“Michael, there aren’t that many prisoners in our custody, and they were captured only because they were wounded and unable to kill themselves.”
“I know, but some of his conclusions don’t sit well with me.”
“Such as?”
“He stated that once we cross the border and land on the Chosen home worlds that we will be greeted as friends and liberators. That is pure nonsense. I’ve seen what these people are capable of doing and it is the exact opposite of accepting us. We are not Kurgans. These people, although human, wholeheartedly believe that they are citizens of the Kurgan Empire. They worship the Kurgan’s god, they speak Kurgan, they have adopted Kurgan names. If we ever do land on one of their planets, we had better be prepared to wage a massive hearts and minds campaign from the get-go. Even with that, I fear that we will be bogged down facing an asymmetrical conflict against a hostile population that will not want us there.”
Admiral Sheridan nodded. “I concur. Those are my feelings as well. What else did you disagree with?”
“He said that the infiltration by the Chosen into our armed forces was negligible and should not be construed as a major threat. I have to disagree. I don’t think we should overreact and go on a witch hunt. However, the fact that there are people in our fleet right now who are Kurgan operatives or perhaps even sleeper agents scares the hell out of me. In the heat of battle, the Marine next to me or the officer next to you could turn around and put a bullet between your eyes, and there’s really nothing you could do about it.”
“Michael, there have been hundreds of arrests of people across the fleet on suspicion of being a Kurgan agent. Until the war ends, these people will have to be held for the safety of the fleet.”
“And if they are innocent, then what?”
“I’ll worry about that after the war is over.”
“Father, don’t forget that there are people who secretly belong to the Kurgan religion. I doubt you’ll know who they are until it’s too late.”
“You’re probably right. Was there anything the good doctor said that you agree with?”
“I think he hit it on the nail when he said that Chosen warriors are not as educated as pure Kurgan soldiers. I have never seen a Chosen above the rank of sergeant. All of the officers, technical staff, and fighter pilots are Kurgan. I think he is right about people on the Chosen worlds not being educated past elementary school level. Which would mean that their worlds must be primarily agrarian. Lacking technical skills, it is doubtful that they could manage an industrial society. Also, if they were kept ignorant, they would be easier to control.”
Admiral Sheridan said, “What troubles me are the tens of thousands of people they have taken from here and Derra-5 for re-education and training in the Kurgan religion. I wonder how long it will be before some of them come back our way?”
His son shrugged. “Who knows? I doubt it will be as short as a few months, but I would not put it past them to try and infiltrate some of the older teenage children into the armed forces in the next year or two.”
“Let’s hope that the war is over by then.”
Sheridan looked into his father’s dark green eyes. “Sir, do you know how many people were unaccounted for after the last war?”
“Almost half a billion people never returned to our side of the disputed zone. One hundred years later, considering the Kurgans love of large families, the number of humans could have easily doubled or tripled in number.”
“My God, I never knew it was that high. I thought it was only a few million.”
“The official war records were kept sealed until just recently. I guess no one wanted to admit just how bad we had bungled the war a century ago. If the Kurgans had not asked for a ceasefire when they did, they could have pushed us all the way back to our own solar system.”
“How many habitable planets did we lose in the war?”
“Six. The Kurgans could also have resettled humans on many more throughout their empire. The fact of the matter is that we just don’t know what is going on inside Kurgan space.”
Sheridan picked up his wine glass and took a sip. Everything he had been taught as a young boy and as an officer candidate at the Academy was a lie. The truth was going to take some getting used to.
Robert Sheridan stood up and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “Michael, I know that as a person who loves reading about history that this must all come as a bit of a nasty surprise. Why don’t we let the historians sort out the truth when the shooting stops. For now, we have a war to win.”
The next morning Sheridan and Cole hit the gym early. After a two-hour workout, they showered and headed to the mess hall for a hearty breakfast.
“So what did you and your dad talk about last night?” queried Cole.
“Politics, mainly,” replied Sheridan.
“Good Lord, I’m glad I wasn’t there. There is nothing more boring in this entire universe than politics. I’d rather visit the dentist before talking about politics.”
“I find it interesting.”
“Yeah, you would; you’re an officer.”
Sheridan shook his head. He picked up his glass and took a sip of orange juice. It wasn’t real but tasted good enough.
“You know, sir, I’ve been thinking about our little problem and we’re going to need help,” said Cole.
“I agree. Let’s finish up here and head back to the briefing room to discuss this in private.”
Fifteen minutes later, they stood in front of a workstation in the ship’s briefing room and brought up a 3D representation of the Kurgan troop ship they were going to use for bait. They also projected in front of them the image of a Kurgan fast-attack frigate, the ship they expected to respond to the phony distress call. Cole moved the Kurgan rescue ship to one side and enlarged the transport vessel.
“Sir, the problem I have with Captain Killam’s plan is that if the vessel wiped its memory clean, how on earth are we going to be able to send a distress signal? Also, without a functioning computer, how will be able to run the life support systems?”
“Yeah, I thought about that too. Do you remember PO Tartov?”
“Ain’t he that nervous fellow we found onboard the California?”
“Correct. He’s also a bit of a computer whiz and from what I understand, he’s become quite familiar with Kurgan operating systems. I spoke with Captain Killam and asked him to find Tartov for us. Luckily, he wasn’t hard to find. He’s on the Saratoga and is being transferred over to us later today. If anyone can get the bare essentials up and running, it’ll be him.”
“He’d better get things working! I don’t fancy floating around in space in a glorified icebox.”
Sheridan chuckled. “What else is on your mind?”
Cole touched both images and brought them close together. He ran his fingers on the display and a docking corridor extended from the rescue ship to the docking port on the side of the transport vessel. “Sir, once the Kurgans dock with us, we’ll have mere seconds to overwhelm them and take control of the bridge or all of this will be for nothing. The way I see it, this is a lot like seizing a bridge.”
“You’re talking about taking both ends at once.”
“Yeah. What I’m proposing is that I lead a group of Marines out into space and cripple the Kurgan’s life support systems while you and another team seize the bridge. One more group will need to secure the ship’s computers before they can be erased.”
Sheridan stared at the two ships locked together and considered what Cole had just proposed. He grinned. They had come with the same problems and solutions without talking to one another. As far as he was concerned, this was their plan. They could spend weeks examining options and never come up with a simpler, more efficient plan.
Sheridan nodded. “Ok, Master Sergeant, let’s get to work.”
Chapter 19
The tug towing the Kurgan ship jumped into orbit behind one of Illum Prime’s moons. It would stay there hidden from sight until it jumped a
way again. Sheridan, Cole, and a very reluctant Tartov were flown over to check on the damage to the vessel. As the shuttle approached the ship, it was apparent that most of the crew must have died when a missile struck amidships causing it to split open and ejecting them out into space.
Sheridan shivered at the thought of dying in the vacuum of space. Floating helped for fifteen seconds before you blacked out and died shortly afterward.
The shuttlecraft docked with the ship. A jury-rigged docking port had been established to allow their vessels to dock together. All three men wore survival suits with thruster packs on their backs, as there was still no power nor oxygen on the enemy ship.
The door on the side of the shuttle slid open. Sheridan was in the lead. He looked down the lit corridor at the closed outer door on the Kurgan craft. In his hand was a universal key given to him by the shuttlecraft crew. It had been designed to fit the manual locks on the Kurgan vessel. He took a step. Without gravity, he effortlessly floated across to the door. Sheridan inserted the key and turned it over. The door did not move. Without power, they were going to have to pull it open themselves. A second later, Cole was by his side. Together they pulled on the metal door. Slowly, it slid open. Debris from inside floated out into the docking corridor.
Sheridan stepped inside the blackened corridor, switched on his flashlight, and swung it around. He was relieved to see that there were no bodies waiting to greet them. He still had nightmares about the dead crew they had found inside the California. Sheridan took a deep breath and switched on the thrusters on his pack. A map of the ship was projected onto his helmet’s faceplate. It did not take them long to arrive at the bridge. As before, he and Cole had to manually pull open the door.
The sight that greeted them was not a welcome one. The missile strike which had crippled the ship had also cut the power to the life support. Inside the weightless room, four Kurgan officers and a handful of Chosen warriors floated about. Their lifeless eyes reflected the light from Sheridan’s flashlight. They had all died of asphyxiation.
“Sweet mother of Jesus,” moaned Tartov when he entered the bridge. “Didn’t they have time to sanitize the ship before we boarded?”
“Obviously not,” said Cole, his tone told Tartov to quit his grumbling.
Sheridan spoke into his headset mic. “Shuttlecraft Four, this is Sheridan, we’re on the bridge. We’re going to need a few people over here to pick up some Kurgan dead.”
“Rodger that. I’ll dispatch some people to the bridge right away,” replied the shuttle’s captain.
Sheridan turned about and looked over at Tartov. The man looked like he was about to be sick. “PO, I need you to focus. I want you to find the computers that control life support and communications and tell me if you can get them running again.”
“Yes, sir,” responded Tartov.
Sheridan turned and maneuvered over to Cole’s side. “So what do you think?”
“Good God, sir, this thing is a friggin’ deathtrap,” replied Cole. “I think we should scrap the plan, take one of our ships and defect to the Kurgans rather than take this hunk of junk out into deep space.”
Sheridan chuckled. “I don’t think that would give us the desired end state. It’s this or nothing.”
“Don’t tempt me, sir.”
Tartov interrupted. “Sir, I have the found the communications console. It looks intact. All I have to do is re-route some power, and it will be up and running in no time.”
“Life support?” Sheridan asked.
“Not yet, sir.”
“PO, I know you’re probably unimpressed to be here; however, I would not have asked for you if I did not believe that you could help us. Now please find the life support console and then see about getting artificial gravity restored to the working parts of this ship.”
“Yes, sir,” replied Tartov, sounding a little less unenthusiastic.
Ten minutes passed before Tartov found what they were looking for. Unfortunately, the console had been damaged during the attack. “Sir, I think I can repair it. But it will take time and I will need help.”
“How long will it take and how many technicians do you need?” asked Sheridan.
“Sir, I can’t be sure how long it will take until I get a chance to fully examine the problem,” replied Tartov. “As for help, I just want two people. They are both onboard the Saratoga and work for me.”
Sheridan hurriedly passed the message for the two techs to be found and flown over to the ship right away.
Cole grabbed Sheridan’s arm and turned him about. “Sir, the crewmen are here.”
Sheridan, Cole, and Tartov floated to one side of the bridge as the shuttlecraft crew took hold of the Kurgan remains and bagged them before removing them from the bridge.
“Come on, sir, let’s check out the rest of the ship,” suggested Cole.
“Please, no. Please don’t leave me alone in here,” pleaded Tartov.
“We can wait, I guess,” said Sheridan. Being left alone in a dead ship would be unnerving, even for him.
Sheridan’s stomach rumbled. He found it hard to believe that they had been on the Kurgan ship for close to ten hours. They had all missed lunch and he was looking forward to heading back to the Colossus and eating a hearty supper.
Tartov had re-established partial life support to only a few areas on the ship and for the deception to work, it was just what they had hoped for. The bridge, the area around the docking port, and one of the ship’s three cargo bays would be able to support life. Sheridan had asked for some engineers to be brought over to work on the artificial gravity and to repair some of the ship’s battle damage. Killam had agreed and dispatched a work party to work around the clock until the transport vessel was as ready as she could be made. In Sheridan’s estimation, the day had gone well enough. The Marines were arriving tomorrow and the training could begin.
“Time for supper. I suggest you hurry or you’ll have to spend the night over here,” said Cole as he rounded up Tartov and his people for the return flight back to the Colossus.
The shuttle was loaded in record time. No one wanted to stay a minute longer than they had to on the dead enemy vessel. Inside the shuttlecraft, Sheridan and Cole removed their helmets. Sheridan took in a deep breath.
“It’s still just recycled air,” said Cole.
“Yeah, but it smells better than the air in my suit,” replied Sheridan.
“You should shower more often, sir.”
Sheridan shook his head. He was tired and did not have a good comeback sitting on his lips.
“Is Miss Pheto coming over to ‘visit’ you tonight?” asked Cole with a smile.
“Unfortunately no, she’s got a mission to fly in a couple of hours,” replied Sheridan. He turned and looked out a side window. He wondered where she was going and if she would be okay. He would not know anything until she sent him a message hours after she returned and had finalized her mission log and conducted a debriefing with her squadron’s operations team. Sheridan knew their time together was coming to a close, and he intended to make the most of it.
Tarina glanced down at the timer on her ship’s console and saw that they had less than one minute before they came out of their jump.
“As this is our last mission deploying satellites, I wonder what they’ll have us do next,” asked Wendy.
“At lunch, the new XO alluded to meetings between Captain Wright and Admiral Sheridan’s staff. Whatever the Sixth Fleet is up to next, it looks like we’re going to be part of it,” Tarina replied.
“I hope it is something more interesting than seeding the stars with spy satellites. I know it’s important work, but I’d rather do something a little more exciting.”
“You know what they say, Wendy, be careful what you wish for.”
Wendy chuckled. “Okay, coming out of the jump in three-two-one.”
Their fighter instantly dropped out of their faster-than-light speed bubble.
There was a shadow over the entire ship.
Tarina turned her head and looked up. Her stomach flipped when she saw through the cockpit glass that they had come off their jump less than five hundred meters from an enemy vessel.
“Switch everything off!” Tarina cried out as she turned off all the power to the craft. Behind her, Wendy powered down all of their electronics. In seconds, their fighter became a floating piece of space debris. Tarina’s heart was racing in her chest. Their only hope for survival was that the Kurgans had not picked them up on their sensors when they ended their jump. She looked up and prayed that they were invisible to their foes. Tarina knew that they could not allow their experimental ship to fall into the hands of the Kurgans. If they tried to take them prisoner, she had to destroy their craft and them with it.
Tarina tried to control the fear coursing through her body. She could hear her ragged breathing in her helmet. She closed her eyes and willed herself to calm down. With the power off, she could not even talk with Wendy. The odds of coming out of a jump right next to an enemy vessel were astronomical. She cursed their luck and prayed that they would live another day.
A couple of seconds passed, and then some more. The enemy had not fired on them or tried to capture them. Tarina let out a deep breath. For now, they were safe. Above them, the Kurgan vessel opened its hangar bay doors. Tarina watched as a fighter flew out from the ship and hovered underneath the craft. She did not recognize the fighter. It had the standard Kurgan triangular configuration. However, it was twice the size of a normal fighter and had a large box-like engine at the back of the vessel. What caught her eye was the large missile attached to the underside of the Kurgan craft. It looked more like one a large capital ship would fire rather than a fighter.
In the blink of an eye the enemy fighter vanished. Tarina swore under her breath. The Kurgans had just closed the technological superiority gap. They had a jump fighter as well. Less than a minute later, the Kurgan support ship jumped away as well.
Colossus (The Kurgan War Book 2) Page 9