by Jason Hutt
At that moment, alarms started ringing and the lights in the dome started flashing red.
“What is it?” Ironheart asked.
The projection shimmered and reconfigured. The assembled crowd was now staring at the orange glow of this system’s star. The projection started with a tight focus on the asteroid and its neighbors that were home to The Cove, then it pulled back to the edge of the system. Four Republic cruisers were arrayed in a line at the jump beacon. As they watched several smaller red dots appeared in the projection.
“Everyone to their ships,” Ironheart said, “Prepare to launch. Prepare to fight.” Ironheart cut the projection and walked out of the room. A couple of people around the edges broke off in a run back to the hangar. Most of the others realized that the Republic ships were two days out and while a slight murmur rose throughout the room, panic didn’t take hold.
“Get back to the ship,” Max said to Hannah, “Start putting her through pre-flight checks.”
“Where are you going?” Hannah asked.
“To talk with Ironheart. We can get people out without a fight.”
“I want to come with you,” Hannah said.
“Just get back to the ship. The less contact you have with him, the better.”
Hannah frowned, but headed off with a sigh. Max watched her go before elbowing his way through the flow of traffic. Ironheart had already disappeared but Max knew where he was going. Spare parts and scrap still littered the corridor between Ironheart’s throne room and his office. Maintenance drones still worked to patch severed lines and entire sections of the ship were still cordoned off. Max knew he was close because he could hear Ironheart yelling.
“Why is there a Republic Fleet on my doorstep? What are they doing here? We’re doing everything you’ve asked! Call them off! Or you better hope they finish the job, because I’ll be coming for you.”
Max stood in the doorway and watched as Ironheart seethed over his desk. Ironheart stood leaning on both arms; his entire body trembling with rage. “Send,” Ironheart commanded and the recorded message transmitted to the beacon.
“We don’t have to fight,” Max said.
“What?” Ironheart said, looking at Max as if he had sprouted a second head.
“I can probably get just about everyone out. They’re two days out at least.”
“This is my system!” Ironheart raged. “I will not run.”
“They’ll destroy you.”
“They’ll turn back.”
“Ironheart, listen to me,” Max said, taking a tentative step into the room, “This person leading this task force, he’s not like whoever it is you do deals with. He’ll kill everyone here in a heartbeat.”
“And how do you know who it is?” Ironheart asked as he stood to his full height and took a step toward Max.
Max stood his ground. “Because he’s tried to kill everyone I know.”
Ironheart’s desk started beeping. Both men turned to look. Ironheart’s recorded message had been returned; the beacon was offline. He growled, grabbed the edge of the desk, and flipped it with a tremendous crash. Max couldn’t stop staring at the crumpled indentations where Ironheart had gripped its edge.
“If the Republic wants a fight, they’ll get one. I won’t run.”
“Your people will die.”
“Then I will avenge them,” Ironheart growled. “Leave if you wish. This is not your fight, but know that if you do, our deal is off.”
Max grimaced, but said nothing.
“Prep your ship, Max,” Ironheart, “Leave or fight. Your choice.”
***
“Scan?” Akimbe asked.
“Sir, the main settlement appears to be in the asteroid belt. Their facilities seem to be in this cluster of about a dozen asteroids, here,” the young woman said as she pointed to a spot in the middle of the projected star system’s asteroid belt. She expanded her fingers and the image zoomed in to a small cluster of asteroids. “Several of these are likely mining structures. It appears the main habitat for the installation is here. We’re detecting several larger ships moored to its surface.”
“Let’s flush them out,” Akimbe said, “Target several of the less dense asteroids with the rail launchers, maximum caliber.”
“Yes, sir.”
Orbital trajectories flashed across her console screen as she selected several targets and the ship’s computers determined a firing solution. After two minutes, she turned back to him. “Ready, sir.”
“Time to impact?”
“Twenty hours, sir.”
“Fire.”
The deck plating vibrated ever-so-slightly and the console display updated to show the projectile en route.
“Scan, I want regular reports on the compositions of the enemy fleet. I want the make, model, age, propulsion capabilities, and weapons systems for every ship. If anything falls outside known data, notify me immediately. You have twelve hours.”
Akimbe sat in his command chair. With a few taps of his fingers, the targeted asteroids projected into the middle of the bridge. A countdown clock appeared in the lower right of the projection ticking down the time as four red dots closed on their targets.
***
Max pulled himself out from under the nose of the Guardian and wiped sweat from his brow. He looked over the wires that still dangled above the open panel in the craft’s underbelly. Everything looked good, connectors were solidly mated, wires showed no undue wear, and yet when he checked the status of the connection, a flashing red ‘x’ kept appearing.
Max shook his head and grimaced. Resting an arm on his knee, he looked around the Phantom’s hangar. The long bay that ran along the outer edge of the cruiser was packed with small craft and their crews. From every corner of the hangar you could hear the clangs, ticks, scrapes, and slams of ship’s being worked on by human and robot hands.
Max looked around at the myriad crews, some Ironheart’s regulars and some decidedly not, and had one thought, they’re all going to die.
Max wiped his hands on his coveralls and went for a walk. The sentry Ironheart had posted at the hangar door scanned his chip and then after a moment’s confirmation waved him on with a grunt. Max ducked out of the way as drones scurried up and down the corridor. He saw Gauntlet ahead, standing with her arms crossed just outside of Ironheart’s door.
“Can I talk to him?” Max asked.
Gauntlet held up one finger to her lips; Max nodded. He leaned against the bulkhead and listened to Ironheart projecting as much command presence into his voice as possible.
“We need to be united,” he said, “If we’re not working together, they will rip us to shreds.”
“If you think I’m gonna get hulled for you,” said another voice, not one Max knew, “You’re crazier than I thought. Why the hell should I put my men on the line for you?”
“What choice do you have? You think you can just ask them to let you by?”
“They got nothin’ on me.”
“Bullshit,” Ironheart said, “Just by being here you’re guilty. Like it or not, we have to work together. We can’t just run at these guys, we’ll be torn to pieces.”
“I don’t understand why we’re doing this at all,” said another voice, this one belonging to a weasel-faced old woman whose name was on the tip of Max’s tongue. “We oughtta be haulin’ ass in the other direction.”
“Head for deep space? Maybe you’ll get lucky and starve to death before they tear you to pieces. No, we’ve got to get the beacon up,” Ironheart said, “It’s our only way out.”
“And how do you intend to do that? Wave your magic wand? They shut it down.”
“Once we’re within a thousand kilometers we should be able to do it. But it’s going to take a few minutes.”
“How am I supposed to trust that you can do it?” Asked another woman, her voice deep and rich.
“Do you have any other choice? In a matter of hours this facility will be pulverized into submission by the slugs the Republic laun
ched when they dropped into the system. They’ve deactivated the jump beacon. They mean to destroy us.”
Silence.
“Well aren’t we a cozy little group,” the annoying-voiced woman said, “I give us thirty minutes after the first shot before we’re all dead.”
“I’ll take that,” the other male said, “With Ironheart’s shit, I give us a solid 45 minutes.”
“Enough,” Ironheart said, “Prepare your ships. I’m sending you the plans I’ve drawn up. Do what I say and you may live to fight again.”
The conversation ended and silence filled the corridor. Max jumped as a loud clang rang out from the office. He looked at Gauntlet, whose lips were a tight thin line. She shook her head when Max took a step forward, but Max went in anyway.
Ironheart sat at a workbench on the far wall. He had rolled up his left sleeve and had pulled a knife from the drawer to his right. Max watched as he made an incision and peeled back a section of synthetic skin on his right forearm. He pulled out a small metal probe and touched it to something just outside of Max’s view.
Max cleared his throat as he stood there, momentarily eyeing the dent in the top of Ironheart’s desk.
“I see you’re still with us,” Ironheart said without looking up.
“For now,” Max said.
“Everyone will show their true colors once the fighting starts. Even you.”
“So that’s your plan then? To just charge in and face them head on?”
“That’s for me to know and you to find out,” Ironheart said. “I don’t run from a fight, Max. I’ll give them all they can handle.”
“How many ships do you have?”
“Almost sixty.”
“How many combat ships?”
“A little more than half are armed.”
“That didn’t answer the question.”
“And I don’t intend to answer,” Ironheart bellowed, “I don’t answer to you, Max.”
Max closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He searched his mind for something he could say to penetrate Ironheart’s senses and get him to reconsider. Nothing came to him.
“I may be stubborn, arrogant, and hot-tempered,” Ironheart said, “But I’m not an idiot. I know what we’re up against. I know we can’t win in a head-to-head fight and I don’t intend to give them one. There is a role for you to play if you’re up for it. And if you do, I’ll consider your end of our deal fulfilled.”
Max’s head spun as he stepped out of Ironheart’s office. In the hallway, Gauntlet gave him a concerned once-over.
“Are you up for this?” she asked.
“I should be asking you that,” Max said.
“We know what we’re getting into.”
“It’s a suicide run, you have to see that.”
“Well then we’ll die on our terms. We won’t rot in some Republic prison cell.”
“Christ,” Max said, “What the hell is wrong with you people?”
“You forget where you are Max. The only thing that lives out here is desperation. Do you really think the Republic’s going to take a merciful hand to the thieves and murderers that we are? Do you really?”
Max didn’t answer.
“That’s what I thought,” she said, “If this is our moment, then so be it.”
***
“Report,” Akimbe ordered.
“They’ll be in range in thirty minutes,” Scan reported.
“I want to address the fleet. Open a channel.”
An indicator lit on Akimbe’s console when the channel was connected. The entire battle group was listening. Akimbe exhaled, letting his eagerness for the coming conflict drain with the air that left his lungs. He must be cool, calculating. His rage would only be a distraction.
“The enemy is almost in range,” he said, “You are go to fire once you have a solution. This is a ragtag group. They will lack discipline. They will struggle to work together. After a few losses, they will panic. We are to hold our line and not overpursue. Anyone who does will answer to me. If a ship slips back out of range, let them go. There is only one way out of this system and that’s through this beacon.
“These people are responsible for the deaths of a countless number of civilians, many of them families enjoying a hard-earned vacation, families whose only act of provocation was to dare to enjoy themselves. Add those innocents to the number of our brothers and sisters in uniform who have fallen trying to protect those civilians.
“These people are monstrous. They act without mercy or dignity. We will show them the same kindness; they will not survive this day. It is well past time for us to take the fight to them. Today, we will do just that.”
Akimbe ended the transmission. He walked over to his scan officer and stood just over her shoulder.
“Yes, sir?” She said, looking at his reflection in her monitor.
“There is one ship in particular that I want you to monitor for. I’m feeding you the signature now. If you detect it in the engagement, alert me immediately.”
“Yes, sir.”
***
“Now what?” Hannah asked. “Or are we actually going to be a part of this shit show?”
“If this is the rout I expect it to be, we can get out at the blink of an eye. In the meantime, we’ve got our role to play and we’ll do it,” Max said, “Reggie, how are you doing?”
“I’ve shut down all processors except my nav link. Connection with the ship’s computer running at 100 percent efficiency.”
“Good. Be prepared to drop us to a safe zone,” Max said.
“What about me?” Hannah asked.
“I’ll need you to handle anything I can’t,” Max said.
“So, do nothing. I can handle that.”
“I thought you would’ve taken that one in another direction,” Max said.
“Look, just tell me what to do.”
Max offered her a half smile. He knew what was about to happen and he was glad to have someone capable beside him. The Guardian and her crew were ready to go. As soon as Ironheart sprang the bay doors, they would be out. Max looked through the cockpit window into the now evacuated hangar bay of the Phantom. No maintenance drones, no crew, no chaos was on the floor. All crews were in their ships.
“There’s going to be a moment,” Max said, “When we lose comm, we lose sensors, or some other disaster and it’s going to be absolutely crazy. Take a deep breath, focus, and try not to get lost. Get overwhelmed in the moment and we’ll be returned to the stellar dust from whence we came.”
Hannah nodded.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Max said. “I’m-”
“Save it, Max,” Hannah said.
Max looked back into the passenger hold. Gauntlet’s team was futzing about, weapons were checked, gear was ready. They sat there – Gauntlet, Optic, Brute, and Crank - on the Guardian’s makeshift seating, overladen with gear, armor, and weapons, spring-loaded, furiously fidgeting as they waited to launch.
Max caught Gaunlet’s eye. “Ready?”
“Yeah,” she said with a nod, “I’m all out of bubblegum.”
“Good luck,” Max said. “Be careful.”
“Much too late for that, Max.”
***
Akimbe stood, arms folded behind his back, feet shoulder-width apart. He muscles were tensed, ready to uncoil. His jaw was set. The countdown timer on the tactical projection hit zero; the targets were in range.
Akimbe gritted his teeth and ordered, “Wipe them out.”
***
The Phantom’s bay doors flew open and the Guardian slewed sideways, ejected into the vacuum. Thrusters in the nose of the craft fired and it slipped behind the bulk of the Phantom. Dozens of flashes of light erupted from all sides and green lasers appeared and painted several of the ships. Hannah gasped.
“Decoys and feints,” Max said, “They’re trying to confuse us.”
Someone started shouting over the ship-to-ship comm and a small shuttle broke away.
“Dumb,” Max sa
id.
A laser beam lanced out from one of the Republic cruisers and the shuttle was cleaved in two.
Ironheart yelled over the comm and a swarm of combat drones separated from the Phantom and clouded the void between the two fleets.
“Time’s a wasting, Reggie,” Max said, “Are we ready?”
“Yes, sir. The other shuttles are linked.”
“Jump.”
A wormhole opened before the nose of the Guardian and in the blink of an eye the ship slipped through. There was a brief burst of static in Max’s ear as comm with Ironheart’s battle group cut out and was just as quickly re-established. Max now stared at the dormant engines of a Republic cruiser. An alarm started shrieking in the cockpit and Max quickly silenced it.
“Everybody through?” Max asked.
“Yes, sir,” Reggie responded, “Shuttle alpha peeling off. Shuttle bravo ready for the next jump.”
“Do it,” Max said.
Space-time ripped; the Guardian jumped again pulling one small boarding shuttle behind it. Again Max sat staring at the main thrusters of a Republic cruiser.
“Shuttle bravo in position.”
“All right,” Max said, “Put us in position.”
The Guardian jumped again, another shuttle broke off, and within seconds the Guardian jumped through one final wormhole before putting itself in position behind the fourth Republic cruiser in the line. The small, silver shuttle yawed to port and slid toward a spot just to the right of the main thrusters.
“This is it, everybody,” Max said, “As soon as we make contact, they’re going to know we’re here. Reggie, are all ships in position?”
“Yes, sir.”
“We’re ready, Max,” Gauntlet said, “Let’s spark this nova.”
“Give the signal,” Max ordered. Reggie triggered a transmission to the other three shuttles. They were go to dock.
“Contact in three, two, one…” Max said. A small thunk reverberated through the shuttle. “Gauntlet, you’re on.”
“Hatch open. We’re cutting through. Thirty seconds.”
“That’s an eternity,” Max said.
“If you can do better, you’re welcome to come back here,” Gauntlet said.