by Linn Schwab
Though surprised by her display of fearlessness, he felt certain overconfidence would be her undoing. I’m nothing like the pilot she just killed, he told himself. Most of these boys are still fresh off the transports. If she expects me to be just more of the same, she’s in for a very rude surprise. But in the back of his mind, based on what he’d just witnessed, he couldn’t help but wonder if he might have underestimated her.
As Peter circled back toward the enemy pilot, it became clear that she’d gotten the jump on him and was easily going to end up on his tail. This forced him to change his tactics a little, but he quickly devised an alternate plan. Since the Cricket was heading for the asteroid field, he would try to tempt this pilot into chasing him there, thus keeping her away from the battle for a while. Once there he would shake her among the rocks, then slip behind her and finish her off so he could search for the Cricket without interference. A sound idea, he convinced himself. Now to see if she falls for the bait.
He banked hard right and headed for the asteroid field. She swooped in behind him just as he’d hoped. Before she could get a shot off at him, he plunged into a series of intricate maneuvers to keep her off balance until he made it to the rocks. “That’s it,” he said glancing over his shoulder. “Stay with me now. Just a little bit closer.”
She continued to close on him and tighten up the angle until he suddenly realized he’d made a mistake. In a panic he pulled back hard on the stick, but it only loosened her up a little. He fought hard to shake her, veering left and then right. She stayed with him through each and every twist and turn. He now realized she was a much better pilot than he’d thought, and that he should not be playing games with her. To have any chance at all of surviving, his only chance was to make it to the asteroid field, or hope for assistance from another pilot.
His efforts to lose her now took on a new sense of urgency. His heart rate kicked into overdrive. “Come on, come on!” he urged his fighter. “Just get me to those rocks! Just a little bit further!”
A burst of bullets flew across his left wing. She was trying to prod him into making a mistake. She doesn’t want me going into the asteroid field. All the more reason to drag her inside there!
Just before he reached the first of the rocks, he positioned his fighter to slalom around them. He could only hope there was nothing hiding behind them. If there was, it might be over for him. And her as well if she kept closing in.
The first rock whizzed by him. He pulled hard to the right. She swung wide but quickly made up the difference. He pushed the stick forward and passed underneath the second rock, then rolled to his right and banked hard around a third, before weaving his way between several more. The rapid series of maneuvers proved too much for her. When he finally dared to look back, she was gone. The game of tag and chase had come to an end. It was hide and seek now, with death to the loser. And it was anyone’s guess who the loser would be.
“Where are you?” he whispered as he circled back around. “I know you’re not the type to give up so easily.” After searching through the rocks for less than a minute, he came across a stream of glistening droplets that he knew from their color could only be fuel. He also discovered a strip of metal that appeared to have come from an enemy fighter.
She tore one of her fuel tanks open, he realized. Could that have been enough to make her give up the chase?
He continued the search, looking for more evidence. If she was still leaking fuel, it might lead him right to her. A few minutes passed before he picked up the trail — a dotted line of rainbow–hued globules leading around the left side of a large asteroid.
She’s hiding behind this rock, he determined. But which direction will her weapons be facing? If I follow the trail, I might sneak up behind her, and take her out before she has a chance to target me. But if she knows she’s leaking fuel, she may be expecting that, and have her guns facing in that direction. In which case I’d be walking right into her trap.
He paused in front of the rock for a moment to ponder which direction he should fly around it. After carefully weighing all of his options, he decided it was best to sneak over the top and see if he could pounce on her from above.
A slight blip of the throttle sent his fighter drifting upward, only meters from the asteroid’s rocky surface. His finger remained snugly planted on the trigger. Whoever fired first would add a kill to their tally.
“Virginia, can you hear me?” Robin asked. The speakers responded with nothing but static. Through the forward glass all she could see was the asteroid that Caroline had chosen as a hiding place.
Mindy tinkered with the radio controls, but her efforts to tune out the static failed.
“How long should we wait here?” Caroline asked.
Robin didn’t have an answer for her.
“We can’t wait too long,” Sheri said. “We’re leaking fuel from engine number three.”
“Can’t you shut it down?” Robin asked.
“It’s already shut down. That rocket must have caused some damage to the fuel line.”
“We can’t fly through those fighters again,” Robin said. “We’ll have to wait here until the battle is over. Katrina, raise the surveillance scope so we can see what’s going on out there.”
Katrina reached for her controls, but the image on the viewscreen remained unchanged. “It’s stuck,” she said. “It won’t extend. That wreckage that hit us must have damaged it.”
Robin walked to Caroline’s side and ordered her to reposition the Cricket so they could see overtop of the asteroid. “Don’t take us back out in the open,” she said. “Just far enough that we can see what’s happening out there.”
Caroline fired the maneuvering thrusters, and the Cricket slowly began drifting upward.
The first glimpse of metal made Peter twitch. His reflexes screamed at him to pull the trigger. But it wasn’t a fighter that appeared in his sights. Instead, he found himself face to face with a destroyer, whose crew seemed every bit as surprised as he was.
The Cricket! was the first thought that raced through his mind. But before he could get a close look at her name, his eyes were drawn straight to the faces of her crew, and the captain he so desperately wanted to speak with. “My god!” he stammered. “Their crews are just children!”
The shock was enough of a distraction to kill him. Without warning, the enemy pilot came at him from the side, and the last thing he felt was the sting of her bullets.
Robin was still shaking when she heard Virginia’s voice.
“Are you girls alright?”
“I think so,” she answered. She glanced around at each member of her crew, and could see they were all shaking just as intensely as she was.
“That was close,” Virginia said. “I see you took a few hits back there. Did any of your systems suffer serious damage?”
“We’re leaking fuel,” Robin said. “And engine number three is completely shut down.” She looked out at Virginia’s fighter and noticed some damage to the fuselage. “What happened to you? I can see a big gash along the bottom of your fighter.”
“Yes, I’m leaking fuel too. I got a little too close to one of these rocks. It looks like that battle has shifted away from us for now. We should get going before it has a chance to swing back in this direction.”
When the fog around Orion began to recede, Commander Freeling had Jenny report to the control room, along with Charlie and Delia.
“Have you heard from Volaris yet?” Jenny asked the instant she arrived at Commander Freeling’s side.
“No. We still haven’t been able to contact them. But things are beginning to open up out there. We have radar penetration at two kilometers now. I’m sending everything I have out to search the surrounding area. If there are any Sentinel vessels in distress, I’m hoping we’ll be able to make contact with them, and guide them back in, or at least render some assistance. Since I know you’re anxious to get back to Volaris, you’ll be searching the area between here and there. Captains Sincl
air and Pomeroy will do likewise. If for some reason you’re unable to locate Volaris, I want you to head back in this direction before you end up running low on fuel. Understood?”
“Yes, Commander. Should we travel as a group, or split up to cover more area?”
“Try to cover as much area as you can. Just make sure you stay in contact with each other. I’ll give you and Captain Sinclair the most direct flight path to Volaris. Captain Pomeroy,” the commander said to Delia, “I want you to swing out closer to Pangea first, and see if you can get in contact with any of our patrol ships.”
“Yes, Commander,” Delia said. “When do you want us to leave?”
“As soon as you’re ready.”
The three captains left the control room together and headed for the lounge to gather their crews, then split up and proceeded to the spur and the hangar.
“What do you think?” Charlie asked as the Hornets walked across the hangar toward their fighters. “Do we split up and fan out as far as possible?”
“We’ll fan out,” Jenny said. “But we should travel in pairs. I don’t want anyone to get left behind out there.” She gestured to her pilots and paired them off. “Trixie, you’re with me. Nancy and Kelli. Zoe and Lisa.” Charlie did the same with her pilots.
As soon as both squadrons were out through the airlock, they set a course for Volaris and began to spread out.
“Two point seven kilometers, sir. Two point eight. Two point nine.”
Commander Ingman stared out at what was left of the fog that had held his ship captive for several days. With each successive sweep of the radar it seemed to be growing less dense now.
“We must be coming to the edge of it,” he said.
“Shall we increase speed now?” Captain Vance asked him.
“No, not yet. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves before we even know where we are.” He briefly glanced out through the starboard windows to make sure the Belfast was still alongside. The two carriers continued to push ahead slowly without a single support ship anywhere in sight. “We should get some fighters out there,” he said. “There’s enough visibility now for them to operate safely. Lieutenant Berens, send a message to the Belfast. Tell them to put half of their fighter squadrons out on patrol, and keep the other half on standby for now. And get half of our squadrons out there as well. Captain Vance, as soon as we’re clear of this fog, we need to determine our exact position.”
“Yes, Commander. It shouldn’t be much longer. It’s breaking up faster by the minute now.”
As he said that, the Melbourne broke free of the fog, and the windows were suddenly filled with stars.
“Where are we?” Commander Ingman demanded.
“Working on it, sir,” Lieutenant Jarvis replied. “I have the asteroid field dead ahead of us, and the sun is off to port right now. Based on the orientation of the stars, we are definitely in enemy space.”
“So the enemy homeworld would be to our stern?”
“Yes, sir. I think it’s near the very center of that fog.”
“And we’re stuck on the wrong side of the asteroid field.”
“Not necessarily,” Lieutenant Jarvis said. “Radar shows a good–sized gap ahead of us. That might explain how we ended up here. That comet must have punched a hole through the asteroid field, and dragged us through the opening right along with it.”
Commander Ingman studied the radar image while he tried to decide which direction he should go.
“What do you think?” Captain Vance asked him. “Do we stay here, or do we try to make a run for it?”
“That’s just what I’m trying to figure out. Lieutenant Jarvis, is that gap large enough for us to get back through?”
“Yes. But I wouldn’t wait too long. My guess is it’s probably closing up again.”
“Difficult decision,” the captain said. “This is exactly where the admiral wanted us to be.”
“Yes,” Commander Ingman agreed. “But he didn’t want us to end up here quite like this. Two carriers all alone with no gunships to protect them? Our enemies couldn’t ask for a more generous gift.”
Captain Vance didn’t seem to be convinced they should leave, but all he could do was offer his opinion. “What do you think Admiral Sands would do if he were to end up in this situation?”
“Admiral Sands tends to err on the side of caution. He thinks long term. He’s not prone to risky ventures like this. Not at the expense of two full carriers. I think he’d want us to make for that gap without delay, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. Take us back through the asteroid field, Captain. We’ll head for our most recent staging coordinates, and just hope the admiral’s flagship is waiting for us there.”
The Melbourne’s bridge fell silent for a moment as both ships headed for the asteroid field. As they neared the rocks, the captain asked, “Shall we go through in tandem, or single file?”
“Single file, I think,” the commander said. “We’ll go in first. Tell the Belfast to follow us.”
As the Melbourne’s nose eased into the gap, the radio officer looked back over his shoulder. “Commander,” he yelled, “our pilots are reporting enemy fighters in the area!”
“How many fighters?”
“Unknown, sir. Preliminary reports suggest they might just be scouts.”
“Commander,” Lieutenant Jarvis said, “I’ve got a ship on radar, closing in on the Belfast.”
“What class of vessel?”
“Looks like a heavy cruiser.”
For an instant the bridge fell deathly silent. Everyone fully understood their predicament. They had no defense against a heavy cruiser. Fighters were virtually ineffective against them due to the thickness of their armor plating. This ship could follow them inside the gap and continue to pound them from behind with impunity until nothing remained of them but smoldering shells.
“There’s a chance we can save the Melbourne,” Captain Vance insisted. “But it means you’re gonna have to sacrifice the Belfast.”
“You’re suggesting I should order her crew to run interference for us while we run away and just leave them to die?”
“She’s lost anyway,” the captain said. “That cruiser is coming up right on her tail. Any minute now she’s going to come under fire.”
Commander Ingman looked around at the faces of his officers as they waited to see what his decision would be. “The very thought of doing this just sickens me,” he said. “I have a captain sitting in the brig right now because he gave the order to kill one man. And now I’m faced with something like this? Maybe I should lock myself in there with him when this is over.”
Despondent, he shook his head and walked to the communications console. As much as he hated to give the order, he realized there was simply no other choice. He could lose one carrier, or he could lose both of them. “Patch me through to the Belfast,” he said.
“Yes, Commander,” the operator replied.
Lieutenant Jarvis suddenly spun around in his chair and yelled, “Wait, Commander! I just received an I.D. That heavy cruiser is one of ours! It’s the UES Portsmouth. Captain Nagle’s ship.”
“He’s right,” the radio officer confirmed. “The enemy fighters are withdrawing now. The Portsmouth must have been too much for them to handle.”
Commander Ingman sat down in the nearest open chair, relieved that he didn’t have to issue the order. Even more relieved he wasn’t going to lose a carrier, and the hundreds of personnel on board. “Contact Captain Nagle on the Portsmouth,” he said. “Tell him to fall in behind the Belfast, and shield her stern from enemy fire. Those fighters might lob a few rockets our way. And who knows what else they might find to throw at us. And make sure our pilots all know where we’re headed, just in case any of them get separated.”
When the Melbourne and Belfast were safely beyond enemy reach, both ships began to recall their fighters. As usual, Jay’s squadron was among the last to land, even though they were still short one pilot, following Jason’s disappearan
ce. He’d heard reports that there were enemy fighters in the area, but had not encountered any himself, or spoken directly with anyone who had. But as he stepped inside the locker room, he heard several pilots congratulating one of the young rookies for getting a kill on his very first mission.
“What’s this all about?” Jay asked, interrupting the conversation.
One of the more experienced captains gave the rookie pilot a slap on the back, and said, “You’re not gonna believe this, Captain Beauregard. Lieutenant O’Connell here bagged himself one of those yellowtails.”
“Is that so?” Jay remarked. “Well, congratulations, Lieutenant. You’ve managed to do something even I haven’t accomplished.”
O’Connell’s face was completely pale, and when he shook Jay’s hand it was clear he wasn’t exactly brimming with confidence. “Thank you, Captain Beauregard,” he said. “But it was really nothing more than a stroke of luck. I don’t think she even saw me coming.”
“Better to be lucky than dead,” Jay told him. “And if you happen to run across those yellowtails, it’s never a bad thing to have luck on your side.”
When the Cricket settled against one of the docks on Volaris, Robin remained in her seat for a moment, listening to the systems winding down. She felt mentally drained and physically exhausted. This isn’t supposed to happen, she told herself. We’re still in training. We’re supposed to be safe. Yet three of the four times she’d gone out in a destroyer, her crew had ended up in great peril, and two of the four times she’d brought back a ruined ship. She wondered how Commander Eldridge would react when she informed her of the Cricket’s current condition. A brand new ship, battered and scorched, with one of its three main engines destroyed. And the worst part was she couldn’t tell the commander that the Cricket had defeated a pair of heavy cruisers. To her it would probably seem like the ship had been wasted. And it had been wasted while under Captain Starling’s command.