by David Buck
‘Well Gementer should survive and the best estimate gives us within two hundred years to leave. As long as she mates before she leaves, say within one hundred years or so then she will be fine. Altarebe, do you have anything to add to this for Seliandre?’
Altarebe only repeated what he had said to the queen earlier for Seliandre’s benefit, before the queen sent then both over to assist the patiently waiting Maveen probe.
Altarebe watched in silent approval as his first bride assisted the probe in the difficult repairs to the sled. He knew that they would have plenty of opportunities to get to know each other over the remaining years they would be hiding on Earth.
***
The Cephrit fleet master led his procession into one of the main hangars on Cephrit star base 31 and came to a halt several metres from the rear of the recently returned large shuttle. The fleet master had planned for this moment by taking the last five command watches by himself and giving his station master plenty of time off. He ignored the lines of junior female marines facing him on either side as he eagerly awaited the return of one dear to him. In moments his mate of record was slowly walking down the ramp towards him. The fleet master silently noted that the assault leader was not injured and that her re-grown legs had now turned the same shade of black as her original legs.
The massive assault leader stopped three metres from the fleet master and gave him a full formal bow as required by protocol. He noted that her chitin was polished to jet black clarity and she wore on her hind legs her best dueling blades set with gold and silver as he gave her leave to rise.
‘Be at ease Assault Leader for your return and successes delight me greatly. I understand that you have guests with you and we will deal with this matter directly. The honor guards are dismissed and will now leave the hangar.’
The assembled Cephrit broke ranks and then left the hangar, as the two of them were then joined by a worried junior station master and a pair of lieutenants. The fleet master looked over at the other Cephrit for a moment before he quietly spoke.
‘Now not a word of this to anyone or the Zronte will have us in chains for the compost pit. We must be mad to get into a quarrel between the Vorinne and the Zronte, however minor the matter turns out. We will keep them in the Vorinne quarters as visiting merchants as I understand the lieutenant no longer has his uniform. Assault Leader please lead us onboard the shuttle.’
The five Cephrit soon crowded onto the shuttle and the rear door was raised to maintain security. The forward cargo hold door of the shuttle opened along one side and the fleet master took in the large forms of a Vorinne couple resting on their six legged haunches. The male Vorinne slowly came to his impressive four metre height and gave a full formal bow.
‘Lieutenant Dreshe’ahal, former aide to Lord Temeroth, and my travelling friend is Lady Lahalm’siema. Your assault leader found the lady on another planet on the way back to this star base. We both seek protective from Lord Temeroth, and Lady Lahalm’siema is the younger cousin of the second envoy.’
The Cephrit assault leader politely questioned both the Vorinne for only a few minutes, before he delegated the station master to take them in his charge and also take the next three watches. He quietly led the assault leader from the hangar as the station master motioned the lieutenants forward with the bundles of old Vorinne clothes they carried. He paused once they reached a corridor all by themselves and turned to face her, with the assault leader crouching low instinctively in respect, as he came close to speak softly and caress her with his antennae.
‘Mate of record, and of my hearts, I am delighted in your safe return and you have done well. The envoy’s concerns will be deflected with your efforts and she is also under an obligation to us now after we aided the two junior Vorinne in the hangar. So any news of our children would only add to my happiness.’
The assault leader revelled in her mate’s touch as she gave her grateful reply.
‘Honoured mate, our children are all well and they are good examples of Cephrit integrity and duty. I have brought all their latest news with me on my data tablet for you to view over a bottle of fine Barus wine.’
The fleet master gave a chirr of pleasure at this news and led the assault leader off towards his quarters. He knew that the station master would report back to him on the Vorinne at a much later stage, as they first had to work out how to get the second envoy involved in a discreet manner. As the assault leader dutifully trailed behind him she asked a couple of questions of her own.
‘Fleet master, how does the situation with the Tilmud stand at this stage? Also do we have to send forces towards the former Dradfer colonies?’
The fleet master was expecting these two questions, as the assault leader had every right to ask them as part of her duties. He again admired her armour and best blades as he gave a genial explanation.
‘The Tilmud still possibly plan treachery for several of their ships have left their deployment zones around their main colonies. We are mindful of this and are on our guard around our main assets, including this star base. Unfortunately this means that we have not been able to intercede at the former colonies. Our recent reports suggest that the Jerecab have been suffering a string of defeats at the hands of the humans. However we are aware that the Jerecab forces heavily outnumber the human fleet so they will be eventually destroyed.’
The two Cephrit then remained silent and they soon reached the fleet master’s quarters. They both quietly discussed the possible problems a Jerecab victory over the humans would have, with the assault leader providing an additional insight the fleet master had not considered. He quietly thought about her insight as he opened a bottle of his best wine, and he resolved to contact the local Deltas Vass commander after a few hours of sleep.
The fleet master rested on his favourite couch and by custom the assault leader crouched on the floor next to him with her data tablet. He turned aside for the evening the demands of his duties as he learnt more about the lives of his distant children.
***
Chapter 3
Admiral Mary Neilson gritted her teeth hard as the Exeter blew apart yet another small Jerecab transport. The human fleet had earlier cornered the small Jerecab supply convoy and the destroyers had taken a savage toll. The eight frigates had lasted only half an hour, before the combined firepower of the Earth destroyers had blown them apart at long range with their large spinal mount weapons. The smaller Jerecab transports were more nimble than the larger lifters and several had almost reached the hyper drive point to flee. But Mary had been mindful of this, and had merely taken the leading section of five destroyers forward past the slower lifters.
Lieutenant Benson calmly gave a series of reports about the status of the battle.
‘None of our ships have suffered any significant damage, thought the Tokyo has her shields down to sixty percent after two frigates attacked her at once. All the frigates are destroyed and the smaller transports will be joining them in minutes. The larger lifters are cornered and should be destroyed within another half an hour.’
Mary noted that two of the quickest transports had almost succeeded in breaking away from the ambush, but her commanders were up to the task and concentrated firepower from the forward destroyers quickly overwhelmed both civilian ships. A small explosion from one transport was followed by a much larger one from the second transport. She evaluated that the second ship was carrying missiles that had cooked off when the enemy ship was destroyed.
‘Well that is several enemy missiles that we will no longer have to worry about. Order the Tokyo and the Buenos Aires to withdraw to our rear as they have weakened shields and are now also in the line of fire.’
The two destroyers in question broke off their attacks and headed away from the cornered Jerecab ships at a tangent. A torrent of weapons fire from the remaining destroyers flooded over the freighters and several large explosions occurred over the space of several minutes. Mary could see that their spinal mount weapons were now taking a heavy toll on the lifters
, despite the larger ships having heavier shields. The destroyer commanders coordinated their attacks so that three or four particle cannon blasts would arrive in short order to bludgeon down the enemy ship’s shields.
Mary looked across at the now spilt views showing on the main view screen, as the final pair of lifters was destroyed. She gave another dry comment as she took in the carnage.
‘Well the Jerecab are starting to pay a price for their attempts to destroy us. Hopefully the Barus can attempt to make them see reason and return to their own systems. All ships are to form up and we will leave the combat zone to return to the Aquamarine system via an indirect route.’
Mary looked through the fleet status reports quickly and with no real concerns, for the recent battle had been heavily one sided. She again wondered on how Joel and the other commanders were going with their own individual efforts against the Jerecab. Their plans now called for the deployment of several smaller bases for refuelling and tech labs and she knew this was a risky undertaking. The human destroyers formed up into their squadron sections as they moved at speed off to an outer hyper drive location.
After they have entered hyper space and left the star system, a stealthy small scout ship uncloaked several million kilometres from the recent combat zone. The young male Cephrit pilot chirred nervously as he piloted his craft forward, for the savagery of the battle had left him very anxious about surviving his mission. He was very concerned that at no stage did the humans even look like giving quarter to the Jerecab, even if he knew that this was not to be expected with the demands of modern battle.
The scout pilot prudently cloaked his ship again as he neared the wreckage, for he was afraid of a trap. He had the tactics of the humans recorded, and had made accurate assessments of the types of weapons deployed. For the sake of further accuracy he deployed a small probe to recover pieces of the hull from the Jerecab ships.
‘The fleet master would definitely need to see this combat footage…’ the pilot decided, as he kept his multiple eyes warily scanning his sensor consoles for threats.
***
The two Maveen probes came to a rest several kilometres from the Sspol cruiser and began a detailed conversation between themselves with their communications lasers. The Dradfer probe noted the concerns of the other probe, even as it considered how the Earth probe and sector delegate would be going with their plans elsewhere in the galaxy. Now convinced about their timing for the agreed course of action, the Dradfer probe crafted a careful message to the patiently waiting Sspol.
‘Envoy Drannep; we thank you for your patience. The plan is now set for action and a later response, but we cannot be seen to be active in this part of the galaxy. We suggest that the Sspol attempt to patrol the Dradfer worlds, noting that we request you do not attack the humans.’
Both the Maveen probes were conscious of several minutes of silence emanating from their massive former enemy, before the Sspol envoy gave an equally gracious reply.
‘Honoured we are to assist the Maveen and their world view has always been wise. The Barus are seen to follow the rule of law even as they attempt to save the humans. We seek to aid the humans to avoid extinction, for the possible destruction of a young and fallow race defiles us all.’
The request now understood, the two races worked quickly to work out the final details, before Drannep’s cruiser summoned another nearby ship and both left the system to begin their patrols. The two Maveen probes returned to their nearby gate ship, for they were hopeful of meeting the Trader ship at a later stage.
***
Joel Everson looked over the sensor reports with anticipation as his three ships entered the Topaz system. He quickly went through several emotions as the reports came in, with the local reports arriving first. He could see that four Jerecab frigates and four of their larger lifters were diagonally opposite the star system from his ships. The anticipation quickly changed to caution as he noted another thirty frigates right across the far side of the star system. Joel quickly gave his orders as he opened a new time and distance calculation in his command console.
‘All ships to form up on the Auckland and go flat out for those four frigates.’
Joel ran the simulation three times to be absolutely confident, before he gave an overview to the bridge and further orders.
‘The thirty frigates are nine hours away as this is a large system. We will close the four frigates well within three hours as we are taking the diagonal across the system’s outskirts. I want full readiness reports in thirty minutes; we will then stand down for an hour for a crew break.’
The destroyers arrowed across to the four frigates, who had started to move between the approaching human ships and the Jerecab lifters, and Joel quickly noted that none of the lifters had frigates docked to them, for he was aware that each cargo lifter could dock several frigates. As he waited for the intercept Joel was soon looking through the engineering reports for each of the destroyers, especially the still damaged Madrid, as the crew took the opportunity to eat and freshen up in split shifts.
After another hour, the tactical officer’s console chimed a proximity alert, for the Jerecab frigates had begun to close his ships. Joel walked back onto the bridge and fastened the top of his clean tunic after handing his coffee to a nearby lieutenant. He calmly walked towards his command chair and looked around the bridge, noting that his crew appeared refreshed and ready for the coming battle. Joel placed his coffee in a drinks holder and remained standing as he spoke to the communications officer.
‘Communications, establish a line please to the Madrid and the Newport.’
Joel waited patiently for several seconds as ship wide communications and links to the other two ships were established. He began to speak carefully as he again looked around at the young crew on his bridge.
‘We have done well over the last few days, and we will continue to do so as long as we keep to our training and duties with our orders in mind. The Jerecab are a powerful and unknown enemy, and while we have enjoyed early victories we must not become complacent. The four frigates and the lifters they are protecting must destroyed with no casualties amongst us. The larger force will be too far way to interfere, but we must be mindful of reinforcements arriving from outside the star system. Good luck and stay sharp people.’
Joel now took his seat and recovered his coffee, as the efficient and enthusiastic crew continued their duties. He noted again the distant forces of the Jerecab and keyed up reports of the stealth robots he had hidden much earlier in the star system. The two interesting things he noted about these reports were quickly discussed around the bridge.
‘Well the two larger ships are Barus destroyers and it looks like the Jerecab forces on the other side of the system chased them away. There is also a report of a smaller ship, of a very different design, that skirts around the other ships at a distance.’
The tactical officer, Lieutenant Chandra, was up to the challenge of identifying the small ship.
‘Commander the smaller ship appears to be a Cephrit scout ship, noting that the information dates back to our initial briefing from the Traders back on Earth.’
Joel quietly acknowledged the lieutenant’s efforts as he brought the bridge back to their immediate tasks.
‘Thank you lieutenant and you are as accurate as always. Now we will target the lead ship as it is the closest, also I want a one hundred mile buffer between us and the enemy at all times. After reading further about the Newport’s recent battle I consider the Jerecab may attempt to ram our ships.’
Joel settled back to overview the tactical simulation now on the secondary screen, and he noted the probable outcome with satisfaction. He put aside his concerns as the range alert came on for the main spinal mount weapon.
‘All ships open fire on the lead enemy frigate. We then hold our course and attempt to get between them and their lifters.’
The weapons console flashed the brief overcharge buzzer for the main particle cannon before a slight shudder ran
through the ship as the weapon fired. Joel noted that all three shots raced across the intervening space and impacted on the lead Jerecab frigate.
The sensor readouts for the enemy ship went wild for several moments as the reserve energy discharged through the now dangerously weakened shields. A blaze of turret weapons fire raced out from the destroyers and hit the now tumbling frigate. Joel noted that a secondary alarm sounded as they then came within range of the Jerecab frigates.
The recharge timer for the spinal mount weapons slowly counted out the five minutes needed, as Lieutenant Chandra gave a curt report.
‘Commander, the three undamaged frigates have launched several missiles at extreme distance. The missiles appear to be targeting all our ships instead of just one ship.’
Joel gave a silent prayer of thanks as he followed the flight of the fifteen missiles, for he knew that any of his ships alone would find that number of missiles to be a real threat. The missiles raced out at long range for the human ships, before the spinal mount weapons on each destroyer again concentrated their firepower on the damaged frigate.
The frigate’s shields again discharged the force of the weapons, and even at a range of several thousand kilometres, Joel got the impression that the ship shivered for several seconds. The force of the attack increased the tumbling of the frigate, before it soundlessly exploding in a cascade of light and heat. The recharge timers again began their countdown as a storm of point defensive laser fire from the human destroyers reached out for the approaching missiles.
For several minutes the bridge echoed with calls of vectors and fire control solutions, before the lasers destroyed all the incoming missiles. Joel anxiously scanned the status of the Newport and the Madrid and he was relieved to find that the other two ships were also unscathed. He then ordered each of the three ships to now concentrate their eight turreted lasers on the second frigate, and watched critically as salvos of weapons fire lashed the enemy ship. The two outer Jerecab frigates responded by both attacking the Newport, which happened to be the nearest human ship to them. The second frigate also joined in the attack and Joel had no hesitation in giving his next orders.