Operations Center, Death Station Alpha, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“Sir, the Butcher is asking if everything is under control here,” said the communicator. “They said they just picked up a transmission that mentioned taking the prisoners off in a shuttle.”
“What?” asked Commander Shrang, the officer in charge of the operations center. “No, no one is taking anything off of this asteroid. There are no scheduled flights. Call primary flight control and see if they know anything. No shuttles get in or out.”
“Sir, the Butcher made it sound like there was some kind of waiting shuttle,” added the communicator. “It didn’t sound like the shuttle was one of ours.”
Commander Shrang looked confused. “Have any of you detected any sort of shuttle or enemy ship?” All of the weapons systems’ lead officers replied in the negative. Commander Shrang shook his head. “Well, the transmission they intercepted didn’t send itself. Call down to all of your subordinate commands and see if any of them noticed anything out of the ordinary. If there is an enemy ship out there, it is obviously stealthed. Tell them to report any spurious indications that they get.” He paused thinking. “Oh,” he added, “and put all of the radars to high power. We’ll see if we can’t burn through whatever cloaking they have.”
Task Force Calvin, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“Calvin, Foxy,” the shuttle’s WSO commed. Calvin had told them to stay off the radio; he knew this wouldn’t be good. “Go ahead,” he replied.
“They just lit off every radar they’ve got on high power,” replied Lieutenant Fox. “We were down in between the radar platforms, so I don’t think they saw us, but when we come to get you, they probably will see us.”
Damn it, thought Calvin. As if I don’t have enough problems right now. He was so close to the Drakul auditorium that he could hear their screaming and hissing. They sounded like demons. “Understood,” he replied. “We’ll see what we can do.” He paused. “Night, Calvin,” he called.
“I heard,” said Night. “We’ll adapt the plan and work something out. Five minutes ‘til the fireworks start.”
“Got it,” replied Calvin. “Five minutes. Thanks. Calvin out.”
Task Force Burke, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“They are here,” said Bzzzeedlezzzzz from the master console. His legs continued to manipulate the keyboard on the side away from Staff Sergeant Burke.
“How many are there?” asked Burke.
“There are three,” replied the alien.
“All right,” said Burke, turning toward where the men were hiding, “let them get into the room and then blast them. MacKenzie, you’ve got the first one through the door, Corporal Hall, you kill the second, and Doc Jones, you’ve got the third. I’ve got any leakers or additional enemies that show up.”
The door opened, and three Drakuls entered the control room. Seeing Bzzzeedlezzzzz sitting in the master console, the first Drakul in the group, its officer, drew up short. “What are you doing in the controller’s seat?” the Drakul asked, confused. “Where is the duty officer?” The Drakul didn’t seem angry or worried; secure in its position atop the hierarchy, the creature was more curious than mad. The third Drakul walked through the door.
“Now!” called Staff Sergeant Burke, and two rifles fired. All three Drakuls fell to the floor, the officer crashing through a table next to the staff sergeant. The first and third Drakuls were head-shot by lasers; as the second Drakul hit the ground and rolled, Staff Sergeant Burke could see a bowie knife protruding from its right eye.
“Too good to use your rifle, Hall?” Burke asked, sarcasm heavy in his voice. “It was too easy a shot, and you needed something to make it a little more challenging?”
Corporal Hall became visible and walked over to the Drakul. “You said to kill it,” he said with a shrug, “so I did. You’ve seen me on the range, Staff Sergeant. You were on the other side; did you want me to shoot in your general direction?”
“No, you’re right,” said Burke. “Good call on the knife.”
Bzzzeedlezzzzz gave off a high pitched “Tweep!” and jumped back from the keyboard. “Staff Sergeant Burke, the operations center is asking for a status update from all stations and just used a security code that is not in the computer system. What do you want me to tell them?”
“Tell them what General McAuliffe said at the Battle of the Bulge when the Germans asked him to surrender,” replied Burke.
“What is that?” asked Bzzzeedlezzzzz.
“Nuts,” said Burke.
Task Force Night, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“Something’s got them going all of a sudden,” said Mr. Jones, as Night looked down into the operations center. “There wasn’t this much activity before.”
“Any idea what’s going on?” asked Night, who had returned to the vent with Mr. Jones and most of the squad.
“No,” replied Mr. Jones. “When I got back, they were already rushing around. Something’s going on, but I can’t hear well enough to tell what it is.” He paused and then asked, “Since they are at a higher state of readiness, would we want to just bring the bombs up here? They would certainly do the job as well in this air duct as they would have down on the floor.”
“No,” said Night. “I don’t think that this duct will hold both the bombs and us. Besides, moving 300-pound bombs through a duct isn’t my idea of fun...Just a sec.” He listened for a couple of seconds and then added, “The guys in the laser control room have been discovered. That’s probably at least part of what’s got them in a frenzy. We need to take them out so that we can disrupt their command and control. We’ll go in as planned.” He switched to his comm gear. “Space Force, we go on three. One...two...”
Bridge, TSS Vella Gulf, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“Sir!” the DSO called. “All of the radars on the asteroid just came on. The battlecruiser’s radars just came on, too. It looks like they are on their highest power settings. They may be looking for us!”
“No,” said Captain Sheppard, “we’re way too far away. There’s no way they could have noticed us. What is more likely is that they got some sort of reading from the shuttle and are trying to lock in on it.”
“What do you want me to do?” asked the DSO. “Send the fighters?”
“No,” said Captain Sheppard, “there’s nothing we can do. If we show ourselves now, we’ll give up the element of surprise and have to fight the combined might of both the battlecruiser and the battle station. We couldn’t take on either one of them normally, much less with half of our weapons unusable because of the stealth modules. We can’t help them. Whatever they got themselves into, they’ll have to get themselves back out of.”
Task Force Calvin, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“This is as far as we can get without them seeing me,” said Ezekiel, who didn’t have a suit. “Around this corner is the hallway that leads to the kitchens and the holding pens. There will be a door, which will probably be guarded.”
Invisible, Calvin leaned out into the corridor. 50 feet away, two guards stood in front of a massive metal door that was at least eight feet wide. Both guards were holding laser rifles, and both looked ready. This wasn’t going to be easy.
Calvin was down to just five soldiers. The squad had crossed a major passage that led to the auditorium, and he left the Gordon twins and Corporal Westbrook there to keep a lookout. There were guards about 75 feet further up the cross-passageway, watching whatever was happening in the auditorium. From the howls and screams, he didn’t think that he wanted to know. At the first sign of trouble, the Gordons were supposed to fire antimatter rounds into the auditorium that were big enough to fry all of the Drakuls in attendance. Judging by the smiles on the Gordon brothers’ faces when given their orders, Calvin didn’t think he wanted to be in the vicinity when they did it.
“There are two Drakuls 50 f
eet down the hallway,” Calvin commed, leaning back in from the corridor. “Tiny, you think you can take both of them?”
“Yes, sir,” replied Corporal Steve ‘Tiny’ Johnson, the platoon’s sniper. “I’ve got a silencer on my rifle. I can take both of them before they even know what’s hit them.” Calvin knew that Tiny’s .95 caliber rifle fired shells equivalent to 20mm auto cannon rounds. They left big holes in whatever they hit.
“OK,” said Calvin, “move into the passageway and get ready. When I give the signal, you shoot them, and then we will charge down the hallway. Once there, we’ll get the door open, find what hostages we can and get the hell out of here. The other squad is about to attack; we don’t have much time.”
“Ready,” said the sniper, holding the crosshairs of his rifle steady on the Drakul on the right.
“On three,” said Calvin, “One...two...”
* * * * *
Chapter Twenty-Four
Operations Center, Death Station Alpha, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“What?” asked the communicator. “Really?” He turned to Commander Shrang. “Sir, the Butcher said they are now picking up enemy transmissions from inside the station.”
“How is that possible?” asked Commander Shrang. “Why haven’t you picked them up?”
“I don’t know,” said the communicator. “The only communications that the computer is showing me are the transmissions between the Butcher and us.”
“Do you want me to sound battle stations?” asked the defender.
“Not yet,” said Commander Shrang. “If we disturb the general’s presentation unnecessarily, he will have all of us skinned alive and then killed. Why aren’t we picking any of this up? What is the status of our systems? Missiles?”
“All clusters manned and ready!” replied the missile commander.
“Lasers?” asked Commander Shrang.
“All clusters manned and ready except for Forward Laser Control,” said the laser commander. “There is something strange going on there. They were not answering for a long time and then they just said ‘nuts.’”
“Nuts?” asked Commander Shrang. “What does that mean?”
“It was a translation from some other language,” replied the laser commander. “Apparently, it is an expression of contempt or derision.”
“That is where they are,” decided Commander Shrang. He turned to the defender. “Send a security team to the forward laser control station. They are probably wearing combat suits, so turn on the jammers that defeat their suit’s invisibility. They may be in other places throughout the ship. Set battle stations.”
The defender flipped two switches on his panel and began talking into his microphone.
Door to the Operations Center, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“What the fuck?” Master Chief swore as he leveled his weapon and fired. His group had been sneaking up on the door guards in front of the operations center when they suddenly became visible. Marginally more prepared for combat than the Drakul he was aiming at, he got off five shots before the Drakul could move. At least three of them were killing shots, including the bolt through the center of its forehead. The Drakul fell backward and began sliding down the door.
The other Drakul was faster. Seeing Staff Sergeant Dantone materialize in front of it, the Drakul dove to the right and avoided Dantone’s initial burst of shots. Hitting the ground, the creature rolled and turned back to fire at the cyborg. Unfortunately for the Drakul, it rolled right up to Staff Sergeant Randolph’s feet, and the cyborg fired eight shots from his .50 caliber Desert Eagle into the monster’s head before the Drakul could bring its weapon to bear. The reports from the pistol’s firing echoed down the halls as the Drakul collapsed in a heap.
“Well, if they didn’t know we were here before,” Master Chief noted, “they do now.” In counterpoint to his statement, a horn began blowing, blue lights began flashing, and a deep voice said, “Intruder alert, intruder alert, battle stations for an intruder alert!” Master Chief sighed. Things just got a lot harder.
Task Force Night, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“Three!” commed Night, and he and Mr. Jones began firing tridents into the operations center below them. They walked the triple-strength grenades across the room from one side to the other, the air pressure from the blasts pushing them back up and away from the opening. They paused for a second to allow Petty Officer Levine and Petty Officer Sherkov to drop through the opening onto the table below. Switching to their laser rifles, they began firing at individual movement as the two petty officers advanced on the Drakul bodies.
“Cover!” yelled Night, and the two men dove behind consoles as two other troopers dropped into the room. “Go, go, go!” Night yelled, and the four soldiers began advancing again.
Petty Officer Levine saw the way to the door was clear and ran over, pushing the button that opened it. As the door opened, the Israeli had to jump backward to avoid the Drakul that fell inward. He shot the creature several times in the head by force of habit, prior to realizing the Drakul was already dead. He turned to cover the room as the cyborgs and Master Chief charged in. Within seconds, all of the Drakuls were dead.
“Think you can silence the alarms?” Night asked Mr. Jones, the platoon’s computer expert.
“I don’t know,” he said, “but I’ll do my best.” Dropping into the room, Mr. Jones walked over to one of the consoles and flipped the two switches that he had seen the Drakul throw just before the horn began sounding. The first turned off the flashing blue lights in the corridor, and the second blessedly turned off the horn. “They’re off, for what it’s worth,” Jones said, “but I think it’s pretty obvious they know we’re here.”
“No shit,” said Master Chief. “We’re going to have to hurry. Cyborgs, get the bombs in here and set up ASAP. Jones, Rozhkov, see if there’s anything salvageable from their computer system.” Smoke was coming from most of the consoles, but it didn’t hurt to look. “Use what you can, destroy the rest. Karimov, Tereshchenko, go down the hallway to the right and set up a perimeter. Al-Sabani, Wazir, you’ve got the hallway to the left. Andrews, Hopper, go get the Hooolong and bring him back here. Everyone else, cover the main corridor. As soon as the bombs are set, we’re out of here.”
Task Force Calvin, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
“On three,” said Calvin, “One...two...”
Corporal Johnson saw the Drakuls stiffen as he became visible. His rifle coughed, and the .95 caliber bullet hit the right Drakul between the eyes. The Drakul’s head bounced backward against the door, and it crumpled to the floor. As Johnson retargeted, the other Drakul brought its rifle up. A veteran of many battles, Johnson knew it wasn’t a matter of who shot first, but who shot best. He centered the laser dot on the Drakul’s nose holes and squeezed the trigger. He watched through the scope as the Drakul’s head exploded in a fountain of blue mist.
It was only then he felt the pain in his left shoulder.
“You’re hit!” exclaimed Corporal Mike Bachmann, his spotter, as the rest of the squad surged forward.
Johnson looked down to find the Drakul’s laser had torn a bloody chunk from his left shoulder; the heat of the laser caused the water in his upper arm to boil, expand and rip the surrounding tissues apart, much like a high velocity bullet impact. “Yup,” he said, “but he’s hurt worse.” Johnson commanded a painkiller from his suit’s pharmacopeia and ordered the suit’s nanobots to stabilize the wound.
“Why don’t you go back to join the Gordons?” Calvin asked. “They’re going to need help with close cover, and you could do that with your pistol.”
“I’m good, sir,” said Corporal Johnson. “I’ll make it work.”
Calvin turned back in time to see Sergeant Zoromski open the door. As it cracked open, he took a peek through and quickly withdrew his head. Calvin’s suit registered several laser bolts that came through just after his head m
oved. Shit. There were more of them on the other side.
Before Zoromski could pull the door open fully, someone or something on the other side slammed the door shut. As Zoromski grabbed for it, they heard the locking bolt move into place.
They were locked out.
* * * * *
Chapter Twenty-Five
Task Force Burke, Asteroid Weapons Platform, Gliese 876, February 19, 2021
Staff Sergeant Burke watched as the blowtorch’s cut line worked its way around the door. It wouldn’t be long until the Drakuls had the door open.
“The battlecruiser is moving forward,” said Bzzzeedlezzzzz. “If you could just keep them out another five minutes, I will be able to shoot.”
“Five minutes, huh?” asked Burke. At the rate they were going, the Drakuls would be through the door in about three. He looked at the door and then around the room. “Quickly,” he said, “grab every thin piece of metal you can find.”
Burke turned the chair next to him on its side and began stomping on one of the metal legs. After three strong kicks, the leg snapped off at the top. Running over to the door, he dropped the chair leg in front of the door. The other soldiers joined him with similar pieces.
“When I say ‘now,’ Doc,” Burke said to Corporal Jones, “I want you to open the door.” He gave Corporal Jones the badge that opened the door and then pulled out two grenades from one of his leg pockets. “After I throw these, shut the door again really quickly. MacKenzie, you and Corporal Hall shoot anything close by.” He pulled the safety pins from both of the grenades. Burke looked at the door. The Drakuls only had about two feet left to cut. It was now or never.
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