“Thank you,” said Bishop. “Then let’s get the manufacturing crew stated on their tasks, and let’s get the new crew over to the Adonis to start the retrofit of the gravity well generator and quantum rods.”
The meeting concluded. For the next several days both the Maximus and the Adonis were a flurry of activity as everyone completed their tasks. Bishop assigned Jason to work with the engineering crew to mount the cannons and create a targeting system. He also asked him to fit the shuttles with a bomb bay.
Jason had each ship mounted with six cannons. One on top, one on bottom, one forward, one aft, and one on the port and starboard sides. This made the ships able to fire in any direction. He also added an external bomb bay to the shuttles, so as not to take up the interior spaces.
All operations were complete. The armaments had been split between the Maximus and the Adonis and loaded on board. The bombs were loaded in the shuttle’s bomb bays and set so they could be dropped in units of one or ten. The ships were supplied, manned and ready.
The council met to discuss next steps. Bishop opened the meeting then said, “I have a plan. Let’s review strategy.”
He continued, “Sapiea is strongly occupied by the Tecate’. The last report indicated the Tecate’ had taken six of the eighteen continents. They probably have more now.
“Dolis has been occupied but the foothold of the Tecate’ is not yet as strong as it is on Sapiea.
“We have armaments, but no army. The crew manning these two vessels is insufficient to mount an attack on the Tecate’.
“Does everyone agree with that assessment?”
“Yes,” everyone concurred.
“Then here’s my plan,” he continued.
“We will liberate Dolis first.”
“What?” interrupted Ama Sod. “We should save Sapiea first.”
“Hear me out,” followed Bishop. “We don’t have the strength to mount an attack on Sapiea, yet,” he added.
“We will liberate Dolis first. The Maximus will go to Dolis and find free Dolek warriors to join us. We will arm them and free Dolis. When that is done, we will ask the Dolek warriors to join us in freeing Sapiea.”
“You know they will,” interjected madi-tah.
“Thank you,” replied Bishop. “When we arrive at Sapiea, we will come with an army of Dolek warriors.
“In the meantime, the Adonis will go to Sapiea. They will not engage. They will find unoccupied territory and deliver Devor Bon and a cache of weapons to the ground. Devor will gather intelligence to assess the Sapien strongholds and ready a Sapien army.”
“Does this make sense to everyone?”
Everyone agreed it did. Even Ama Sod reluctantly agreed.
Then Bishop said, “One final thing. I will record a message to the Sapien people, a message from the creator and father from Vhamora. I would like that message played repeatedly on all possible communications channels. Can this be done?”
Sava replied, “Communications from Sapiea have been sporadic. We believe the Tecate’ have taken out the satellite network, but we should be able to deploy new repeater satellites. We may have to defend them.”
“Perfect. Now let’s vote on our plan. Do we proceed as outlined?”
The vote was unanimous. The council meeting adjourned. Bishop and Asha went to their quarters together. Asha asked the galley if they could send dinner down to them, and Bishop began composing his message to the Sapien people. He recorded this message:
“People of Sapiea. This is the creator and father from Vhamora.
“I ask you to look deep inside yourself and find the strength to bear what is upon you now, and what is yet to come. I know the times are difficult. Persevere!
“We have sent forces to the ground to prepare an army. If you can, find them, join them and help in the fight. They know what to do. If you cannot, take shelter and survive until help arrives. We are coming soon to free Sapiea.
“Stand tough! Help is on the way.”
Asha gratefully hugged him and gave him what comfort she could. Bishop took the recording to Masa Sar, who was serving as commander of the Adonis. He said, “Best of luck to you. Be sure this message gets out. When we are ready we will summon you to Dolis. We will need your ship to help transport the Dolek army.”
Two wormholes opened up above the planet Manifer. The Adonis passed though one and went to Sapiea. The Maximus passed through the other and went to Dolis.
Chapter 15: Battle for Dolis
The Maximus arrived at Dolis and drew little attention as it took orbit. Sava ordered a scan of the planet. The scans revealed two large swaths of destruction where vast areas of the once pristine jungle were now only ash and rubble. The jungles had been burned, and in many areas the fires continued to rage.
In the largest of the deforested areas the scans detected a grounded cargo ship. This was the ship that first brought the Tecate’. The second area showed no signs of technology, just an open plain. One odd reading was noticed, however, both areas showed concentrated pockets where the atmospheric oxygen levels were elevated.
Sava requested a visual inspection of those areas. The Maximus turned their cameras to the planet surface and zoomed in on the pockets. They showed the ground covered with an unusual substance. It was manava. Manava had a signature. It released oxygen as a byproduct of its growth. Sava immediately realized this meant the Tecate’ strongholds could be detected from space. He ordered a message be sent to the Adonis. They activated a QETAR. Their message read:
Tecate’ product manava releases atmospheric oxygen as byproduct. Can detect Tecate’ farms from space by scanning for concentrated pockets where oxygen levels are elevated. *END
Sometime later a return message arrived.
Message received and understood. Scan reveals multiple oxygen pockets across nine continents. At least half of Sapiea occupied by Tecate’. *END
The Maximus now opened a communications channel and sent a general hail to the planet surface.
“This is the Maximus calling any station. We have come to assist with the liberation of Dolis. Is there any Dolek authority who can respond?”
No response came. They repeated the hail a second time, then a response.
“This is monda-ro. I am a tribal leader of the Dolek. Central authority is in disarray, but I can assist.”
“We have brought weapons to arm the Dolek warriors to retake Dolis. Is there a safe area to converge with your forces? We will send support.”
“This is monda-ro, here are my coordinates. 52.178.346. There is a landing area for shuttles at this location. We can meet there. ”
Just then another transmission interrupted. It was the simulated voice of a translation device accompanied by a series of clicking sounds that could be heard in the background. The translation said:
“This is the queen of Dolis. Do not attempt to land. You will be destroyed. Your weapons are ineffective. You will all die. ”
Sava was unconcerned by the threat, but the fact that this message came in meant two things: 1) the Tecate’ were monitoring their communications, and 2) the Tecate’ could use the radio communication systems. It was uncertain if they could use the QETAR, but it was certain they could use the local transmitters. Sava went radio silent.
Bishop had been on the bridge with Sava since they went into orbit. He was aware of the most recent developments.
Bishop said, “We should go to the surface and meet with monda-ro.”
Sava replied, “No. Not we. I should go. You must remain safe. We don’t know what we are going to face below. It could be a trap, and we can’t afford to lose the father from Vhamora. The Sapien people need you. You must sit this one out.”
Bishop was not pleased with the sentiment, but he understood that Sava was right. Sava would take a shuttle and a cache of weapons to Dolis.
Sava had the shuttle loaded with five hundred handguns, five hundred of each type of rifle, two hundred bow weapons, and five hundred grenades. That should be enough to
start, he thought. He asked Jason and the two Dolek warriors to accompany him. They made ground at the indicated coordinates.
The area was safe. There were no Tecate’. Monda-ro was waiting for them. They introduced themselves then went to a secure shelter to talk. A crew of Doleks off loaded the weapons and brought them along.
Sava began, “I have brought enough weapons for a small army, enough to arm hundreds of Dolek warriors. Can you gather forces?”
“Yes. I can have a warrior force gather here.”
“Great. This is Jason Smith,” he said gesturing to Jason. “He is from Vhamora. He was a Marine. I’m not exactly sure what that means, but I think it means he is a highly skilled warrior. The father has great faith in his abilities.
“Jason will train your forces in the use of the weapons we brought and, if you have no objections, lead the Dolek forces.”
Monda-ro replied, “Our warriors would be honored to follow a warrior from Vhamora.”
Jason spoke. “We have observed what appears to be two strongholds of Tecate’ forces. One is near the ship they landed in. The other is many miles away in the second cleared area we detected from space. Can you confirm this and do you have any additional intelligence on the Tecate’?”
“Yes,” answered monda-ro. “We can confirm that there are currently two Tecate’ strongholds. We have also had scouts monitoring the Tecate’ from a distance, and they have reported back several observations.
“First, it seems the Tecate’ queen gives direction to the others through the blue Tecate’. We have seen her frequently passing directives to the blue Tecate’ with this ‘hugging’ action they have. Immediately after she ‘hugs’ them, they ‘hug’ the others and activities begin or end.
“It also seems that the Tecate’ grow this manava substance and use it to nurture their young. The queen lays eggs in clumps of it, and new Tecate’ grow there. When their population has reached a sufficient numbers, they swarm to a new location and create another nest. This is how the second nest came to be. Our scouts witnessed the entire migration.
“The original queen seems to be using the cargo ship as her stronghold. We believe her nests are in the cargo bays of that vessel. The second queen has no ship and has built some sort of mud mound as fortification. It is quite large and has tunnels all throughout it. We do not know what goes on inside.”
One more thing, added monda-ro, “Based on the numbers of Tecate’ we are seeing in the Tecate’ strongholds we believe the queen in the ship may be nearly ready to spawn another swarm. The second queen shortly thereafter.”
“Then we must move quickly,” said Jason. “From what you have told us I think the best course of action is take out the original colony first, then move on to the second. Because the original colony is in the ship, I think they are susceptible to bombing. We have weapons we can drop on them from a shuttle. That should be part of our first attack. The second stronghold, I’m uncertain if they are as vulnerable to air attack. We’ll have to see.
“Based on what you said about their command structure, I think the destruction of the queen is key. Kill the queen and the eggs, kill the nest. At least that’s my theory.”
“We have had thoughts along those same lines,” said monda-ro. “That may very well be the case.”
They concluded the meeting. The next morning a large crowd of Dolek warriors had assembled nearby. Monda-ro introduced them to Jason who distributed the new weapons and demonstrated their operation. The Dolek warriors were impressed with the new weapons.
Jason broke the large contingent of warriors into smaller groups he called ‘units’. He assigned a commander to each unit and, based on the type of weapons they were issued, gave them different responsibilities.
Those units with the bow weapon will repel attacking enemies. Those with rifles will take down enemy forces from a distance. Those with handguns will stand back until the enemy forces have been weakened, then rush in and engage at close quarter, clearing out the enemy stronghold.
The warriors with hand guns were not fond of the idea of standing back, but they did like the idea of close quarter combat, so it seemed a fair compromise.
From Jason’s point of view, this group was unpracticed and undisciplined, but they were enthusiastic. They had no experience in this type of structured combat, but the Dolek did have many songs and legends from the old days when their ancestors waged war like this. Maybe there would be new songs about them one day.
Because of the possibility of swarming, Jason did not want to delay. The group took position around the cargo ship during the night. They were to begin their attack after the shuttles completed a bombing run.
Just after sunrise, two shuttles approached from the direction of the rising sun. They were directly in the glare of the sun and difficult to see. The first shuttle flew over the cargo vessel and dropped a load of bombs. Some landed early and cratered the manava fields, but a few hit their target and ripped large holes in the ship. The second shuttle waited a little longer to release their payload and almost all their bombs hit the ship. The ship was fractured and broke apart into several large pieces where the nests were exposed.
Tecate’ streamed out of the vessel and ran at the forces on the ground. The bow weapons were deployed first. The onrushing Tecate’ went flying through the air and landed almost twenty feet back. Many stood back up and resumed their attack, but some never stood again.
Inside the vessel the queen heard a hail on the communications channel. Even though the ship was heavily damaged the communications systems were still working. A series of clicks came through. She responded with another series of clicks, then she gave one of the blue Tecate’ a long embrace. The blue Tecate’ exited the ship and found an opening in the Dolek lines. It passed through the gap and slipped away.
The battle raged outside. Now the rifles were being deployed against the onslaught. One after another Tecate’ fell to the ground. Many let out a shrill shriek as they collapsed. Most, but not all of the attackers fell to the rifles. Several made it to the Dolek lines. There the handguns were put to use. The Tecate’ fell to them too, but the Doleks were also taking casualties.
The Doleks rushed the ship and went through all the rooms, clearing out the remaining Tecate’ as they progressed. More Doleks fell during the purge. One found the queen on the bridge. A rage come over him and he shot again, and again, and again. When the frenzy ended the queen’s body lay on the deck in a slushy mass of pulp and shell.
Eventually the Doleks made their way to the cargo holds. There they found hundreds of fertile nests and yet another queen with her two blue Tecate’. They dispatched them quickly and used several of the hand grenades to destroy the remaining nests. Monda-ro was right. The Tecate’ were about to swarm.
The horde was destroyed. Nearly a thousand Tecate’ lay dead. The queens in the cargo ship were vanquished and the nests were obliterated. A smaller number of Dolek warriors were also lost in the fight. The Dolek warriors thought it was a good day.
*****************
About the same time as the attack began, a cargo ship came out of FTL flight and entered orbit around the planet. It was the queen returning from Aquita. She called down to the ship below to alert them to of her arrival. The message from below came back as a series of agitated clicks. It said, “We are under attack from forces on the ground and a ship orbiting the planet. We need assistance. Destroy the ship above.”
The Tecate’ queen was aghast. She had failed on Aquita and now it seems she was facing another likely failure on Dolis. Maybe she would not found a colony, but she would also not let her sisters perish. She placed her ship in high orbit to look for the attacking vessel. The Maximus was obvious when came over the horizon. It was in an orbit just beneath her. She set course directly for the Maximus and engaged full power. The ship moved slowly at first, but quickly accelerated as it approached the Maximus.
Sava was on the ground and Bishop was in the command on the bridge when an alarm sounded. I
t buzzed loudly and repeated “Collision Alert” again and again. A quick scan showed a large cargo vessel headed directly at them, increasing speed as it approached.
Bishop responded quickly. He gave the order, fire the front and overhead cannons. Destroy that ship. The cannons fired fast repeating rounds and showered the approaching vessel with energy blasts. The ship exploded and broke into thousands of pieces, but the debris was still headed directly at them.
Bishop made a ship wide announcement, “Brace for impact,” he said. A moment later the debris field came upon them. In it were fragments of the vessel, and hundreds of free floating Tecate’. They could see the Tecate’ wriggling and reaching out as they approached. Then, thumps and scraping sounds were heard all over the ship. Most of the debris and most the Tecate’ floated past into the emptiness of space, but several Tecate’ managed to latch on to parts of the ship as they flew by. They were now affixed to the outside of the vessel.
The Long Day Page 14