Battleship Destroyer (97 page)

"We don't have time for this right now damn it Pan."
Jack could not believe what he was hearing. "I thought you said they would fit… Pan?"

"
Yes Captain Turner, my people can have it done in minutes. We are good at this type of work."

"Pan
, the core hull his a load carrying structure that transfers the engines thrust up into the rest of the ship. If you cut too much of the core hull away to get that damn boat through, the engines could collapse the decks up through the core destroying the ship."

"Honorable Captain Turner. We are w
ell aware of the forces and are already reinforcing the core structure beyond its original specifications." Bowing before Jack. "Please trust us. We did not come this fare to die either from a stupid mistake. Let us do what is needed. We are running out of time Captain." 

Jack
let a low growl escape his gritted teeth and hit the comm. "Chief Williams, the aliens are going to do some quick modifications to the outer hatch and core hull of the boat bay to accommodate the transport boats. Help them as much as you can." The core hull and one of the outer hatches of each side by side bay suddenly flared in Jack's screens on opposite sides of the ship. A few seconds’ later holes opened up taking out the quarter section part of the core hull that extending into the bays to each side producing a straight line from hull hatch to hull hatch. He could see the mass of piping and wiring running up the core from the deck to the overhead where the core bulkhead had been as a mass of aliens descended on them.

"Shit!" He had forgotten the mass of control and power conduits running up the core. Slapping the comm again he watch
ed the large conduits and fluid pipes quickly fall away as the aliens stripped them out. Starting to cringe but when alarms did not start sounding from the damage control station Jack turned to look at the damage control screen on the back bulkhead. It showed control and service lines already routed around the breaks.

Turning back to the screens he watched as foam was sprayed around the lip of the hole
s cut into the core and outer hulls. They quickly grew into thick masses arching from the deck up to and across the overhead of the core and outer hatches. The outer hole in the hull already shimmered from the air curtain across it. Jack looked up as several torpedoes streaked past the ship as more fireball detonations appeared on large broken off hull sections of destroyed hulks a few miles away. The area was starting to resemble a junk yard around them. 

The
rectangular box hulled transport boats finally approached the ship's now mostly empty boat bays. The newly installed air curtain field now allowing the bays to stay pressurize as Jack noticed pieces of junk metal, plastic and paper sheets, boxes as well as general garbage flying around in the tornadoes of air rushing into the bays. The mass of crewmen and aliens ignoring the storm as they hurried to finish their duties. The growing mass of foam around the hole in the core hull had aliens standing around it with hand held boxes with flat panel antennas seeming to direct the growth of the foam. Other screens showed aliens swarming over the outer hulls of the big box hulled boats cutting off antennas, boxes, mounds and fins sticking out of the hulls and tossing them into the bay. The hulls were soon as smooth as blank walls as they laid their sides up against the landing cooling fins that extended strait out from each lock bay. Allowing them to line up perfectly with the bays.

A
nother hundred beams streaked past the ship and the fringes of the cloud looking like a forest. With no new explosions Jack looked over at the tactical screen. He could not see where any of the beams had hit anything except to punch holes in the growing cloud of reaction mass. "Ok, now that is unbelievable."

As the first boat started to back
up to the wide open lock, Jack watched dozens of marines rush up to the hatch and leap across the hull gap and the short distance between air fields into the open stern of the transport and the cargo hold packed with equipment, cargo boxes and aliens. The Marines spreading out checking aliens and boxes with scanners as both Red Apes and marines lined the lock with their weapons ready. More marines joined the growing force inside the transport boat. Jack had forbid the Red Apes from joining the initial assault checking the transport. The marines now had the translators in their suits and he did not want to risk the Red Apes being confused for any enemy Apes on the transport or worse, one of the Apes on the transport being mistaken as a Red Ape and missed.

Shaking his head
, Jack watched the huge boat slowly slide into the lock looking like it was part of a telescoping rod than a boat. He could see no gap between the boat and the lock’s overhead. The inner side toward the now gone core hull bulkhead looked like it had about two feet of clearance. While the row of storage compartment hatches along the other side of the bay into the storage bays curving around the outer hull had plenty of room to drive trucks along the side of the boat. Plenty of room to get at either the boat’s side hatches or the storage compartments, packed with boats and gigs lined up bow to stern with no way for most of them to be launched as long as the huge boat was in the way. Though Pan had said something about cutting hatches through the bulkheads between the compartments to connect them with the section of each bay that was still open.

The boat slowly slid in foot by
foot making Jack grimace at the time it was taking but he was starting to learn better than to complain. As tight as the fit was, it would be easy to get it stuck half in and then they really would be screwed. He was having second and third thoughts about letting the boats dock instead of simply unloading them. But it was too late to stop now he told himself for the tenth time and it was. Another mass of beams streaked around the fleet from the squadron rushing up on them.

The
second transport boat started backing in with marines flooding into it to make sure nothing was aboard that could hurt the ship and its crew.

The first boat slid past the camera pickup
blocking out most of the view with only a few inches separating the boat upper hull and the overhead of the lock. The side bulkhead had barely enough room for the Red Apes as they opened a side hatch in the boat and entered. "Godstar that is a big boat." Turning to look at the other boat backing in he noticed that it was stopped barely a quarter of the way in.

"Pan what is wrong with the second boat?"

"Sorry Captain but several nodes on the hull were not properly cut off and the boat must be pulled back out a few feet to complete the cutting."

"Damn it Pan. I thought you
r people were supposed to be better than that." Shaking his head as the boat slid back out of the lock a few feet. “Another few minutes and the enemy squadron will be close enough and at an angle to see us leave which could cost us all our lives. Damn. I should have just dumped the damn boats. Hell. I should have never agreed to wait for them in the first place."

"Captain.  Do you wish to dump the boat now or will you give us time to
at least empty our people off the boat into the lock?"

Turning to the stone faced Pan. "What the hell? Just get it fixed and the damn boat loaded
in the bay already. Hopefully I can come up with something that will get us out of this jam and keep them from seeing us leave." Pan's response to his ranting to reduce the tension he was feeling was not what he had expected but drove another nail into the maturity lesson of being a Captain. He was going to have to watch himself closely to keep from upsetting the aliens as well as the crew. After all Captains were not supposed to rant. He was going to have to figure out something else to do like take up smoking or drinking or drugs or knitting or something. Anything to learn to keep his mouth shut.

"Yes Captain." Pan turned away.

"Captain, man overboard." One of the crewmen at a console yelled.

"What the? Not now.
What's next? Deploy the rescue pod Number One."

Pan turned back to Jack. "Please Captain. This is a more humane death than being
tortured and executed in front of the clan. Let him go. His death will at least be peaceful as he remembers his loved ones and life before he dies."

Jack just
stared at Pan for a good half minute. "What?" He still could not believe what he had just heard.

Pan
finally continued. "He did not cut the entire hull hump away to bring the boat's hull into the proper dimensions to fit the lock." Pan looked stone faced at Jack. "He failed to perform his task properly."

"Oh come now Pan. Everyone has been running around like a rooster with its head cut off
and he took a short cut that did not work out. Give the guy a break. Just worry about getting that boat into the lock so we can get out of here."

"Captain Turner I again beg you for mercy. Let the Waroble go."

"Damn it pan. I am not going to let anyone just go drifting into the void to die in the vacuum of space just because you think it is humane."

The boat started sliding back into the lock. Glancing at it Jack smiled. "Good. Number One
prepare the ship for departure. Pan, how long until the inner core can support propulsion loads?"

"The core hull
is at its original strength. We are adding another 20% to both the core and hatch. The ship is ready when you are Captain Turner."

"Good let's get out of here."  Jack started tapping his fing
ers on the arm of his chair. More of the crew started looking at Jack starring at tactical. Finally he turned to the screen from the Admiral's barge. "It is stupid to leave a good crew behind even if it would take out a few more enemy ships. Comm, order the barge to return to the ship. I am not leaving them behind to die."

"Jack." The Ensign turned to Jack. "The barge crew is already dead. The fusion blast gave them a lethal dose of radiation. They only have a few days to live even if you bring them back aboard. As it is
, we got a good dose and the ship's doctor will be issuing advisories to the crew outside the core to take their radiation pills now, not to get any x-rays for a while with shots for the whole crew as soon as we stand down from battle stations and supplements in our food for a  few weeks."

Jack closed his eyes and grimaced. "Damn."
Turning to the First Officer as the last boat cleared the outer hatch. "As soon as the recovery pod is back we are getting out of here. Weapons lay down a row of torpedoes between us and the fleet and detonate them as we leave, you have one gun salvo at the fleet just before we leave. Then secure all targeting emitters." Jack looked at the tactical screen as a hundred beams streaked past the ship. This time several hit the hulks around them. Still Jack stared at the screen.

Finally
explosions started appearing as torpedoes hit the sections of hulks and even the empty boats drifting around the area. The last torpedo hit one of the empty boats (they had jettisoned and programmed to randomly patrolling around the hulks until they left before heading out as one of 37 decoys, now 36), a few hundred yards from the ship sending a wave washing over the ship as Jack smiled. "Ok Number One, slide us out from behind this thing and point our ass toward the enemy. Weapons you have one high amp salvo at the flag ship. The new target Alpha. Make it good. They are running straight with their asses to the cloud. Should be an easy target" Slapping the com on the arm of his chair. "Chief, switch all generators to weapons but keep the engines hot. We will be leaving shortly. How long until that recovery pod is aboard?"

Six beams streaked from the ships guns toward the enemy. A few seconds later the lieutenant jumped out of his seat. "Direct hits on the fu… Sorry Captain but
only 5 of our 6 beams hit square on the target."

Jack could see that the beams had hit. The targeting screen showed it clearly. Jack glanced at the tactical screen and smiled again. "3, 2, 1
...”And pointed at the screen as explosions started appearing on the screen. "Let's see what 72 torpedoes up their butts’ can do."

"Captain 20 seconds tell the guns are recharged." Said the weapons office. "Permission to fire again?"

"What? Already?" Jack looked at the tactical screen that showed that no torpedoes were heading their way and the next enemy gun salvo was 40 seconds away. "Permission granted. Make it count. Full spread of decoys times 4 now. Start dumping dumb flash bombs until engine start."

"Captain, tactical, we have 23 torpedo hits on target Alpha and a
, 4 or 5 on each of the other 6. No, 12 hits on the target nearest the Command ship sir."

"Firing Main Guns in 3,
2, Shoot." Six beams streaked out towered the enemy squadron's Command ship again.

"Captain, Bay control, Rescue pod
is 2 minutes until it is back aboard sir.

"What the hell."   Looking up at nothing in particular as he mumbled to himself. "Number one lets jump back behind the hulk again."

The Red Pepper slid back under cover a few seconds before another deluge of beams streaked past them. "OK. We may as well get some more target practice in. Number One, slide us back out. Weapons see what you can do."

"What the hell are you doing
Turner? Get out of there."

Weapons, split your guns half with th
e Spider that was hit with a dozen torpedoes. Let's see if we get lucky." Six beams streaked out toward the enemy squadron.