The Anvil of Dust and Stars (Dark Seas Series Book 1)

by Damon Alan

Sarah considered her tactical options. “How many missiles do we have left, Mister Rego?”

  “Six, Commander.”

  “We'll wait to see our orders from the Glory.”

  “We don't have long,” Ellis said. “They just changed course to intercept.”

  “How long do we have?”

  “Closure is one hundred twenty-eight kps at the moment. They'll be in effective gun range in about five to six minutes.”

  “We'll give Lieutenant Commander Kuo three minutes to conduct his remaining business then,” Sarah said loud enough for Kuo to hear.

  Kuo nodded, gave Sarah a thumbs up, and a minute later finished his conversation. “We're to return to the bubble to move with the Glory. We're going to attack a base just located by our scouts.”

  “I think we have room left to paint an enemy base on our hull,” Sarah said. “Save our missiles, Mister Rego. Set up our defensive guns to take out those G-Ks.”

  “That's riskier, Commander. A nuke is a sure kill.”

  “For two G-Ks?” Sarah scoffed. “You can do it with guns as we head back to our nest.”

  “You're the boss, Commander.” Rego set up the firing pattern for the guns as Ellis plotted a course to return to the Glory. Both worked together to ensure the railguns were firing outbound on the right vectors. It reminded Sarah of herself and Breno on One-Eight.

  “To the nest, Ensign Ellis,” Sarah ordered.

  The Teplo turned sharply about and began to decelerate. A few minutes later the ship vibrated as railguns fired. Occasionally a loud THUNK indicated a railgun ejecting rails for a new set. These were the most vulnerable moments for the Teplo. The less speed they had, the higher the probability the G-Ks would successfully predict their future location for railgun fire.

  “For the record, this makes me uncomfortable,” Rego said.

  “Increase our burn to ten Gs, Mister Ellis. Mister Rego, we still have our grappler engines. Just because we haven't used them yet doesn't mean they don't work.”

  Rego nodded at her and smiled nervously.

  It's his first live battle. He needs to just hold it together a bit longer and he'll be gold in the next one.

  Sarah sank into her gravity couch under the increased acceleration. She switched to her throat mic to talk to Rego. “Where'd we get you from, Rego? The XO selected you.”

  Sarah heard the strain in Rego's voice as he replied. Fear took a back seat when acceleration reached these levels. “Ground batteries, sir. I was deployed at an asteroid base.”

  “A lot safer job than this, why'd you switch to ships?”

  “Better to kill them where they live. If I'd seen Hive in the sights of the gun I shot before, it meant everyone I knew was about to die. This way I'm part of getting the Hive first.”

  “Great answer… I like that a lot,” Sarah said. “Welcome aboard, Mister Rego. I'm glad to have you.”

  Even under the stresses of outrageous acceleration, Rego smiled a warmer, less nervous smile. “Thank you for having me.”

  “Yes,” Ellis howled. “Got one.” His voice sounded strangely unemotional through his throat mic. Sarah knew better. Killing Hive was the best feeling a naval officer experienced.

  “We did?” Rego asked. “That was a low probability shot.”

  Kuo grinned. G forces stretched his mouth out like the smile on a skull. “The correct answer, Mr. Rego, is 'Of course we did.'“

  Sarah would smile if she could. She'd waited for this moment for a long time. “How are we doing? Pulling away yet, Ellis?”

  “Yes. The last one's breaking off. Headed back to where the carrier was.”

  “That's one G-K that's going to be sorely disappointed,” Sarah said. “Reduce burn to four Gs.”

  The weight on Sarah fell away, at four Gs the crew functioned almost normally.

  “How long until we reach the nest?” Sarah asked.

  “With decel into position… two hours, ten minutes.”

  Sarah smiled. She was born to command the Teplo. “So… does anyone play twenty questions?”

  * * *

  The battlegroup overwhelmed and destroyed the Hive infestation. The Teplo was credited with three capital kills and a base assault. Sarah fully intended to paint the victories on the hull. Marking the hull with kills wasn't practiced in the Royal Korvand Navy, but it was the captain's option in the Alliance. Sarah liked the message it sent to the crew.

  Effort will be recognized and rewarded.

  With the Hive crushed, the Alliance fleets assembled for the jump back to Mindari.

  As long as missiles could be loaded into the launch tubes of the Teplo, Sarah now possessed the means to take the fight to the thing she hated most in the universe.

  For the moment, that made her happy.

  Chapter 29 - The Legend Grows

  12 JUNI 15323

  The Teplo plunged toward the enemy, deeper into the gravity well of the Tincana Danii system. Two F class stars and one red dwarf orbited each other in the center of the system, within one AU of each other. The Teplo fell toward Armeus, a gas giant orbiting in the outer reaches of the star system.

  The fusion engines were idle, the external radiators that normally shed internal heat to the exterior were shut down. To the Hive the Teplo should be indistinguishable from any other lump of rock passing Armeus in the deep void of space.

  An hour earlier Commander Sarah Dayson ordered a heavily insulated tank of liquid sodium ejected from the ship, that tank now carried the last several days worth of internal heat generation away from the Teplo. Sadly the liquid sodium was unable to absorb any more heat without gasifying, and had to be ejected earlier than planned. The tank would enter Armeus's atmosphere in nine hours, erasing evidence of Sarah's recently developed tactic for attacking enemy bases.

  “Enemy station in two million kilometers… mark,” Ensign Ellis said. “Closure is seventy-one kilometers per second.

  Sarah wiped sweat from her forehead. “What's the temp in here?”

  “Twenty-nine C,” her XO, Lieutenant Commander Kuo replied.

  “Damn, that didn't take long.” Sarah furrowed her brows. “Ellis, how long until we're in launch position?”

  “Just under seven hours, sir, if we launch at two hundred thousand klicks.”

  Sarah sighed. “Molton, how much will the temperature rise?”

  The bridge AI calculated the increase and responded to Sarah with no detectable delay. “To forty-seven degrees, Commander Dayson.”

  “Son of a...” Sarah thought for a minute as she watched her bridge crew squirm in their uniforms. Sarah punched into the medbay comm. “Dr. Abason?”

  After a moment the medbay answered. “Abason here. Worried about the heat Commander? Because I am.”

  “Definitely. The AI calculates we'll be at forty-seven degrees internally before we launch. How long can the crew take it?”

  “Probably not seven hours without help. I didn't think you'd let it get that hot,” the doctor answered.

  “We don't have a choice about that. If we vent heat to the outside, we'll be seen,” Sarah said.

  Dr. Abason raised his voice an octave in emphasis. “Well, then I'll prepare extra bunks for the heat stroke victims.”

  Sarah paused to think. “Suggestions?”

  “Of course. Everyone should have access to drinking water at all stations. Minimal physical activity. Air circulation should be maxxed while every effort should be made to dehumidify the air.”

  “Would shedding uniforms help?”

  Dr. Abason laughed. “Yes, especially with air movement to wick away sweat.”

  “What's so funny?”

  “The Teplo being flown by a crew in their underwear. It's not exactly military protocol,” he replied.

  “Thanks, doctor. We'll get started on your suggestions.” Sarah closed the link and looked at her XO, who smirked at her.

  “You too?” she asked.

  “The doc's right. It's a funny picture,” Kuo answered.

&nb
sp; “This sort of situation should be in the rulebook,” she replied. “Nobody expects to not have conditioned air.”

  “It will be after this mission. We're the only ship in the battle group that volunteered to hand deliver sub-light nukes to the enemy solo. Wait… not just to the enemy, but to a regional data processing base behind enemy front lines.” Kuo grinned as he rolled his eyes. “Insane. Unless it works, of course, then it's genius.”

  Sarah crossed her arms defensively. “I'm glad you're enjoying this. Not enough FTL missiles from the factories means changing how we fight.”

  “I'm not questioning your decision. But you're still the first to come up with this crazy idea. Now you have to adapt your plan to unexpected circumstances,” he said. “If this strike succeeds, you'll probably get a page in the academy manuals dedicated to it. Attacks in skivvies might become the standard method.”

  Sarah rubbed her forehead to subtly give Kuo the finger.

  He grinned back at her, message received.

  “Trust your officers, Heyden told me. Let them do their jobs,” Sarah mocked.

  She keyed the ship PA. “This is Commander Dayson. Effective immediately, all airtight bulkheads are to be opened, no exceptions. Ventilation is to be increased to maximum. Water is to be made available at all stations…” she paused, then continued, “And all crew members are approved to break uniform. You may remove anything but your underclothes.”

  Smiles broke out on the bridge.

  Sarah unkeyed her mic. “Laugh it up, people.”

  The XO spoke privately into her earpiece. “You have to admit, it lightened the mood. Since we're probably going to die in a few hours, we might as well go with a smile.”

  Sarah frowned at her XO. “Show some optimism, Kuo. We're going to be fine.”

  He shrugged and stripped off his jacket.

  “I'll be keeping my uniform in place,” Sarah said. “I'll have you know, I don't sweat.”

  Five hours later her captain's jacket was tucked under the straps of her acceleration couch, and nobody mentioned her sweat stained navy blue tee shirt.

  * * *

  “Range to target two hundred eighty thousand klicks, closure seventy-nine kps,” Ellis said.

  “Time to launch?” Sarah asked.

  “Just over fifteen minutes.”

  Sarah keyed the ship PA. “This is Commander Dayson. You have five minutes to complete your final preparations and strap into your gravity couches. We'll be spotted at any moment, and once they see us we'll be maneuvering to avoid fire. Maneuvers will be harsh, expect potential continuous accelerations of six Gs, short bursts of up to ten. This is in addition to the movements of the grapplers. We have a lot of fuel since we coasted into the system, and I intend to use it to keep us alive. We'll launch our alpha strike then burn hard back to our ride out of the system. When we make port, you will all have two weeks ashore along with bonus credits in your checks. Do your jobs so we get to enjoy it. Dayson out.”

  The XO nodded. “I'll buy the first round.”

  “Red wine. It's the only way to drink. Heyden taught me that too.” Sarah set up her holodisplays for combat, then looked at Rego. “Weps, we all ready to go?”

  “Thirty-two birds green internally, the twelve additional externals as well. Eighty-eight megatons of fury,” Lieutenant Rego replied.

  “Thirty-two?”

  “I kept four in reserve to slow any pursuit,” he said.

  Sarah frowned and thought a minute. It would be harder to convince Heyden to back a similar mission in the future if this one failed. The base they were targeting had to die, it was suspected to be a central data processing hub for the Hive mind. If they killed it, Hive operations in the region would slow dramatically.

  “Negative. Assign the four reserve missiles to the target,” Sarah ordered.

  The weapons officer looked distraught, Kuo and Ellis looked at her in surprise.

  “Commander?”

  The XO broke in, “Commander, without those chaser nukes nothing will keep the Hive from riding up our asses.”

  “Except our railguns, but your concerns are noted, XO,” Sarah said. “Weps, you heard me. My Galactic Standard is very intelligible.”

  “Reassigning the four chaser nukes to the target,” Lieutenant Rego answered.

  Sarah heard the uncertainty in his voice. He doubted her choice. Her decision reduced the already low odds of survival. But it increased the odds of a successful mission. She didn't feel the need to explain. Her crew knew her. She'd make it work.

  “Time?” Sarah asked.

  “Nine minutes,” Ellis said.

  “Molton. Temp?”

  “Forty-seven Celsius, Commander,” the AI replied.

  “Turn on the external radiators. If we die, at least we'll be more comfortable,” Sarah said. “They can't keep us out of launch range now.”

  “Activating cooling systems,” the AI said.

  “Close the internal bulkheads,” Kuo ordered. The two entrances to the bridge shut tight. He activated the ship intercom. “All hands to grav couches now. Strap in. Prepare to maneuver.”

  Sarah's body relaxed as she felt the first cooling breezes from the air handlers cross her body. Chilled by her own sweat, she slipped her command jacket back on. As the ship's air cooled she heard the edginess slip away from the voices of her bridge crew. “XO, bring the engines online. Cycle the grappler engines, make sure they're ready to grip. I want maneuverability at my command.”

  The XO nodded. “Aye, Commander.”

  Sarah noted a smirk on Kuo's face. “What do you think?”

  “Honestly? I think you're lucky your crew believes in you. When you told them the mission was voluntary, I thought you were nuts. Yet here they are, and I'm not sure why.”

  Sarah looked at the junior officers on her bridge with pride. She considered them heroes. “You volunteered too, Hanada. Nobody twisted your arm.”

  “Well, you clearly need a competent XO, and we've been a team for a good while now. Who knew what you'd get stuck with if I didn't volunteer,” he countered. “I couldn't leave you hanging. But the crew? They complain all the time what a hardass you are. Yet here they are.”

  “Enemy radars are sweeping. They must have detected the rise in heat from us,” Ellis said.

  “Very well, Mister Ellis,” Sarah said. She looked back at Kuo and gestured toward the two junior officers on the bridge. “They know what we're up against, and what the prize is. But just so you know, I believe in my crew too.”

  “Maybe they're here to be part of history. I don't know. But I think they all believe you're lucky. That you're somehow going to live forever. That if they don't stay on your crew, their number is up.”

  “We all have a number, and sooner or later it will be up.” Sarah laughed. “Do you believe I'm lucky?”

  Kuo snorted. “No, but I think you might.”

  “Hmmph. Admiral Heyden doesn't. He didn't want to approve this mission.”

  “He's a smart man, but you talked him into it.”

  “I did.” Sarah paused a moment as she remembered the exchange with Heyden. “Which took some doing, by the way.”

  “I'll bet. If you pull this off, single frigate strikes will be a new tool in Alliance Command's belt. We might be busy.”

  Sarah laughed. “Sparing the capital ships for planetary defense. What's not to love? I'm brilliant.”

  Kuo shook his head, but smiled broadly. “So you keep telling me.”

  Sarah looked up at the mission clock to judge time until launch. “Or lucky, as you say. Either will work fine for what we need.”

  The XO nodded agreement. “We'll need luck, we're going to be dodging a—”

  “Enemy radar lock,” Rego exclaimed, interrupting. “Lidar just ranged us. Infrared sensors are picking up heat flashes at the station. Railguns firing. They see us.”

  Sarah straightened her jacket. A small ritual she did before every combat went active. “Activate our full sensor package. Rea
dy the railguns, but save them for any enemy grapplers.”

  “Aye, sensors full,” Ensign Ellis said.

  “Railguns green,” Rego added.

  “Here we go,” Kuo whispered so only Sarah could hear him.

  “Enemy grapplers launching from station,” Ellis said. “Twelve… no, eighteen.”

  “That's all?” Sarah scoffed. “Closure?”

  Ellis checked his holodisplay. “Thirty minutes until they're in weapons range if we hold this course.”

  “We're not going to do that.” Sarah looked at the mission clock again. “We'll be outbound well before then. Enemy railguns?”

  “Their first volley will reach us in twelve minutes.”

  “Our tubes will be empty and we'll be on a different course in twelve minutes. We made it into their perimeter,” Sarah said, grinning eagerly. “Time to launch?”

  “Ninety seconds,” Rego replied.

  Sarah counted sixty seconds in her head. Cold sweat rolled into her eye, and she wiped it away with the back of her hand. She activated the PA again. “Acceleration and maneuvering in thirty seconds. Stand ready.”

  Rego turned to look at Sarah. “We're in the launch window now, Captain.”

  Sarah nodded and Rego opened a small compartment on the bulkhead next to him. It held a keypad for authorizing nuclear release and missile launch.

  Sarah fed him the launch authorization from a small paper book kept on her person. “Alpha, Delta, Six, Niner, Four, Four, Fife, Alpha, November.”

  Rego punched the code into the small pad under the his fingers, then toggled a holodisplay. “Launching.”

  The ship shuddered as missiles launched from their tubes. Kuo verbalized for the recorded log. “Launch confirmed. Strike package in flight.”

  The tactical display on the Teplo was small, Sarah compensated by using her station holodisplays. A halo of green blips spread out from her ship.

  Rego was fully in the moment now. Sarah understood his excitement, wielding such power. “The missiles will be in evasive mode and under thrust all the way in.”

  “Good work, Rego.” Sarah activated the PA again. “Maneuvers now,” she said, and closed the channel.

  “Get us to our ride home, Mr. Ellis,” the XO ordered. “Engage the grapplers.”