by Tori Harris
“That may still happen, sir, but I think we can take the presence of Naftur aboard the Theseus off the table as a decisive factor at this point. Commander Takkar was clearly impressed, perhaps even to the point of switching sides, but quite a bit of time has passed since we last heard anything from him. I’m afraid that may be an indication that Captain Yagani aboard the Baldev was less enthusiastic. Otherwise, I feel certain we would have heard from one or the other of them by now.”
“So you think he’s just waiting to finish up the evacuation of Charlie 1 then?”
“At best, yes. Otherwise, I’d say he’s purposely dragging his feet … almost as if he’s waiting for something.”
Patterson stared back at the holo table. Even with all of the technology he had at his disposal, the prospect of managing two simultaneous combat operations was a daunting one. The destroyer strike package he had dispatched to the secondary Resistance rally point at Location Crossbow would be prepared to execute their attack momentarily, yet he was unwilling issue their “go order” until he had established real-time comm at their location. Once that happened, a number of additional options would open up, including the opportunity to reinforce the Theseus and her fighter escorts back at Location Dagger, if necessary.
Patterson knew all too well, however, that such opportunities always came with an associated cost. Reinforcing Prescott at Location Dagger, for example, might quickly lead to TFC’s first significant military victory. Unfortunately, that same action might well result in his ceding the opportunity to decisively engage the bulk of the Resistance forces at Location Crossbow prior to their attack on Earth. Such an opportunity might not present itself again, and he could not afford to waste it — even if it meant sacrificing Prescott’s forces at Dagger.
Dammit, he thought sourly. “Ensign Fletcher!” he called in the general direction of the closest Communications console.
“Yes, Admiral,” came the immediate but uncharacteristically grave reply.
“Signal the CAGs aboard the Philippine Sea and the Ushant. I want an additional forty-eight F-373s on the way out to reinforce Captain Prescott’s Theseus at Location Dagger as quickly as possible … and I want them on-scene in no more than thirty minutes. Let them know that it doesn’t matter if one carrier needs to send more than the other. You can also answer for me that, yes, I am well aware that this will probably leave both carriers with very few operational Reapers aboard once we take maintenance issues into account. The Jutland has already sent twenty-four of hers, so they shouldn’t be in any worse shape than she is. This is urgent, Katy, so transmit it as an Emergency OPORD.”
“Four eight Reapers to Location Dagger within one five minutes, aye, sir,” Fletcher replied.
“Any guesses as to how much time we have?” Patterson asked, turning his attention back to Captain Davis.
“If I’m reading the situation correctly, I’d say not much.”
TFS Karna, Location Crossbow
(In hyperspace - 5.93x1011 km from Location Dagger)
As they awaited their orders to attack, the bridge view screens aboard all seventeen Theseus-class destroyers comprising the alpha strike group displayed the abyssal black void associated with remaining stationary in hyperspace. Otherwise, there was no visual indication that they had successfully traversed the roughly thirty-one trillion kilometers between Earth and Location Crossbow within a period of time so small as to be imperceptible to their crews. This was, in fact, the location to which a single F-373 Reaper designated as “Gamble 22” had followed the particle trails left by a total of twenty-six Resistance task force ships. And, since no departing hyperspace transitions had been detected, confidence was high that the enemy vessels would still be in the immediate vicinity.
Unfortunately, Gamble 22 had expended its payload of communications beacons at Locations Dagger and Willow, so Admiral Patterson’s first order of business for the strike group was establishing real-time communications with the rest of the fleet. Accordingly, less than two minutes after her arrival, the outer doors of the Karna’s inboard starboard plasma torpedo tube retracted. What followed was an extremely low-energy rendition of the same sequence executed during the launch of a plasma torpedo. The comm beacon itself was encased on one side in a device that was similar in many ways to the sabots once used to position kinetic energy rounds in the barrels of railguns and traditional artillery pieces. As voltage was applied to the rails lining the inner walls of the torpedo tube, a Lorentz force slowly accelerated the sabot down the rails towards the vacuum of space. Upon reaching the end of the rails, rather than being discarded like a traditional sabot, the enclosure simply stopped, thus allowing the comm beacon to gently exit the torpedo tube.
Within thirty seconds of release, the device had stabilized itself and begun the process of exchanging data with the Karna as well as the other TFC ships in the immediate vicinity. Synchronization with the NRD network would subsequently occur just five minutes later, once again expanding the range of Fleet’s situational awareness. In an unprecedented feat of combat communications, Admiral Kevin Patterson would now have the capability of both assessing and responding to multiple threats in multiple locations separated by vast, interstellar distances. With a total of only eighteen destroyers and a smattering of fighters capable of crossing such distances quickly enough to go on the offensive, the stage was set for the ultimate test of Humanity’s understanding of the principles of war.
TFS Theseus, Location Dagger
(3.3 light years from Earth)
Under the most strenuous protest the exhausted Admiral Naftur could muster, Doctor Turlaka insisted that he return to the medical bay, where she undoubtedly intended to sedate him in order to prevent his attempting to return to the bridge without her permission. Both Captain Prescott and Commander Reynolds had repeatedly assured him that his brief appearance had already produced the desired effect among the Wek military personnel manning the Resistance ships in the area. In the end, however, it was Jiao Chen who abruptly concluded the discussion with the pointed observation that his dying “due to sheer stubbornness and stupidity” on Theseus’ bridge would serve no purpose whatsoever.
“Captain,” Lieutenant Dubashi reported from the Communications console, “I have Flash Traffic from the Flag, sir.”
Even before Napoleon Bonaparte’s network of over five hundred semaphore telegraph stations ushered in a new era of “real-time,” long-haul communications in 18th century France, flag officers had long recognized that information, not artillery, was the true king of the battlefield. The problem had always been one of balance. While senior officers located kilometers (or, in this case, light years) away might well be in possession of key pieces of information capable of turning the tide of battle, there was always an opportunity cost associated with putting that information in the hands of an on-scene commander. At best, officers in the field became keenly aware that every one of their decisions were being watched … evaluated … and, quite often, second-guessed.
Unfortunately, history was also replete with cases where senior military and/or political officials had attempted to subvert the chain of command — micromanaging, or even taking direct control of a battle from the comfort of a posh conference room hidden deep within the corridors of power. Admiral Kevin Patterson, by contrast, had spent his professional lifetime studying both the art and science often referred to as C4ISR — Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance. Understanding the fine balance required to support his battlefield commanders, the admiral usually chose to simply convey information rather than issuing specific operational orders — thus leaving both the authority and the initiative required for decision making precisely where it belonged.
“Captain’s eyes only?” Prescott asked, looking up from his screen.
“No, sir … TFS Theseus general.”
“We probably all need to hear it then. Please send a copy to everyone’s console and forward it to our fighters as well. Then
go ahead and read it aloud if you would.”
“Aye, sir,” she replied, rapidly entering the required commands. “The message reads as follows:
Z2123
TOP SECRET - MAGI PRIME
FM: CNO — ABOARD TFC FLAGSHIP, TFS NAVAJO
TO: TFS THESEUS
INFO: SUSPECT IMMINENT ATTACK — ADDITIONAL FIGHTERS EN ROUTE
1. DELAY IN FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS WITH RESISTANCE WARSHIPS MAY INDICATE INTENT TO ATTACK.
2. ENEMY BEHAVIOR SUGGESTS THEY EXPECT REINFORCEMENTS.
3. TWO SQUADRONS OF F-373 FIGHTERS EN ROUTE YOUR POSITION — ETA 30 MINUTES.
4. REDEPLOY FORCES AT YOUR DISCRETION TO IMPROVE TACTICAL SITUATION.
5. IF HOSTILITIES RESUME, DESTROY OR CAPTURE SCS BALDEV, IF POSSIBLE.
6. ALPHA STRIKE PREPARING TO ENGAGE RESISTANCE FORCES AT SECONDARY RALLY POINT (CROSSBOW).
7. NO ADDITIONAL CAPITAL SHIPS AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. GODSPEED THESEUS. ADM PATTERSON SENDS.
“Thank you, Lieutenant. And our status, please?”
“All systems in the green, Captain. The ship remains at General Quarters for combat ops and is ready to C-Jump. C-Jump range 100.7 light years and stable. Sublight engines online, we are free to maneuver.”
“Very well. Please acknowledge Admiral Patterson’s message, then get me a comlink with Captain Zhukov and Commander Waffer.”
“Aye, sir.”
“Ensign Fisher?”
“Yes, sir!” the young helmsman responded enthusiastically.
“From now on, if we’re at General Quarters for combat ops, make it a standing order to have an emergency C-Jump plotted and standing by to execute. Let’s go with three zero light seconds for now. At the moment, that seems like it’s far enough to ensure that we are out of immediate danger without wasting power unnecessarily. You also have permission to position the ship as required to ensure we have a clear path for our C-Jump.”
“Aye, sir. Thank you. That was actually going to be my next question, since the Baldev is currently blocking our escape trajectory.”
“And I assume that’s intentional. You can’t blame them for trying, of course, but let’s not make things quite that easy for them. Just give us slow rotations about our vertical or lateral axes to keep our path clear. Any questions?”
“No, sir. Repositioning now.”
“Slow and easy, Ensign. They almost certainly know what we’re up to, so we need not make it look like we’re about to do something unexpected. Oh, and one more thing, we tend to make emergency C-Jumps in emergency situations, so, in spite of Fleet’s insistence on proper terminology, I might just say ‘jump.’ Make sense?”
“We’ll be out of here before you can even get to the ‘uh,’ Captain,” he chuckled.
“Alright, XO, here’s what I’m thinking,” Prescott said, shifting his attention to Commander Reynolds in the command chair to his right. “I’d really like to give those additional fighters time to arrive on station before the shooting starts again. Do you agree?”
“If we have a choice, absolutely, sir,” she replied.
“Well, if we start to reposition Theseus without some sort of nonthreatening pretext for doing so, it will probably be seen as either provocative, or in the very least an indication that we are expecting more trouble. Our fighters, on the other hand, have remained fairly active since the shooting stopped. I’m thinking we might just get away with allowing each flight of twelve to get themselves into position for a quick strike, if necessary, without drawing too much attention to what they’re doing. I’d also like to slave six of our Hunters to each flight of Reapers. That will give each flight a total of eighteen spacecraft — and an additional forty-eight missiles to fire.”
“Hmm … I doubt the Resistance ships will appreciate seeing our fighters setting up for another attack run either. That still seems pretty provocative to me. Don’t you think they will respond?” she asked.
“They might … and they could well see it as an aggressive move, but I’m sure everyone on both sides realizes that at some point, this conflict has to come to some kind of a conclusion. We either agree to break contact while remaining under a flag of truce, or we reengage. Admiral Patterson obviously believes that Captain Yagani intends the latter. And if he really is expecting more Resistance ships to arrive, delay works in their favor, not ours.”
“And what about Commander Takkar and the Hadeon? You saw his reaction to Admiral Naftur. Do you really believe he will fire on us at the risk of killing a man he clearly idolizes?” Reynolds asked, directing this question to both Prescott and Ambassador Turlaka.
“There is no question that he would feel conflicted in doing so,” Turlaka answered, “but if he truly believes that his duty to protect both Graca and the Sajeth Collective lies with the Resistance …”
“Sir, I have Captain Zhukov and Commander Waffer — audio only,” Dubashi interrupted. With the two pilots wearing heavily instrumented helmets and lying in utter darkness within the armored fuselages of their Reaper aerospace superiority fighters, there was little point in a vidcon feed.
Prescott simply nodded at Dubashi, followed shortly thereafter by the familiar chime indicating that an active comm channel had been established.
“Good evening, gentlemen. Thank you very much for your help so far. That was some nice shooting. I assume you saw the Flash message from Admiral Patterson?”
“Thank you, Captain Prescott, and a good evening to you as well,” Zhukov replied. “Yes, we did. We were discussing very nearly the same thing right before we received the admiral’s message. We took a look at Commander Reynolds analysis of the Resistance ships’ aft shield vulnerability. From what we have seen thus far, Bravo 1 seems to have a significantly smaller gap between her shields and engine nozzles than the cruisers do. I am afraid she is going to be a tough nut to crack. Commander Waffer’s flight is repositioning now to get a better view of her drive section.”
“Well, that’s not good news, but also not unexpected. We noted that Admiral Naftur’s ship, the Gresav, has a smaller gap as well. So it seems like this is a vulnerability they have been working hard to overcome in their newer ship designs. In any event, the admiral’s orders are straightforward. If hostilities resume, we are to capture or destroy the Baldev. Given what we know at the moment, I believe our strategy should be to finish off the cruisers first, starting with Charlie 2. It remains to be seen whether the two newer cruisers, Charlie 3 and 4, will reenter the fight, so do not fire on either of them until I designate them as hostiles. If that happens, we will target Charlie 4 first, then Charlie 3 before finally going after the Baldev herself. Based on Commander Takkar’s interaction with Admiral Naftur, I think there may still be a chance that the Hadeon will leave the area entirely. Either way, I want all three of those cruisers out of the fight as quickly as possible. So if you see me designate one as a hostile, don’t hesitate to hit them hard and fast.”
“And what about the ‘grav beam’ that Admiral Naftur mentioned?” Reynolds asked.
“I’m not sure there is much we can do to address it since we have no idea what the weapon even does,” Prescott replied. “We could speculate that it induces some kind of sheer forces when it comes into contact with a ship’s hull, but that’s just a guess. We also have no idea of the weapon’s range or its effectiveness against our shields. So, for now at least, I’m going to say that we should keep it in mind, but we can’t plan for something we know nothing about.”
“Captain,” Lieutenant Commander Schmidt announced from the Tactical 1 console, “all three cruisers just changed course, sir. Charlie 2 and 3 appear to be taking up flanking positions, and Charlie 4 has turned back in this direction and is accelerating.”
“Have they concluded their rescue operation?”
“Looks like it, sir. They had several shuttles ferrying survivors and equipment back and forth. All of them have now returned to either Charlie 2 or Charlie 3.”
“Understood. Go ahead and slave the AIs from si
x of our Hunters to Captain Zhukov and Commander Waffer’s fighters. Let me know immediately if anything else changes.”
“Aye, sir.”
Outside, two groups of six RPSVs disappeared in small flashes of grayish-white light, immediately reappearing in extended formation with each flight of twelve F-373 fighters. On the right side of Theseus’ view screen, the tactical plot momentarily displayed all twelve Hunters as if they were operating in autonomous attack mode. Seconds later, the text block accompanying their icons merged with that of the Reapers as the two lead pilots’ neural interfaces seamlessly took command of the additional spacecraft.
“Alright, Badger 1 and Badger 2 Flights,” Prescott continued, “you two have the Hunters. Once you are in position, I’m going to hail the Baldev and let Captain Yagani know that I am willing to accept either his cooperation or his surrender.”
“That wasn’t at all what I was expecting you to say,” Reynolds said with a nervous smile.
“Good. Hopefully Captain Yagani will have the same reaction. If he’s hoping for reinforcements, there’s no question that he will be less confident prior to their arrival — particularly after we just bested four of their cruisers. If they do open fire first, expect Theseus to C-Jump away and reposition for an attack on Charlie 2. If you find yourselves under heavy fire, I suggest you do the same. We may well be outgunned here, but if we use a combination of tactical C-Jumps and our shields to their full advantage, we should be able to wear them down and gain the upper hand. Does anyone have any questions?”
“I do not think so, Captain,” Zhukov responded. “Please give us a couple of minutes to reposition. If you like, our AIs can relay the most critical of our tactical comm calls during the battle. This will allow you to hear when we arrive at designated locations, fire weapons, etcetera.”