”
“What!” J Mac said in disbelief. “We can’t get away from these things anywhere!”
“Sound general quarters!” the captain ordered. “Seal all hatches and unlock the guns! Tell all gunners to fire at will!”
* * * *
“Robin!” Caroline yelled. “Enemy ships coming up off the port side!”
Robin looked up at the surveillance scope image. The camera showed three enemy gunships traveling together in single file. She didn’t want anything to do with them. “Steer five degrees to starboard,” she ordered, “and increase throttle to point seven zero.”
The Cricket began to pick up speed and swerved away from the trio of ships.
* * * *
As Captain Hoile watched the enemy destroyer, it veered off as if preparing to attack him from the flank. That’s what destroyers do, he told himself. They try to come at their targets from the side. But rather than swinging around for an attack, the ship accelerated and passed him by.
“What are they doing?” Derrick wondered aloud.
“They don’t seem interested in us,” the captain observed. “They must have another target in mind.” A look of alarm suddenly appeared on his face. “The carriers!” he exclaimed in concern. “They’re headed straight for the carriers!” He turned to his radio operator and yelled, “Get Admiral Sands on the radio, NOW!”
* * * *
“Admiral,” the Alabama’s operator yelled, “urgent message coming in from the Mona Lisa!”
“What is it?” the admiral asked, looking annoyed.
“They say an enemy destroyer just blew right past them and is headed straight for our carriers!”
The admiral slammed his fist on a console in frustration and turned to look at Commander Ingman.
“We have to turn back,” the commander insisted. “If we lose the carriers, we lose our fighters.”
The admiral nodded and reluctantly ordered his fleet to turn around. “Tell the fighters not to wait for us,” he said. “Tell them to get back there right away. We’ll fight our own way out if we have to.”
* * * *
“Look!” Audrey yelled, pointing at the scanner. “They’re turning around!”
Delia stared at the scanner image, deeply suspicious of the enemy fleet’s actions. “What are they doing? They didn’t even fire a shot.”
“Maybe they were just trying to scare us,” Audrey said.
“If that’s what they were doing, it worked,” Tammy said. “My hands are gonna be shaking for a week.”
Tabitha closed her eyes and laid her head down on the console in front of her. Emily looked at her in sympathy, then turned to Delia and said, “We need to get her back to Volaris. This might be the only chance we get.”
“Just a little while longer,” Delia insisted. “Let’s make sure they’re really withdrawing first.”
* * * *
“We’re coming up on the tip of Pangea,” Michelle said. “There are probably more enemy ships in this area.”
Robin looked out the window and nodded. “Fifteen degrees to starboard, Caroline. Let’s stay as far away from them as we can.”
* * * *
“Where is that enemy ship?” the admiral asked.
“We’ve got it on radar,” Commander Ingman said. “It’s out of range, though. They must’ve realized we were coming.”
Admiral Sands looked at the radar screen and watched the blip swing wide of his fleet. “This poses a serious problem for us. We need to find out how these enemy destroyers keep managing to slip behind our defenses. Any strategic initiatives we take are contingent upon keeping the enemy contained.”
“Are you still planning to go forward with the assault?”
“I’ll decide that later. Right now, we need to evacuate this area. If that ship was able to get a fix on our location, missiles could start raining down here any moment now.”
* * * *
Robin awoke in her bed on Volaris. All of the other beds were empty. She vaguely remembered docking the Cricket at the spur, and struggling to walk to her sleeping quarters. She vividly remembered crawling into bed and collapsing in the warmth and softness of her blankets.
Still wearing my uniform, she realized. Too tired to take it off when I climbed into bed. She yawned and forced herself to sit up. Better go find out what’s happening. She found the rest of her squad in the observation lounge, and sat down with them at one of the tables.
“What did I miss?” she asked, still trying to rub the sleep from her eyes.
“Those enemy ships are all gone,” Michelle said. “Commander Eldridge thinks they pulled back and are hiding out of range somewhere.”
“Has she asked why we were late getting back here?”
“Not yet,” Caroline said. “But I’m sure she probably knows by now. Right now, she and Major Richards are examining the Cricket’s flight recorders.”
Robin sighed and lowered her head. “I guess I’m gonna be in trouble again.”
“I don’t think so,” Mindy said. “Commander Eldridge thinks we saved Volaris. She said she thinks the enemy pulled back as soon as they realized we were behind them.”
“Mindy’s right,” Phoebe said. “There’s no way she’s gonna suspend you again.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Robin said. “She’s a really difficult person to figure out.”
* * * *
Comm
ander Eldridge watched with great interest as the enemy space station appeared on the screen. She observed the following action closely as Robin positioned her ship for an attack run, only to swing around and pull away at the last moment. “Apparently,” she said to Major Richards, “she’s not quite as ready to kill as she thought she was.”
“You can’t blame her for that,” the major said in her defense. “She isn’t even supposed to be in combat yet.”
“I’m well aware of that, Major. And I’m not about to place any blame on her for it. As you can tell from what we just saw, there are very good reasons behind the decision not to send such young girls into combat. They aren’t emotionally prepared yet to face the psychological repercussions of killing. I, however, have no such qualms.” She raised her arm toward the screen and pointed at the enemy station’s coordinates. “Contact your support ship, Major, and tell them to obliterate that station.”
Major Richards reluctantly walked over to Veronica and asked her to put a call through to the Sunbright.
I’m sorry, Robin, she fretted in silence. I’m sure you didn’t intend for this to happen.
A voice replied to Veronica’s call, “Volaris, this is the Sunburst responding. Go ahead with your message, please.”
“Sunburst, this is Major Richards. Why are you responding for the Sunbright?”
“The Sunbright has zero ordnance remaining. She’s on her way to the reload station to have her supply of missiles replenished.”
“Very well, Sunburst. I have a target for you, then. The image should be coming through now.”
“Image and coordinates received, Volaris. Missiles should be on the way shortly. Sunburst, out.”
Standing just outside the room’s entrance, Mindy listened in on the exchange, then scrambled back down to the observation lounge. “They found the station, Robin,” she said. “They’re firing missiles at it right now.”
The girls all walked over to the windows and looked out together toward enemy space. A few seconds later, they saw the first of eight consecutive flashes in the distance.