Chapter 17
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The fleet guarding the massive Milgari ship was impressive. Our cataloging included 14 battleships, 36 cruisers, 137 destroyers, and 156 frigates, a formidable fleet on its own. We spent the larger part of a week batting ideas back and forth about how we could best approach the problem at hand: how to destroy the massive Milgari station before it could be used to attack the Grid.
We were hard at work brainstorming over an idea that Barg had presented. “No, I don't think we can provide the cover needed to get you in that close. That thing is too heavily defended. You would get pulverized before you were close enough to do any damage. I would agree that they might be vulnerable if you can get in close to the hull, but I don't see a way in unless someone else has something to add.”
We gathered in the hold of the Hammer. I looked around at the others for any suggestions.
Davis said, “How about we push an asteroid toward them and Barg can ride in behind it? They would wait until it was in close to destroy it, and they would probably only use one cannon for that. Might just catch them by surprise.”
A discussion grew around Davis's idea. If the asteroid was destroyed early, the Defender attempting to sneak in behind it would be sitting in the open for all to see. An alternate idea was put forth where the asteroid would be aimed so that it was not heading directly at the ship, but would instead come in at an angle where it would merely pass close by. But again, if the asteroid were targeted early as a precaution, it would be the end of the Defender.
A third suggestion would have hundreds of asteroids moving in like a field, with a Defender hiding behind one that was not on a collision course. It was reasoned that the focus of the enemy would be on the ones coming straight in first, buying us additional time. The attack plans soon became a moot point as the comm chatter of the fleet suddenly picked up.
Frig said, “Sir, it appears that the big ship is on the move. We should know very soon if it is headed in the direction of the Grid.”
I rolled my eyes at our bad luck. The asteroid plan may have been unfeasible, but we were counting on having the time to figure something out. With the big ship on the move, we were stuck with only being able to follow.
I replied, “Let's get back to our ships. Frig will coordinate a follow-up plan. Looks like we're gonna have to play this by ear.”
We were soon lifting out of the crater and heading in the direction of the departing ship. It was slow to move, given its immense size. We took up position behind the Milgari beast and settled in as it crawled along, slowly picking up speed.
It soon became evident that the Milgari were not heading for the Grid. They were heading back into a sector that we had bypassed during our last flight from their oppression, a sector with uncharted worlds and unknown species. We reasoned the Milgari were planning to use the massive weapon against another foe.
A fleet of several hundred ships that we did not recognize appeared on the port side. Half of the Milgari fleet turned to meet them.
Frig said, “Sir, our database of ships doesn't have anything that resembles the attackers. I should have a good visual in three... two... one...”
The attacking fleet had an array of ships that resembled pancakes, wide and thin with brown tops and white borders. The initial Milgari frigates that fired on them were met with a hail of thousands of missiles. The first ships took damage from the Milgari cannons, but the Milgari ships were soon ablaze as the thousands of missiles found their targets.
The scene repeated itself several times as each opponent tested the capabilities of the other, each time escalating the amount of resources committed to the battle. After the fifth such exchange, the Milgari went all in. Other than a handful of frigates left to guard the massive ship, the Milgari moved in every ship they had. The space surrounding the Milgari fleet was soon filled with swarms of missiles, fighters, and a crisscross of blue beams from ion cannon fire.
Davis then offered an idea. “I think this is a perfect opportunity for us to strike. We don't have to worry about the fleet, as long as whoever that is keeps them occupied. I say we slip in there and do what damage we can to that beast. We may not get a better opportunity than what we have now.”
I called for the location of an asteroid that we could use as cover for at least a partial ride in. We would send it hurtling on a trajectory that would take it in close to the massive ship as we followed behind it in single file. A suitable rock was located, and our plan was quickly put into action.
“Sir,” said Frig, “Gy revealed to me that the forward plating on the Hammer is the thickest he has ever done, almost seven percentage points greater than ours, sir. I believe it to be in our best interest to have the Hammer fly as lead ship.”
I pressed a button on the comm. “Barg? Are you good with taking point? I'm told you have the best armor.”
Barg quickly responded, “That would be an honor. Always fancied myself as a bit of a headbanger, sir. I would just as soon put my head down and go at it than plan out every detail. Let's get behind that rock and get it on.”
A 120-meter-diameter asteroid was selected. Three Defenders combined to push it in the direction of the massive ship using extended low-level ion pulses. The rest of us fell in line behind the Hammer.
The attacking forces were putting up a fierce fight against the conventional Milgari fleet. A battleship charged hard into the attacking ships with its cannons blazing blue fire. One of the large attacking ships soon erupted in flame as a bright blue stream of ionized particles cut deep into its hull. The attack was met with a black swarm of missiles as a return volley was fired.
Blue streaks screamed outward from the battleship as it attempted to defend itself. The missiles easily overwhelmed the battleship's defenses, if only by the sheer number that had been committed to the fight. The battleship turned in retreat as its outer hull exploded in fire, as if in death by a thousand needles.
Frig said, “Sir, I have attempted to hail the attackers, but they have not responded. I dare not go broadband in the transmission, as it would immediately alert the Milgari to our location. I will continue the hails until such time as we swing into battle.”
I replied, “If you get them talking, find out what their beef is with the Milgari. We will want to use that to bring them to our side if possible.”
Milly pushed into the conversation. “Sir, we need to firm up what we plan on doing when we get there. I suggest working up a pattern where we each have assigned targets, preferably those big gun turrets first. If we can take them out, we should be able to carve that superstructure into pieces. I took the liberty of calculating the angles of fire of those big guns, and I think if we can get down to fifty meters from that hull, we should be able to flame them, sir.”
I agreed with Milly's tactic. Frig got to work dividing targets among the Defenders’ computers. We would roll in from behind the rock and drop to within fifty meters of the massive ship. We would then fire relentlessly at the large ion cannons that lined her outer hull. Our ion inhibitors and thick Tantric armor would handle the smaller cannons that remained. If we made it to the point of eliminating the large cannons, we could begin our work on destroying the great ship, one layer at a time.
Frig said, “Sir, the Milgari are beginning to get the upper hand. The attackers are approaching a loss level of 20 percent. If I were their commander, I would attempt to retreat and regroup. Those losses are not sustainable. The Milgari appear to have superior weapons.”
Barg was on the comm. “Coming up on rollout in five... four... three... two... one.”
The Hammer was first to reveal herself and immediately drew the fire of the nearest cannon. But the acceleration of our ships was faster than their calibrated targeting computers could handle, and the first pulse missed by a half kilometer.
Barg continued, “Placing my ship in a spiral for the final.”
The second pulse from a side cannon grazed the tail section. The thick armor
and the inhibitors did their job. Barg banked hard again as he lined up and began to scream across the face of the great ship’s hull. The Milgari defenders managed one last shot at the Hammer as he dropped below one hundred meters.
“I'm dropping to safe—”
Boom!
“Ahhhh! Hold on...”
A loud clang followed by a scraping sound could be heard over the comm channel from the Hammer. Several seconds passed before Barg again broadcast.
Bam!
“That last one nearly took the hair off the top of my head!”
Bam! Bam!
“I overcompensated and managed to slam into the outer hull of that thing. Gy won't be too happy about the finish on our armor when we get back, but we're inside the fifty-meter mark. Taking the smaller hits now, but not showing any damage.”
Bam!
The remaining Defenders managed to slide into the same pattern without taking a hit from any large cannon.
“This is the Swift. Let's start taking out some targets!”
The first of the large Milgari guns went up in a bright flash as the Fist fired. Sixteen of the beastly cannons were quickly silenced before the Milgari diverted four battleships to the massive ship’s defense.
I pressed the comm button. “Those big boys are coming in hot. Let's keep out of patterns. They're going to have a hard time targeting us in this close. Keep your focus on those main guns or we won't have an exit strategy.”
The Milgari ships attempted to fire at the small Defenders flying ultra close to the massive ship's hull. The first five shots were misses, causing severe damage to their own vessel.
They quickly adjusted their tactics by first firing low-level pulses. If they struck a Defender, a full pulse followed immediately after.
Boom!
Milly came on the air. “Yeowzah! That was almost a full-on hit. My ears are ringing. But it looks like hull damage was minimal. I suggest setting a steering algorithm that alters your course if a low-level pulse hit is detected.”
Boom!
“Crap! That one took out 5 percent of our port wing armor. Make those adjustments, peeps!”
The steering algorithm strategy proved effective, most of the time. We were getting banged up, but holding on as the big guns fell one by one.
Frig said, “Sir, we have 45 percent of the large cannons offline now. I suggest we concentrate fire on these remaining twenty-two. It will provide us with an avenue for retreat if we require one.”
I passed the order on to the others, and our escape plan was soon enabled. From that point we began to work outward in a spiral, taking down every large cannon on nearly a quarter of the great ship before five more Milgari battleships came to her aid.
Frig offered options. “Sir, we may be forced to leave. Their targeting capabilities just increased substantially. We are going to be taking—”
Boom! Boom!
I yelled, “Frig! The recycler is offline! Starting to get some smoke from environmental. Set that cannon to continuous fire and I'll do my best. Get that equipment back there under control or we won't have an atmosphere to breathe in here!”
Our ships began to take heavy hits from the Milgari battleships that now flew overhead. The battle between the fleets raged on, with the attackers once again gaining an even hand. I could only glance at the display from time to time, as my focus was pinned to keeping us alive.
Frig replied, “Sir, environmental is back online. Another strike like one of those may take her out permanently. It's time we thought about pulling back, sir.”
I cut hard to port and blasted another large cannon turret into oblivion. “Listen up, all: we have a quadrant of this beast cleared off now. What do you say we take a bit of the fight to those battleships that are hounding us? As long as we attack from within this quadrant, those big guns can't target us. Let’s carve up some battleship, shall we?”
The Hammer and the Frost were first to turn. Barg let out a yell over his comm as he charged directly at the closest vessel and loosed a burst of pulses, taking one of the two main guns of the battleship offline. Milly dropped in right behind him.
Boom!
“Ahh! Nuts! They just knocked the crap out of our crapper. We got no john now! Take some of this, you...”
The remaining main cannon of the battleship exploded in a bright flash as Milly's ion bolt found its mark.
The Dagger turned for a run at the next battleship. “Dagger is coming in hard and—”
Boom! Boom!
The Dagger went silent as twin direct hits from the Milgari ship it was attacking struck it dead on. The Fist followed immediately behind. “Dagger is down. Targeting...”
The nose of the Milgari battleship exploded with such a fury that the two main guns were taken out. “This is Fist, switching to new target.”
I continued my runs on the surface guns of the massive ship. The battleships were now occupied with our Defenders. I happened to glance at the tactical display for the main battle and noticed that an attacking ship had broken through the Milgari line and was heading in our direction. Three of the Milgari battleships turned away to meet the coming threat. The Hammer and the Frost quickly silenced the remaining others before turning back toward the large cannons of the massive ship.
I commanded, “OK, I say we abandon the cannons and start drilling as deep into this hull as we can. Pick a spot and start blasting!”
We began our assault on the main hull and found that our cannons were highly effective once we had cut through the outer hull plating.
Milly then came on the air. “Ah, hey, Chief, that remaining battleship is attempting to drag in the Dagger. I'm cutting out to put a stop to it.”
Milly was right. We could not afford to let a Defender fall into the hands of Milgari engineers. We had previously talked about ways to make it difficult for the Milgari to re-engineer our technology should a ship fall into their hands. It was decided there was nothing we could do to prevent that from happening, other than to destroy the ship itself.
Each Defender had an autodestruct that could be enabled from any other ship in the event of a compromise, but it required the captured ship to be online and functional. The Dagger was drifting dead, so the autodestruct was useless. “This is Frost. They've got her and they are turning away. Advise on a plan, Chief. What do I do?”
As Frig worked the ion cannon, I took only a moment to decide. “Take down that battleship, Frost. Hit those ion drives first to slow her down. We don't want her to make it back to that main fleet. Too many for us to take on right now.”
Milly continued her pursuit, blasting the battleship with everything she had, but her weapon, even though ultra-powerful for its size, was only poking small holes in an otherwise huge vessel. Barg soon broke away in the Hammer to join her.
The Swift and the Fist continued to drill holes into the massive Milgari ship. I once again diverted my eyes toward the tactical screen and was witness to a second attacking ship breaking through the lines and heading toward our location. The first ship was now fully engaged with the three Milgari battleships and was taking a beating that it could not withstand. Several seconds later it tilted to one side as half of its propulsion system was knocked offline.
Milly again came on the air. “Chief, we knocked out its drive. What do we do with her?”
I responded immediately. “Carve her up, Frost. We don't have time to dally. Destroy that thing with whatever you have. We need you back here to finish this job.”
The comm was silent for several seconds. “Roger that, Chief, going for the throat.”
The second attacking ship pushed hard in defense of the first. One of the Milgari battleships began to burn as ten thousand missiles impacted its hull, taking out its vital external systems. The Milgari countered with a strike, cutting deep into the hull of the aggressor, but the large, flat ship continued on its course.
The Frost and the Hammer pounded the immobile Milgari battleship with a relentless barrage of blue ion stream
s. I then took notice of several seconds of silence before the streams from the Defenders turned to a bright orange. Their cannons had been switched to negative ion flow, and the Milgari battleship began to explode with reverberating shocks as each new pulse pierced its hull.
I quickly gave the order for a switch of our own cannons. “Fist, switch over to negative. Looks like it plays havoc with their systems. I think these ships don't have much shielding of their systems once you get through that hull. Might have a higher impact than what we are doing right now.”
The cannons were reconfigured, and pulses again began to rain down on the Milgari vessel. This time the orange glow from the beams foretold of a coming fire within the great ship.
“This is Frost. Chief, these negative cannons are ripping that ship to shreds. We should have been using them all along!”
I replied, “I agree, Milly, wish we had realized it sooner. I wanted to save them as a sort of surprise weapon if needed. I guess this situation qualifies for that. Keep that fire up until there is nothing left of her, Milly. We can't risk the Dagger's capture.”
Jon Baumer was aboard the Dagger, along with his engineer, Sandy Cooper. They knew the risks of going to war with the Milgari. They knew the risks of our technology falling into the hands of the enemy. Both individuals were patriots. They had joined the cause to protect the Grid and the freedom that it offered. Their sacrifice was of their own choosing.
Milly replied, “Whoa! The docking port just exploded from the inside out. That ship is coming apart hard, Chief. I think we can scratch one battleship! We'll keep hitting that debris, sir. until there is nothing left bigger than a sandwich!”
I returned my focus to the giant ship before me. The orange beams of negative ions cut quickly through the superstructure. A hole soon opened to the ship's interior. “Looks like she's hollow, Fist. When you break through, come inside and we'll gut this thing from the inside out!”
I pushed on the throttle and was soon inside the massive ship’s superstructure. It was nearly three hundred kilometers across to the inner walls on the other side. Small transports buzzed about the interior, ferrying people and materials to areas in need.
The Fist was soon stopped by my side. “The Fist is here, sir. Let's cut this baby up!”
I took one last look at the tactical, just in time to see the second attacking ship in flames. But it had momentum, a momentum that was carrying it hard into the opposite side of the massive Milgari ship. The impact could be seen as the interior lighting in that section went dark on impact.
A growing glow foretold of the remainder of the attacking ship fully making an impact. Explosions of debris and fire appeared on the far wall as part of the attacking ship’s hull poked through to the interior. I gave the order, and the Swift and the Fist began to fire continuously at everything that was not already burning.
Word then came in from the Frost and the Hammer. Milly said, “Chief, I'm not sure what I'm seeing here, but that battleship seems to be carving itself up from the inside... Yeowzah! It's the Dagger, sir. She's alive and kicking! Hammer! Take out that aft section. Let's give her some help!”
The Dagger was soon revealed as a section of the port dock blew away. She had no comms or propulsion, but her cannon was spewing out ion bolts in an almost continuous destructive stream. I ordered the Fist to join her sisters in an attempt to push the Dagger to safety. With my team soon heading away from the fight, I returned my attention to the task at hand.
There were eight protrusions jutting out into the port side of the interior of the great ship. It was my mission to see that there were none remaining before I left to join the others. The massive ion cannons of the Milgari were my new targets. Their outer ports were already in ruin.
Frig said, “Sir, I mapped in the optimal pattern of attack with the impact points that will bring about the highest level of damage. I suggest we push through this and move, sir. It looks like that attacking fleet is beginning to turn away. Our time is limited.”
I selected the mapping that Frig had developed and pushed the throttle to the required speed. One by one the massive cannons were taken out as I flew Frig’s pattern.
As our ion bolts struck each cannon, the power stores within them erupted, sending blue lightning into the surrounding structure. The great trussed beams that made up the cannon mounts were splintering, throwing debris in every direction.
Frig said, “Sir, the bulk of that fleet is turning our way. I suggest we leave immediately!”
I replied, “Two more of those cannons to go. If we take them out, we know it will take a year to bring this beast back to operational status. Just give me two more minutes!”
Frig continued to monitor the Milgari fleet as I blasted the second-to-last cannon. “Sir, there are eight battleships that will be here momentarily. We have to leave, sir... now!”
I scowled and then pushed the stick in the direction of the hole we had come in through. Eight seconds later, we shot out of the far side of the great ship as its insides burned.
Within minutes we had outrun the Milgari ships and their sensors. I changed course back to our rendezvous point and set down in the shadow of the deep crater by the others. Our secure communications were soon online. Jon Baumer boarded the Swift through an air lock.
I said, “Jon, glad to see you made it. Where's Sandy?”
Jon's flight suit was covered in blood. He took off his helmet. “Sorry, sir. That bolt got into her console. I was knocked cold in the explosion. She... she took the brunt of it.”
Jon sat down on a bench in the hold and pressed his hands to his face. It had been a long day, a day that had cost him his engineer, a day that had cost him a close friend.
Frig and the others were hard at work on the Dagger. The ship's interior was a mess, but one that could be repaired. The next four days were spent bringing the Dagger's propulsion, comm, and nav systems back online. On the fifth day, we headed for home. When Bullwort appeared on the console monitors, it was a sight that brought nothing but smiles.
Our small fleet of five ships had taken down the largest fighting vessel we had ever known. A single Defender had taken an ion bolt that was exactly aligned with its external comm port, allowing a large portion of the ion stream to infiltrate the cockpit and destroy much of the engineer's console. It was a hole in our defenses that Rita would have to look at once we arrived, a flaw that had cost us one of our own.
The massive Milgari ship was in shambles. Seven of the eight ultra-powerful ion cannons had been destroyed, along with much of the interior superstructure. But the shell of the ship remained under power, and I had no doubt the Milgari were already beginning to rebuild her. It was a fight we would likely have to fight again. And one for which the Milgari would be better prepared.
When we landed on Bullwort, Rita and Gy were waiting to greet us.
Rita said, “George has located two more hulls and is in the process of procuring them. He also managed to recruit three more engineers. When the new hulls come online, we'll have crews ready for them. You said the Dagger took quite a beating. We are ready to get started with her rehab when... whoa... look at that nose.”
The Dagger landed with a thud. The Tantric armor on her nose was carbon black; her outer layers had fractured and burned from the direct hit. Gy ran his fingers through his hair as the once-beautiful, smooth bronze ships landed with blackened sections from battleship bolt strikes. He and Rita would be busy. It would take time to restore the Defenders to their former shine. Frig told them of our environmental blowout on the Swift.
We had been away for nearly five months of cramped quarters and packaged meals. I looked forward to dining in a restaurant where the food was prepared fresh and the drink was plentiful. I also looked forward to a good night’s sleep in a king-sized bed, where I could stretch out and roll over without fear of falling on a hard cabin floor. It was good to be home.
A memorial was immediately planned for Sandy. She had given her ultimate contribution in t
he Grid’s defense, yet only our team would be able to mourn. No others would know of her deed.
Gy and Rita set immediately to work on the repairs. The new pilots and engineers were conscripted into a labor pool that they could draw on at will. There was much to be done before the Defenders were once again ready for a fight. After seeing the battle scars and hearing of the action, the new team members were eager to help.
I told the four crews, as well as Frig, to take five days to blow off some steam in town. No mention was to be made of where we had been or what we had done. The people of Bullwort would not want to be involved in a war of any type. As far as they knew, we were miners who were digging and trading gemstones. We had not allowed inspections of our ships, nor had the Bullworties asked to do so. It was a perfect home base for our private war.